NEWSLETTER
Please snap this losing streak. Please snap this losing streak. Please snap this losing streak. Please snap this losing streak. Please snap this losing streak. Please snap this losing streak …
Game Info
Chicago Bulls (39-25) at Philadelphia 76ers – 6:00 p.m. CT on NBC Sports Chicago (TV) and 670 The Score (Radio)
Projected Starters
Chicago Bulls
1. Ayo Dosunmu
2. Zach LaVine
3. DeMar DeRozan
4. Javonte Green
5. Tristan Thompson
Injury Report: Lonzo Ball OUT (knee), Alex Caruso OUT (wrist), Patrick Williams OUT (wrist), Nikola Vucevic OUT (hamstring)
Philadelphia 76ers
1. James Harden
2. Tyrese Maxey
3. Matisse Thybulle
4. Tobias Harris
5. Joel Embiid
Injury Report: Paul Millsap OUT (personal)
Odds
The Bulls walk into tonight at -7.0 point undergo to the 76ers, per FanDuel Illinois Sportsbook and the PointsBet Illinois Sportsbook. Click on either link to sign up and pick the Bulls to cover (… or pick the opposite, I guess …)!
You can also place some no-brainer bets for tonight’s game with this BetMGM Illinois promo code. For example, a $10 wager could net $200 in bonuses if either team hits a 3-pointer. Yes, you read that right.
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— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) March 7, 2022
What to Watch For …
• Please, get to the free-throw line. In large part thanks to the ridiculously talented Joel Embiid, the 76ers average the 4th-most free-throw attempts per game. The Bulls have had a huge fouling issue in recent weeks, sending teams to the line for at least 26 attempts in each of the previous five games. Even more troubling, they have struggled mightily to get their own freebies, shooting no more than 11 in each of the past two games. Let’s hope Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan can get things trending in the opposite direction this evening by attacking downhill from the jump.
• Someone on the Bulls bench is going to have to step up. Niang and Korkmaz have kept the 76ers’ offense flowing in previous games thanks to their downtown shooting in the second unit. I’d suspect one or the other to make a similarly solid contribution tonight, putting pressure on Coby White to provide his own strong boost when the stars are off the floor.
• Can Zach LaVine keep a good thing rolling? The Bulls All-Star looked like his old self on Friday night with 30 points against the Milwaukee Bucks, and his team will likely need the same kind of performance tonight to keep up with this 11th-ranked 76ers offense. That will be a lot easier said than done with the elite perimeter defense of Matisse Thybulle on the opposite side of the ball, but I believe!
• If the Chicago Bulls don’t have Nikola Vucevic tonight … it’s hard to see this game staying truly competitive. While the big man has struggled at times this season, he can still put up a strong fight on the defensive glass and help keep Embiid out of the paint as the Bulls’ offense attacks.
UPDATE: Vucevic has officially been ruled out, so get ready for A LOT of Tristan Thompson. The big man has what it takes to give Embiid some physical minutes, but Vooch’s absence will be felt in both the rebounding and floor spacing department. Without a huge game from LaVine or DeRozan, the Bulls will likely be headed toward five-straight L’s.
• A lot more in here …
Trying to Avoid the Sweep, Transition Talent, the Good and the Bad, and Other Bulls Bulletshttps://t.co/l4fhrauyYu pic.twitter.com/H9S6SQIDO6
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) March 7, 2022
