Chicago Bulls (34-38) at Portland Trail Blazers (32-40) – 9:00 p.m. CT on NBC Sports Chicago (TV) and 670 The Score (Radio)
Projected Starting Lineups
Chicago Bulls
Patrick Beverley
Alex Caruso
Zach LaVine
Patrick Williams
Nikola Vučević
Injury Report: Alex Caruso PROBABLE (foot), Javonte Green QUESTIONABLE (knee), DeMar DeRozan OUT (quad), Lonzo Ball OUT (knee)
Portland Trail Blazers
Damian Lillard
Matisse Thybulle
Shaedon Sharpe
Nassir Little
Trendon Watford
Injury Report: Nassir Little PROBABLE (concussion), Damian Lillard OUT (calf), Jusuf Nurkic OUT (knee), Anfernee Simons OUT (foot), Jerami Grant (quad)
Odds
The Bulls come into tonight’s game as 4.5-point favorites against the Trail Blazers at PointsBet Illinois Sportsbook and FanDuel Illinois Sportsbook. Click on either link to sign up and pick the Bulls to cover (… or pick the opposite …)!
What to Watch For
Well for starters, I’m watching for the Bulls to score a point in the first 4:30 of tonight’s game! Let’s not let the opponent jump out to a 17-0 lead again. Sound good?
All right but seriously, the Bulls have to get off to a better start tonight. Monday in Philly they got off to a slow start offensively, but the defense was good enough to keep it close and Philly was ice-cold shooting the ball. Wednesday the Bulls started out slow offensively, and Philly wasn’t ice cold. We know how that one went. We’re going to need to see a faster start tonight and the Bulls to play with more pace out of the gate against a very banged-up and shorthanded Portland team.
The Bulls will also be a little shorthanded tonight. DeMar DeRozan will be out of the lineup after exiting Wednesday’s game with a quad injury – the same quad that caused him to miss 4 games earlier this season. But as DeMar comes out of the lineup, the Bulls do get a little bit of help with Alex Caruso returning from his foot injury.
Definitely looking for a bounceback effort from LaVine tonight. He’s been pretty awesome since the All-Star break, but both performances against Philly weren’t his best or most efficient. He’s just 2 for his last 11 from three, that’s something that’s going to need to improve. After shooting at around a 60% rate from the field since the All-Star break, he shot just 40% in his last two games. With DeMar sidelined, it’s Zach’s show. Want to see him take over.
I mentioned it earlier, but Portland is incredibly banged up. Simons and Grant are both out. Nurkic is doubtful. Lillard is questionable but I’d be surprised if he didn’t play. The Blazers have lost 6 of 7, and with the Bulls pushing for the playoffs this has to be a win.
Matt is from the Chicagoland area and has been working in Chicago sports since 2015 with stops at WGN Radio, the Chicago Blackhawks, Stadium, and NBC Sports Chicago prior to landing at Betsperts. Matt covers just about everything for Betsperts and Bleacher Nation but focuses on the NHL and college football.
Coby White will not be taking home any hardware after his breakout season. The Chicago Bulls guard was in the running for the NBA's Most Improved Player award this season, finishing as one of three finalists for the honor. However,...
Changes are already underway for the Chicago Bulls According to The Athletic's Shams Charania, the Bulls coaching staff is due for a shuffle. HOF player and long-time coach Maurice Cheeks is reportedly leaving his position as a full-time member of...
The 2024 NBA Draft is fast approaching! We're just about two months away from the NBA's premier offseason event. While we don't quite know the order of the teams selecting yet, we're starting to get commitments on who will be...
Nikola Jokic's brothers are in some hot water. During Game 2 of the first-round series between the Nuggets and Lakers, Jokic's brothers could be seen forcefully climbing down a row of seats to confront a fellow fan. A video posted...
After watching the Knicks hit back-to-back 3-pointers to steal the lead and Jamal Murray nail a nasty game-winning mid-range buzzer-beater, I was reminded of how special playoff basketball can be. Of course, I was also reminded of how we haven't...
In case you were sleeping - which let's be honest a lot of us probably were - Jamal Murray hit an awesome buzzer-beater to give the Nuggets a 101-99 Game 2 win over the Lakers. Murray's game-winner was the icing...
The New York Knicks just took a 2-0 lead over the Philadelphia 76ers in a sequence you'll just have to see to believe. With roughly 30 seconds left on the clock down 101-96, the Knicks looked destined to walk out...
Arturas Karnisovas sat in front of the media on Saturday and vowed that changes are coming to the Chicago Bulls. However, one report immediately puts into question how significant those changes will be. NBC Sports Chicago's K.C. Johnson reported shortly...
The Athletic released their anonymous NBA player survey on Monday, and the Chicago Bulls were surprisingly well-represented. While not all 142 players answered every question, the sample size is still large enough to get a pretty decent understanding of how...
Michael Jordan can't stop winning. The Chicago Bulls legend got a victory at Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. His racing team – 23XI Racing – took home the Cup Series victory thanks to Tyler Reddick's driving. While his crew has taken home...
The Oklahoma City Thunder take a 1-0 series record into Game 2 of the opening round of the NBA Playoffs. The Thunder are favored by 7.5 points in the contest, which airs on TNT at 9:30 PM ET. The over/under...
The Nashville Predators are solid favorites (-130) at home versus the Vancouver Canucks (+110) on Friday at 7:30 PM ET.Predators vs. Canucks Favorite, Moneyline, TotalFavorite: Predators (-130)Underdog: Canucks (+110)Total: 5.5Best Predators vs. Canucks Promo Codes[lasso type="table" id="1"]How to Watch Predators...
The Colorado Avalanche are moderate favorites (-166) at home against the Winnipeg Jets (+140) on Friday at 10:00 PM ET.Avalanche vs. Jets Favorite, Moneyline, TotalFavorite: Avalanche (-166)Underdog: Jets (+140)Total: 6.5Best Avalanche vs. Jets Promo Codes[lasso type="table" id="1" link_id="1595686"]How to Watch...
The Atlanta Braves (16-6), led by Marcell Ozuna, host Luis Arraez and the Miami Marlins (6-19) at 7:20 PM ET on Wednesday.Keep reading to see how to watch the Atlanta-Miami matchup below.When is Braves vs. Marlins and when does it...
On Wednesday at 6:40 PM ET, Connor Joe and the Pittsburgh Pirates (13-11) take on William Contreras and the Milwaukee Brewers (14-8) at PNC Park.Find out how to watch the Pittsburgh-Milwaukee matchup below.When is Pirates vs. Brewers and when does...
Carlos Carrasco will take the mound for the Cleveland Guardians (17-6) when they host starter Cooper Criswell and the Boston Red Sox (13-11) on Wednesday, with first pitch at 6:10 PM ET.If you're trying to watch this game, keep reading...
The Tampa Bay Lightning are -110 on the moneyline versus the Florida Panthers (-110) on Thursday, with this tight-looking game taking place at Amalie Arena in Tampa.Lightning vs. Panthers Favorite, Moneyline, TotalFavorite: Lightning (-110)Underdog: Panthers (-110)Total: 6Best Lightning vs. Panthers...
The New York Rangers and Washington Capitals face off on Friday at Capital One Arena in Washington, and the sportsbooks give a big edge to the away team (-180) over the host (+150).Rangers vs. Capitals Favorite, Moneyline, TotalFavorite: Rangers (-180)Underdog:...
Blake Snell takes the ball for the San Francisco Giants (12-13) when they host starter Sean Manaea and the New York Mets (12-11) at 3:45 PM ET on Wednesday.Keep reading to see how to watch the San Francisco-New York matchup...
Dean Kremer will take the mound for the Baltimore Orioles (15-8) when they visit starter Tyler Anderson and the Los Angeles Angels (10-14) in a rubber match on Wednesday, with first pitch at 4:07 PM ET.Keep reading to find out...
NEWSLETTER
