Chicago Bulls (40-42) at Toronto Raptors (41-41) – 6:00 p.m. CT on ESPN (TV) and 670 The Score (Radio)
Projected Starting Lineups
Chicago Bulls
Patrick Beverley
Alex Caruso
Zach LaVine
DeMar DeRozan
Nikola Vučević
Injury Report: None
Toronto Raptors
Fred VanVleet
OG Anunoby
Scottie Barnes
Pascal Siakam
Jakob Poeltl
Injury Report: None
Odds
The Bulls come into tonight’s game as 6-point underdogs against the Raptors at PointsBet Illinois Sportsbook and at 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, after what seemed inevitable for a while, it’s officially Play-In time. The Bulls head tip-off with the Raptors tonight against probably the worst-case scenario in terms of an opponent for the Play-In. But they only have to win ONE game against Toronto to stay alive. This certainly isn’t what most expected for the Bulls when the season tipped off or anywhere near what we hoped for, but postseason basketball is postseason basketball. Survive and advance tonight in Toronto.
The Raptors are a really tough matchup for the Bulls. They’re tough and physical. They’re fantastic on the boards, especially in terms of offensive rebounding. They’re really long defensively which gives the Bulls issues, especially with the smaller starting lineup. The Bulls have also been really good defensively since the All-Star break, so there’s a reason why the game total tonight is low at 212.5. The Bulls defensively are going to need to make the Raptors work, and they’re going to have to force turnovers. Winning the turnover battle and then turning those into points in transition will give the Bulls their best shot.
Another thing the Bulls need is the real DeMar DeRozan to please stand up. He hasn’t been bad n the second half of the season, but he also hasn’t seemed totally right since missing four games with a hip injury. Thankfully Zach LaVine’s game erupted at that point and he’s carried the load offensively, but DeMar is going to need to finally get the better of his old team tonight after they’ve given him problems all year.
Both teams are pretty bad from beyond the arc this season, so if one team can have a hot night that’s going to go a long way. Coby White has been great off the bench the last couple of months, and a hot-shooting night from deep tonight could go a long way toward getting the Bulls a date with the Heat for the final playoff spot.
While the Raptors are a tough matchup, they really struggle offensively too. If the Bulls best players are on their game tonight, it’s going to be tough for Toronto to score with the Bulls. The formula is there for Chicago. Fast start, force turnovers, make threes. Let’s see if they can execute.
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.
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NEWSLETTER
