The wheels could be falling off the Chicago Bulls just a bit. They've lost three of their last four games, and they're about to start a seven-game road trip, five of which are on the West Coast. The first of those games comes against the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center.
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SCHEDULING
The only good news for Chicago is that this game comes in a nice spot on the docket. The Bulls have a couple days off to get ready for life on the West Coast after losing at home to Miami, and there are two days between games against the Lakers and the Clippers.
Live bettors should be encouraged going forward in this one, knowing that the Chicago offense should have some legs again after looking dead against the Heat on Monday night.
The Lakers are riding a six-game losing streak in which they've been beaten by double digits each time. They'll have a date with the Mavs on Tuesday at home before welcoming the Bulls to Tinseltown. This is the front end of a back-to-back, but live bettors shouldn't concern themselves much with that.
KEY MATCHUP
Part of the reason the Bulls were so sluggish on Monday is because Derrick Rose only played 13 minutes before leaving with a hamstring injury. With Kirk Hinrich dealing with a quad problem and E'Twaun Moore facing a hamstring issue of his own, the backcourt is really thinned out for Fred Hoiberg.
Aaron Brooks and Jimmy Butler are being forced to play massive minutes in the backcourt right now, and that might not be the best recipe here against the Lakers. D'Angelo Russell is starting to get more and more time on the court, and with six straight games with at least a dozen points scored, he could be set to go off, and live bettors should be ready for that to happen.
KEY STATS & TRENDS
The Lakers have had a miserable time starting games of late. They've been outscored by at least nine points four times in their last six games in the first quarter alone, and that really hasn't given live bettors much in the way of time to bet against them.
Third quarters have also been a huge problem. For the season, LA is getting outscored by 3.2 points per game in the third, a problem which has been exacerbated of late. The Lakers have been outscored in these last six third quarters by an average score of 33-23, losing each third quarter by at least four points.
In that span, they've allowed at least 29 points each time and have scored more than 25 just once.
The Bulls have played consecutive under games heading into this one, and the problem clearly is coming from the backcourt. They've put up more than 25 points just once in their last nine quarters of play, and they haven't shot the ball over 50 percent in any given quarter along the way.
Live bettors should be ready for all of that to change, knowing that this is a team capable of putting up 120 in this one, particularly against one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA.
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Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The matchup between the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers will start at 10:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, January 28, 2016 at the Staples Center. The matchup will be televised nationally on TNT.
