The Bulls hit the road for their first extended trip of the young season and look for someone to carry the team while former MVP Derrick Rose deals with blurry vision after surgery during the preseason. Rose will need to focus on the Suns talented backcourt duo of Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight if Chicago wants to escape with a win. You can bet on NBA odds at BookMaker.eu every day of the season.
LOOK AHEAD
The Bulls begin a four-game road trip with their contest in the desert and have nine days to finish it off. No back-to-backs and plenty of time between stops should leave Chicago with no excuses. The Bulls might be peaking ahead, though, with a game at Golden State coming up Friday. The Bulls handed the Warriors one of their two regular season home losses last season with an overtime decision and Chicago could get a better idea of how they stack up against the rest of the league with that game. New coach Fred Hoiberg is still tinkering with his lineup and rotations trying to find the right combination of players to get them on a roll, and the team’s first extended road trip will give him plenty of time to work on it.
The Suns are faced with an opposite scenario, finishing off a four-game homestand before a quick three-game trip in four nights. It’s been a home-heavy opening to the season for Phoenix with eight of their first 11 games played at home. The Suns play at Denver on Friday before a back-to-back at New Orleans and San Antonio beginning Sunday. Phoenix is expected to be fighting for a final playoff spot so winning at home is vital. They knocked off the Bulls in the desert last season and a victory Wednesday would be a nice send off.
INJURIES
While he continues to play and says he’s feeling more comfortable on the floor, Chicago’s Derrick Rose is still dealing with the side effects from his orbital fracture. Rose wears a protective mask and is experiencing blurred vision. He’s struggled to find his rhythm early in the season averaging just 12.6 points – down nearly eight points per game from his career average.
Suns forward Markieff Morris missed Saturday’s game with a sprained left knee and is questionable heading into action this week. Jon Leuer started in his place against the Nuggets. The absence of Morris not only takes a big-body defender out of the lineup, also gone are 13 points and five rebounds per game.
KEY MATCHUP
Former MVP Rose continues to deal with complications from preseason surgery to repair a fractured orbital bone, and as he struggles with blurred vision as a side effect, he offered a plan for how Chicago should best deal with his offensive struggles during his recovery. Have Jimmy Butler shoot more and take a bigger role on offense. Butler led the Bulls in a win over the Hornets, scoring 20 of his team-high 27 points in the second half and being aggressive getting to the free throw line. Butler leads the team in scoring this season after he was the top scorer in 2014-15. He’s already scored better than 23 points five times through the Bulls’ first nine games. With the blessing of Rose, expect Butler to be more of a threat than he already is. And facing a Suns backcourt that doesn’t play defense well, he could be the center piece in directing Chicago’s offense. With Pau Gasol, Nikola Mirotic, Taj Gibson and Kirk Hinrich, as well as Rose, the Bulls have plenty of weapons, which makes keying on Butler difficult. If he gets some isolation sets with Knight or Bledsoe defending, Butler can shoot over or drove around to get his scoring opportunities.
ODDS AND PREDICTION
Phoenix has an impressive backcourt with Knight and Bledsoe, and acquiring Tyson Chandler to fill the middle was a shrewd move. But the Suns are lacking at the forward spots and haven’t yet developed a bench. Playing a schedule loaded with home games at the start of the NBA season was beneficial for the club to get acquainted and get some wins. Finishing off the run of home games with a win before hitting the road for three games in four nights is crucial and the Suns always play Chicago tough at home. The Bulls are still a work in progress under Hoiberg and will be for some time. With so many moving parts the rookie coach is trying to work on getting the best lineup. That’ll take time with few minutes to pass around. Also, Rose continues to deal with side effects from his preseason surgery and until he’s 100 percent, the Bulls won’t be.
Phoenix 111, Chicago 106
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