Chicago is at home and hopes to give Cleveland a competitive game but figures to be the underdog against a supremely talented opponent.
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Odds Analysis
The Bulls are 10-6 straight up and 11-5 against the spread. Chicago has covered in four of five home games this season and figure to get some points as it aims to successfully cover another spread.
The Cavaliers lead the East with a straight up record of 13-2 as they aim to win the conference again and defend their NBA title. The Cavs are 6-8-1 against the spread this season. Cleveland has been the favorite in all but one game this season and will be so again.
Player to Watch
Jimmy Butler - The Bulls’ forward has continued to improve and now looks like one of the best players in the NBA. Butler is averaging 25.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. With the offseason departure or Derrick Rose, Butler is the clear leader of the Bulls and has done a really nice job taking those reins.
Dwyane Wade has been a nice complementary piece, but there’s no doubt the team is Butler’s. He’s also a really good defender and could be tasked with guarding LeBron James. Nobody can stop James, but Butler will do his best to make him work hard on offense and defense.
The Bulls’ best shot at winning is if Butler can excel but it’s an extremely tough matchup against the NBA’s best player.
Scheduling Situation
The Bulls do catch a break in that the Cavaliers are on the back-end of two games in two nights and three in four. Cleveland is clearly the more talented team but if the players’ legs are heavy at all it could certainly benefit the Bulls.
Cleveland’s players are mostly young and it is still early in the season so the unfortunate scheduling may not be a huge deal. However, this combined with the fact that the Bulls are at home could even the playing field some.
While Chicago is not as talented of a team, it is still four games over .500 in the earlygoing and could challenge the Cavaliers in this one. The Bulls need these little advantages and luckily they are stacking up.
Free NBA ATS Picks
The Cavs have not missed a beat since winning last year’s championship, rolling out to the best record in the conference. It’s not a surprise as the core of the team returned and James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love form the foundation of a talented group.
There isn’t a clear-cut contender to Cleveland in the West, and the Bulls would love to join the Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics to be considered in that role. Chicago has gotten off to a nice start but this game could tell a lot about this group.
The Bulls made some big changes this offseason and so far the returns are good. A win over the Cavaliers would really turn some head, but that may be too much to ask in this one.
Expect Chicago to keep this close since it gets this one at home, but in the end Cleveland should come away with the hard-fought road win. Take a look at the spread when it is released because the Bulls may be able to cover it even in a loss.
NBA Odds: Cavaliers 103, Bulls 98
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