The Oklahoma City Thunder wraps up a stretch of four games in five nights with a trip to Chicago to face the Bulls. Expect Thunder forward Kevin Durant to play as coach Billy Donovan has no plans to sit the former MVP after foot problems forced him to miss most of last season. Durant and Russell Westbrook will give the Bulls all they can handle in this inter-conference matchup featuring title wannabes.
SCHEDULING
The Thunder travels to Chicago for a confrontation with the Bulls playing their fourth game in five nights. OKC opened with a thumping of the Nuggets at home on Sunday before heading to Houston and allowing the Rockets to get their first win of the season on Monday. A day off Tuesday had the team back in Oklahoma City where they played Toronto on Wednesday and the run concludes Thursday in the Windy City. The big three of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka are all averaging better than 32 minutes of playing time, and while it shouldn’t be too much of a concern early in the year, the grind could affect them down the line. Coach Billy Donovan hasn’t publicly discussed any plans on minutes for his guys, but it should be addressed sooner rather than later. The Bulls, on the other hand, had Wednesday off and have yet to play a back-to-back this season.
INJURIES
Chicago guard Kirk Hinrich has played just five minutes in one of the team’s first three games as he continues to deal with a toe injury. Derrick Rose’s eyesight is forcing him to change his game. Rose suffered a broken orbital bone and underwent surgery after taking an elbow to the face during the preseason. His vision is still blurred and wearing a protective mask has made him more of a distributor than scorer so far this season. “There’s no point shooting the ball if I can’t see,” he said.
KEY MATCHUP
The inside outside duo of Durant and Westbrook makes the Thunder tough to beat on any night. And as long as the two are healthy OKC is a legitimate threat to make some noise in the Western Conference. Not surprising the Thunder is riding the two horses, but hopefully Donovan doesn’t run them into the ground. They both are averaging over 36 minutes per game and 30 points while accounting for better than 50 percent of the teams points. And while this would be good time to give Durant and his creaky foot some rest being the fourth game in five nights, Donovan has no plans to sit the 2014 league MVP. Just in case there were any questions about his health, Durant played 54 minutes in a double-overtime win over Orlando, scoring 43 points. The Bulls continue to play an Eastern Conference grinder style and the defense remains solid even though Tom Thibodeau is no longer coaching. Look for Joakim Noah to be assigned the task of slowing down Durant while Jimmy Butler likely gets the challenge of handling Westbrook. Chicago will slow the game down to try and keep the score from reaching the century mark and that will limit opportunities for Durant and Westbrook. Playing the under on their scoring totals looks like the smart play here.
ODDS AND PREDICTION
Even with a new coach the Bulls are playing the style of basketball that has made them a contender in the Eastern Conference. Chicago’s team oriented style is getting everybody involved and Nikola Mirotic has emerged as a major scoring threat. Just adding to the firepower the team already has with Rose, Butler and Pau Gasol. Heck, even Doug McDermott has seen some playing time after riding the bench much of last NBA season. Fred Hoiberg was hired to replace Thibodeau and shake things up, but the Bulls are much the same team. They rely on defense first and will play a number of close games. The Thunder is a completely different team with Durant in the lineup and they want to score, so this sets up to be an intriguing inter-conference battle. OKC is playing its fourth game in five nights while the Bulls are a rested group. Look for Chicago to win the game plan battle and hold the Thunder below its season scoring average to get the home win.
Chicago 103, Oklahoma City 99
Need to fund your account before the big game but don’t have your computer? No problem, BookMaker Sportsbook now offers a mobile betting cashier so you can deposit money directly from your smartphone. Don’t miss out on getting paid because you couldn’t bet, click here and deposit at BookMaker now! The contest between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Chicago Bulls will take place Thursday, November 5, 2015, at 8 p.m. ET at the United Center. The contest will be broadcast nationally on TNT.
