Chicago Bulls vs Brooklyn Nets Prediction: Can DeRozan and Bulls stall the unbeatable Nets' charge?

NBA is on and as usual, this has been a season full of various storylines where players are staking it all, putting their bodies under the line, and engaging in nonstop action. Thus, this is one of the most stacked leagues, 30 teams, each playing 82 games makes for a long long season. And in another game of the long season, the Chicago Bulls will take on the Brooklyn Nets.

Chicago Bulls

The Bulls continued the trend of losing close games and suffered a 134:145 Overtime defeat at the hands of the Cavaliers despite a 44 points outing by DeMar DeRozan. This loss followed a one-point loss against Cavs too and the Bulls have lost four out of five games in Overtime. Before the twin losses to the Cavaliers, they had a slightly rich window, winning five out of six games but the overall play has led them to 21 losses and just 16 wins. This is a continuation of the second half of the last season.

And again, the major similarity is not having Lonzo Ball. Yes, he wasn’t putting up earth-shattering numbers but his mere presence made the Bulls a cohesive unit. The Point Guard position isn’t abysmal with young Ayu Dosunmu at the offensive charge but the “X-Factor” play of Lonzo is missing. Zach LaVine has had another 20+ points scoring season but his impact is redundant at times. It is again all resting upon DeMar playing hero ball, a template that has started to fail for the struggling Bulls.

Brooklyn Nets

The Nets enter the game after defeating the Spurs 139:103 as Kyrie Irving smacked home 29 points. This was the twelfth win in a row for the Nets which have won 16 out of their last 17 games and now have 25 wins and 12 losses, recovering after a 9 wins and 11 losses record. The surge can be traced back to late November when Kyrie Irving became active again and thus the duo of KD and Irving, alongside a committed defensive bunch, is propelling the Nets to heights that have been expected for so many years.

The duo of Irving and Durant can chalk up 50 points a night and thus, the rest of the unit just needs to make their open shots rather than focus upon creating the offense. On defense, Nic Claxton has elevated his game, averaging two and a half blocks per game while clamping down around 8 rebounds a game. Ben Simmons is more like a defensive stopper as his numbers have dwindled big time. Seth Curry, Joe Harris, Yuta Watanabe, and TJ Warren make for double-digit scoring threats whereas Royce O’Neale has given tremendous hustle.

Injuries

• Bulls: OUT: Lonzo Ball, Tony Bradley, JaVonte Green. PROBABLE: Andre Drummond;
• Nets: PROBABLE: Markieff Morris, Royce O’Neale.

Player Props Predictions

• Expected Leading Scorers: DeMar DeRozan(33-38 Points), Kyrie Irving(26-31 Points), Kevin Durant(24-31 Points);
• Expected Leading Rebounders: Nikola Vucevic(10-13 Rebounds), Kevin Durant(7-9 Rebounds);
• Expected Leading Playmakers: Ben Simmons(6-9 Assists), DeMar DeRozan(4-7 Assists).

Expert Betting Tips

The isolation talent in this game is indeed heavy but the major difference between the Nets and the Bulls is that they the former doesn’t play close games but rather put their stamp early on and get big wins. The Bulls’ inability to build leads and maintain them is something that the Nets can exploit, however, it must be noted that this Bulls team has also shown immense fight late in the game. I see another close affair for the Bulls and I predict an upset here with a scoreline of 125:122 in favor of the Bulls.