NBA Basketball Matchup: Bulls vs 76ers
A lot can change in a week. Last week the Chicago Bulls were wrapping up the best record in the Eastern Conference and seemed destined for a spot in the conference finals and maybe more.
Chicago Bulls (1-1) vs Philadelphia 76ers (1-1)
Friday May 4th
Comcast Center – Philadelphia, PA
8:00PM
Moneyline: Philadelphia -120, Chicago +105
Spread: Philadelphia -1.5
O/U: 179.5
Chicago
Then Derrick Rose went down and now they look like getting out of the first round could be a stretch. They have lost Rose and home court advantage now after a 17 point loss as 6.5 point favourites.
The really depressing aspect of the loss was the lack of defensive effort by the Bulls. Rose is a good athlete but he is hardly what sets the tone for them on the defensive end. In his place John Lucas and CJ Watson dropped in a combined 27 points while Joakim Noah was surprisingly good offensively with 21 points on just 11 shots. He is not going to lead this team where they want to go by scoring the ball. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Philadelphia
The Philadelphia 76ers road effort against Chicago was a huge surprise. Not only did they win by 17 points but they shot nearly 60% from the field for the game. They completely dominated the third quarter and then coasted down the stretch for the win. I don’t know if they can do it again on command but it was an amazing performance.
Heading back home they have to like that guards Jrue Holiday and Louis Williams may have found their game. Both are streaky players with who are shooting the ball well. Through two games Evan Turner is also showing his potential leading the team in assists while scoring 15 points per game with 5 boards. I know it is unfair but his all around game is reminding me of Scottie Pippen in his prime.
Spread Pick: Philadelphia -1.5
O/U Pick: Over
Score Prediction: Philadelphia 94 – Chicago 90
