NBA Basketball Matchup: Celtics vs Bulls
Derrick Rose hasn’t played for a little over a week, and he is expected to miss this game as well.
8:00 PM EST on TNT
NBA Gambling Odds from BetOnline
NBA Betting Favorite: Off
Over/Under: Off
Still, the Celtics will have a difficult game against the Bulls in Chicago. Kevin Garnett missed last night’s game for the Celtics, and he is questionable for this one. These teams have split their last six meetings with each other. Boston beat the Bulls 95-91 on Sunday, so Chicago will be looking for revenge in this one.
Boston has benefited nicely from the return of point guard Rajon Rondo. Rondo is arguably the team’s best player at this point, and he is the facilitator for the offense. Rondo averages 9.8 assists per game. Paul Pierce leads the Celtics in scoring at 17.8 per contest. Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo, and Kevin Garnett all average about 14 points per game. Brandon Bass is out until the end of the month, and that is a significant loss for the Celtics in the paint. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Boston has been winning with defense of late. Last night’s loss to Detroit was unexplainable, and Boston will have to play much better if they expect to win this one on the road.
The Bulls miss Derrick Rose in a big way, but this is still a decent team without Rose. Luol Deng put up 23 points Tuesday against Sacramento, and he seems to be fully healthy once again.
Chicago has no shortage of quality big men with Joakim Noah, Carlos Boozer, Taj Gibson, and Omer Asik. Kyle Korver and C.J. Watson are both shooting it very well from deep this year for the Bulls, but it is much more difficult for them to get open looks without Rose in the lineup.
The Bulls are one of the best rebounding teams in the league, and they will need to control the glass to win this game.
The Bulls are 10-1 at home, and the Celtics are notoriously bad on the back end of a back-to-back. I think Chicago will dominate in the paint and win this one.
Prediction: Chicago 91 Boston 87
