The Chicago Bulls hit the road and travel to Philadelphia where they take on the new Eastern Conference betting favorites Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night.
Chicago has dropped from the top of the East to 4th place with their recent struggles. The Bulls are just 6-4 SU in their last 10 games played and have lost four in a row heading to this contest. In their last game, the Bulls were beaten by the defending champions Milwaukee Bucks 118-112 last Friday night.
Meanwhile, the Sixers are streaking to the top of the East right now. Philadelphia has moved to within three games of East leaders Miami and they have won 7 out of their last 10 games. Philadelphia lost to Miami in their last game 99-82 in their first loss in five games with James Harden on board. The Sixers are currently tied with the Bucks for second place but both are just one-half game ahead of Chicago.
Zach LaVine scored 30 points with 8 rebounds and 6 assists as he tried to carry the Bulls against the Bucks. DeMar DeRozan added 29 in the losing effort while Vucevic had 19 points and 9 rebounds. However, no other player scored in double digits for the Bulls who dropped their fourth consecutive game.
DeRozan has been Chicago’s leading scorer at 28.1 points per game this season and he’s shooting at a high 51.2% clip. LaVine is also having a fine year with 24.6 points per game while big man Vucevic is putting up a double-double with 17.9 points and 11.5 rebounds per game.
Chicago is 9th in the NBA in scoring at 112.5 points per game while they are 14th in passing at 24.3 assists per game. The Bulls are, however, just 28th in rebounding at 43.0 boards grabbed per contest. And they are in the bottom half of the league in scoring defense.
The Sixers suffered their first loss with James Harden after they were shut down to just 82 points by the Heat the last time out. Harden, of course, took the game off due to rest, and it was Embiid who had a big night with 22 points and 15 rebounds but he shot just 4-15 from the floor. Tyres Maxey added 17 while Tobias Harris put up 16 points for Philly.
MVP betting favorite Embiid leads the Sixers with 29.5 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, Harden’s averaging 26.8 points per game as a Sixer and Tobias Harris contributing 18.1 PPG. Maxey is putting up 17.4 points and 4.5 assists per game for Philadelphia.
The Sixers rank 20th in the league in scoring at just 108.3 points per game this season. Philadelphia is dead-last in rebounding at 42.1 boards grabbed per contest and 24th in passing at 23.1 assists per game. The 76ers are the 4th best defensive team in the NBA this season.
Chicago is 1-4 SU in their last five games played. The Bulls are 3-9 SU in their last 12 games played on the road. Philadelphia is 5-1 SU in their last six games played. The Sixers are 4-1 SU in their last five games played at home.
Head to head, the Sixers are 10-0 SU in their last 10 games played against the Bulls. Philadelphia is also 7-0 SU in their last seven home games against Chicago.
Both these teams are coming off bad losses. However, the Bulls have been in a funk in recent games as they are just 1-4 in their last five games played. Meanwhile, the Sixers are coming off a loss to the Heat but they won their first four games with James Harden before that.
The addition of James Harden has improved Philadelphia’s play. Joel Embiid continues to have an MVP season but it’s been the play of Tyrese Maxey that has benefited from Harden’s arrival. With the Sixers playing with three 20-point scorers now, they are tough to stop on offense although we saw the Heat shut them down the last time out, I don’t expect them to be shut down for a second straight game.
Philadelphia’s offense is so potent and explosive. The Bulls won’t be able to match Philly’s scoring prowess in this game.
Prediction: Philadelphia 76ers
The Bulls are 1-4 ATS in their last five games played. Chicago is 2-5-1 ATS in their last eight games played, 3-8 ATS in their last 11 road games against an opponent with a winning home record, 1-4 ATS in their last five games when playing on 2 days rest, 1-6 ATS in their last seven games against an opponent with a winning percentage better than .600, 0-4 ATS in their last four games when allowing more than 100 points in their previous game, 0-4 ATS in their last four games as betting underdogs, and 0-4 ATS in their last four games as road underdogs.
The Sixers are 4-2 ATS in their last six games played. Philadelphia is 6-3 ATS in their last nine games against the Central Division, 4-1 ATS in their last five games after a straight-up loss of more than 10 points, 4-1 ATS in their last five games as betting favorites, 4-1 ATS in their last five Monday games, 11-3 ATS in their last 14 games after an ATS loss, 7-2 ATS in their last nine games after a straight-up loss, and 5-2 ATS in their last seven games when their opponent scores 100 or more points in their previous game.
Head to head, the Sixers are 6-0 ATS in their last six games against the Bulls.
The Bulls are one of the best teams against the betting spread this season at 36-27-1 ATS while the Sixers are just 32-31 ATS. However, these teams have played three times this season and each time, the Sixers have won by at least six points. Chicago is on a four-game losing streak and during that stretch, they have lost by an average losing margin of 5.5 points.
Philly’s got an offensive juggernaut that Chicago won’t be able to match. This is a very high spread considering the Sixers’ ATS record. But given how well they have played in the Harden era, I trust the Sixers to cover the spread here on a big offensive night from their Big 3.
Prediction: Sixers -7
The total has gone under in four out of the last five games played by the Bulls. The under is 4-1 in their last five games against the Eastern Conference, 4-0 after scoring 100 or more points in their previous game, 4-1 after allowing more than 100 points in their previous game, 12-5-1 as the road underdog, 11-5-1 in their last 16 road games after a straight-up loss.
The total has gone over in six out of the Sixers’ last seven games played. The over is 4-0 in their last four games as betting favorites, 5-0 in their last five games when playing on one day rest, 5-1 in their last six games when their opponents score 100 or more points in their previous game, 5-1 in their last six games when their opponent allows 100 or more points in their previous game, 9-2 in their last 11 games against an opponent with a winning record, and 6-2 in their last eight games after a straight-up loss.
This is a tale of different teams with the Bulls having a positive over the record with their high-paced style and the Sixers having a positive under record by playing a slow pace game. Chicago is a top 10 scoring team but the Sixers are just 20th in that department.
In their first four games with Harden, the Sixers scored at least 123 points before they were limited to 82 by the Heat who have the 4th best defense in the league. However, with Chicago just 18th in scoring defense, expect the high-scoring Sixers team to show up here. The Philly offense is just too good to be shut down in consecutive games.
Prediction: Over 229
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