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The top team in the East, Chicago Bulls, will travel to Boston to play the underperforming Boston Celtics Saturday night. It's time to continue our NBA odds series with a Bulls-Celtics prediction and pick.
The Boston Celtics are coming off a bad loss to the Philadelphia 76ers Friday night. They have fallen back under .500 once again and now sit at 21-22 on the season. That puts them as the current 11-seed in the East, missing the playoffs if it were to end today. That is something we are not used to seeing, as the Celtics need to quickly turn things around if they want to be competitive.
As for the Chicago Bulls, they continue to dominate this year as the No. 1 seed in the East. They have a 27-12 record but are coming off two awful losses to two very good teams. The Bulls lost 138-112 against the Brooklyn Nets and then 138-96 against the Golden State Warriors (arguably the two most talented teams in the NBA.) They should quickly let that go as they prepare for a favorable opponent, but one that could easily upset the Bulls.
Here are the Bulls-Celtics NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Bulls-Celtics Odds
Chicago Bulls: +6 (-110)
Boston Celtics: -6 (-110)
Over: 215.5 (-110)
Under: 215.5 (-110)
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Why The Bulls Could Cover The Spread
The Bulls shouldn't have a problem covering this spread for multiple reasons. One, the Celtics are just not playing to their potential right now. Two, the Bulls are one of the top teams in the NBA this season and have proven to beat anyone. And lastly, Celtics' top defender Marcus Smart will not play against the Bulls. Those are three big things that prove the Bulls can cover this spread. I'm not sure why the Bulls are being given six points on the road here, but either way, they have a chance of winning this game.
Something the Bulls need to worry about is the availability of guard Zach Lavine, who left the game against the Warriors with a knee injury. He likely will not play against the Celtics so that forces some other names to have to step up. Luckily for them, DeMar DeRozen is playing at an MVP caliber pace right now, and he should be enough to help lead the Bulls past the struggling Celtics. The Bulls also would like to see Alex Caruso return to the team, but it is unclear when they will actually happen.
Why The Celtics Could Cover This Spread
The Celtics are favored by six points at home here. That is a rather large spread for a team that isn't playing well, and one that is hosting the top seed in the East. This will be a great matchup to watch, however, as Jayson Tatum will be going head-to-head with DeRozen. Both Tatum and DeRozen average 25 points per game and are some of the leading scorers in the NBA this season. The Bulls can't forget about Jaylen Brown, though, as he averages 24.4 points per game. If Brown and Tatum can score and get to the basket will ease, then that will propel the Celtics in this one.
If Boston wants to cover this spread, they will desperately need to stop DeRozen and also Nikola Vucevic (who is one of the top offensive centers in the NBA). The Celtics will need to rely on Robert Williams III to shut him down and if that happens, then they will have a chance to cover this spread.
Final Bulls-Celtics Prediction & Pick
This isn't an easy one to pick. Both teams are coming off horrible losses but the Bulls did lose one of their top-scoring threats. That could really hurt them in this game, but I don't think Lavine's absence will be that bad for the Bulls in this one. Boston is struggling and I think the Bulls can still find a way to cover this spread on the road. Take the Bulls here as there doesn't seem like a way for the Celtics to win this game by at least six points.
Final Bulls-Celtics Prediction & Pick: Bulls +6 (-110)
