The Chicago Bulls (6-8) visit the New Orleans Pelicans (8-6) on Wednesday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET. Below we continue our NBA odds series with a Bulls-Pelicans prediction and pick.
Chicago has lost four of its last five games heading into Wednesday's matchup and sits in 11th place in the Eastern Conference. The Bulls are 7-6-1 against the spread and 64% of their matchups have gone under. New Orleans has won two straight games after Tuesday night's victory over Memphis. The Pelicans are 7-7 against the spread while 57% of their matchups have gone over.
The two teams most recently faced off last week in Chicago. New Orleans took that matchup, 115-111. DeMar DeRozan led the way for the Bulls with 33 points, while Brandon Ingram paced the Pelicans with 22 points. New Orleans covered as two-point favorites and the under hit (232.5).
Here are the Bulls-Pelicans NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NBA Odds: Bulls-Pelicans Odds
Chicago Bulls: +3 (-110)
New Orleans Pelicans: -3 (-110)
Over: 226.5 (-110)
Under: 226.5 (-110)
Why The Bulls Could Cover The Spread
Chicago has been the definition of an average team thus far despite a tough battle with injuries and a brutal schedule to begin the season. The Bulls feature a below-average offense (19th in scoring/ 21st in offensive efficiency) that is propped up by their above-average defense (11th in points allowed/ 10th in defensive efficiency). Chicago is a solid rebounding team (15th in rebounding rate) but has struggled to take care of the ball at times (21st in turnovers per game).
Offensively, Chicago is led by a pair of talented wings in DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine. DeRozan leads the Bulls with 23.9 PPG and 4.2 APG while shooting 50.9% from the field. DeMar's best attribute, however, has to be his affinity for the charity stripe. DeRozan attempts 8.2 free throws per game (10th in the league) while nailing them at an 88.7% clip. While the Pelicans have perimeter defenders capable of matching up with DeRozan, having LaVine in the mix as well gives Chicago a huge advantage. He played admirably in last week's matchup and will need to give the Bulls more of the same if they want to cover as a road underdog.
LaVine was eased into action this season after recovering from injury, but he has played in each of Chicago's last three games and looks to be full-go in this one. Chicago is 5-5 with LaVine in the lineup, and there is a noticeable difference in how dynamic their offense is with him on the floor. For the season, LaVine averages 21.9 PPG and 4.1 APG on 44.4% shooting from the field and 38.5% from 3-point range. LaVine has looked a tad rusty to begin the year. The career 46% shooter isn't finishing as efficiently as we've grown accustomed to seeing. That being said, he's coming off one of his better outings of the season: a 21-point outing against Denver that saw him shoot 8-of-15 from the field and get to the line five times.
Why The Pelicans Could Cover The Spread
New Orleans enters this game fresh off an 11-point victory over Memphis. Despite Zion Williamson not playing, the Pelicans looked great — especially on the defensive end. That's encouraging for their prospects of covering Wednesday given their defensive inconsistency. That being said, the Pelicans have turned things around as of late on defense (13th in points allowed/ninth in defensive efficiency). Their real strength, however, comes on the offensive end of the floor where they look, at times, unstoppable (eighth in points per game/ sixth in offensive efficiency).
Zion Williamson is a massive part of their offense, but he'll likely be a game-time decision after sitting out Tuesday night's game. He's averaging 23.5 PPG for the season and is a huge bonus to their lineup when healthy. Make no mistake, though, the Pelicans have plenty of capable guys who can step up in his absence.
Tuesday night, that guy was guard CJ McCollum. McCollum scored 30 points on 11-of-23 shooting. That was McCollum's first 30-point outing of the season (although hardly the first of his career). CJ's scoring has been down this season (24.3 PPG last year to 18.7 PPG this year), but he's fully capable of shouldering the load on any given night. Chicago held CJ to just 7 points on 3-of-13 shooting in last week's matchup. He should be eager to bounce back from that poor showing.
Final Bulls-Pelicans Prediction & Pick
New Orleans handled Chicago as a road favorite last time out, and I don't expect anything to change in this one. If Zion is cleared this is a near-lock. Even if he's out, the rest of the Pelicans' roster is strong enough to cover against a middling Bulls squad.
Final Bulls-Pelicans Prediction & Pick: New Orleans Pelicans -3 (-110)
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