Clippers vs. Bulls NBA Preview and Odds Analysis (Archive)
The Los Angeles Clippers and Chicago Bulls conclude their NBA season series Thursday night from the Windy City. Which way to lean at BMR’s top-rated sportsbooks?
Los Angeles Clippers vs. Chicago Bulls
Thursday, March 31, 2022 – 08:00 PM EDT at United Center
Pretty unusual that a matchup between two of the three biggest media markets in the USA isn’t nationally televised, but Clippers-Bulls is not.
TNT’s doubleheader is Bucks-Nets (great game) and Lakers-Jazz (mismatch for Utah).
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Chicago goes for the season sweep as on Nov. 14 in Los Angeles, it was a 4-point underdog on the NBA odds and ended a five-game road skid in the series with a 100-90 victory.
DeMar DeRozan scored 35 points and Zach LaVine added 29 for the Bulls, who were without center Nikola Vucevic.
Paul George scored 27 points and had 11 rebounds for the Clippers, while Eric Bledsoe added 21 points.
Bledsoe has since been traded. More on George below. The teams combined to hit 34 of 35 free throws and both made 11 three-pointers, but the Bulls made nine more shots from the field overall.
The Bulls are now 4-1 against the spread in the past five meetings at BMR’s top-rated books.
Clippers Stage Another Amazing Rally
I previewed Tuesday’s Clippers home game vs. Utah and recommended the Jazz at -1 if All-Star center Rudy Gobert played.
He did. What I didn’t know or expect was that Clippers star forward Paul George would return from a three-month injury absence. I wrote that he might play but surely be limited. Uh, he wasn’t.
Los Angeles was down 25 points in the third quarter – figured that was an easy Jazz cover and turned the game off -- but George led the shocking 121-115 victory with 34 points, six assists, and four steals in 31 minutes.
The 34 points were an NBA record by a player who had missed his team's previous 40-plus games within one season, and George now has more 30-point games this season (seven) than the rest of the Clippers team combined (six). George said his injured elbow was about 90 percent.
“The ligament will get stronger with the stress put on it ... but I feel good. It's no pain; there's nothing of that sort. It's more so just that muscle and my forearm getting stronger," he said.
It was the fourth time the Clippers have overcome a deficit of at least 24 points this season, the most such wins in the last 25 NBA seasons.
The victory didn’t really help the Clippers’ playoff seeding – they are going to finish eighth in the West and in the play-in tournament against the No. 7.
I think Coach Tyronn Lue just had a one-off game in terms of minutes because he previously said Reggie Jackson would be capped at 32, but he played 37.
Marcus Morris Sr. was supposed to be capped at 25 and played 27. Nicolas Batum's limit was to be 19 and he played 22.
Looking for a good off-the-radar DFS play Thursday? Backup Clippers center Isaiah Hartenstein has really been playing well of late and had 14 points, seven rebounds, and six assists on Tuesday.
He averages 8.1 points on the season but has had at least 12 in four of the past five, at least seven rebounds in three of the past four, and at least four assists in four straight.
Los Angeles is 0-4 against the spread in its past four after scoring at least 100 points in its previous game.
Bulls Playing for Seeding
While the Clippers have little to no motivation for the rest of the regular season, the Bulls are trying to avoid the play-in tournament.
They currently sit fifth in the East. I think they will avoid it because Cleveland, currently in seventh, is dealing with injuries to its two-star big men, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. Plus, this game starts five in a row at home for the Bulls.
Chicago hasn’t won back-to-back games since Feb. 24 but can here follow a 107-94 win at Washington on Tuesday in the second of a back-to-back.
Holding a team under 100 points is a massive achievement for this defensively struggling club. DeMar DeRozan had 32 points (passing John Stockton for 50th all-time) and Nikola Vucevic 27.
“We’ve got to do a better job of finding Vooch because he’s the connector for our offense,” Coach Billy Donovan said. When Vucevic is more involved offensively, his defense also seems to improve.
Zach LaVine was in some question in the second of a back-to-back. He played through knee soreness but didn’t look great with 14 points on 4-for-10 shooting.
LaVine is on the injury report again here but almost surely will be playlisted as probable. The Wizards' win continued a season-long trend: The Bulls beat the bad teams without much problem and lose to the best of the NBA.
If this comes down to free throws, the Bulls are in good shape as they have shot 90 percent from the charity stripe 15 times this season, second in the league.
They also have hit at least 20 free throws while shooting a minimum of 85 percent from the line 14 times, also second.
Truly believe the Clippers mail this one in after such an emotional comeback win. There’s also the unusual start time for them at 5:00 PM EDT Pacific, and it’s the penultimate road game of the year, and the front end of a back-to-back – wouldn’t shock me if a Clippers starter or two sits out.
L.A. is 1-6 ATS in its past seven vs. teams with a winning record, while Chicago is 11-4 ATS in its last 15 at home. Take this into consideration for your NBA picks.
NBA Pick: Bulls -3.5 (-110) with BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.