Knicks vs. Bulls NBA Picks: How to Bet D-Rose’s Return to Chicago (Archive)
With how New York and Chicago are playing, this is life with Tom Thibodeau and after Thibs as he was especially known in Chicago. Who will have the edge tonight? Off New York’s sensational turnaround season, them getting off to a 3-1 start is not alarming.
What is astounding is that Chicago is following in the Knicks’ footsteps, coming off a year where improvement was shown and jumping up where fans of the sports and basketball bettors are forced to pay attention.
New York Knicks vs. Chicago Bulls
Thursday, October 28, 2021 – 8:10 PM EDT at United Center
With no TNT games this Thursday, the NBA added this game for hoops fans on their network. The NBA odds at YouWager (visit our YouWager Review) have the Bulls at -1.5, with a total of 215, which sets up a very intriguing Eastern Conference conflict.
Knicks Mindset is Evolving
New York is 3-1 (matching ATS record) and the lone loss was to Orlando at home after beating them by 25 two nights prior. For the old Knicks, that was to be expected, not this bunch. After New York fell 110-104 to the Magic as 12-point favorites, Julius Randle said, "I was sick man, I ain’t go to sleep until like 4 o’clock. I was sick, everybody else was sick we let that slip"
Instead of dwelling on it, Randle and company went to work and flustered Philadelphia two nights later 112-99. This shows the growth of a team that hungers to win rather than putting up personal stats.
The Knickerbockers might have failed shooting the ball in the playoffs against Atlanta, but after having the second-best three-point shooting percentage a season ago, they tied last year’s Milwaukee record of 70 treys in the first four games of a new season. This team is developing a true winning mindset.
Chicago Has Added the Right Pieces
What do these Bulls teams have in common with the 1996 Chicago club that had two players named Jordan and Pippen? They both started the season 4-0 and that was the last time this franchise began a season that way. Second-year head coach Billy Donovan found he had an All-Star in Zach LeVine.
However, LeVine could not carry the load by himself, and last season they traded for Nikola Vucevic and this combination worked late in the season and Chicago almost earned a play-in bid.
With the success Phoenix had the year prior by adding the right players for the right slots, the Bulls front office brought in point guard Lonzo Ball and shooting forward DeMar DeRozan this off-season and they are already proving to be huge difference makers in Chi-Town.
Ball is a great fit as a facilitator and has developed a reliable three-point shot, now teams have to play him straight up and he’s fabulous at finding open teammates. Donovan still needs a deeper bench, nonetheless, Chicago is on the way back to respectability.
Knicks vs. Bulls Free Pick Prediction
The line from the sportsbooks suggests New York is a modestly better team in this matchup. In looking at the total, the oddsmakers have essentially split the team’s scoring averages in half, so no clues are to be found from the oddsmakers there.
Both clubs are tough defensively and while Chicago holds their opponents to better than 12 points per game less, that is a function of the Bulls playing slower which keeps scoring down. The Knicks actually allow a lower shooting percentage at 41.4 versus Chicago at 43.7%.
Taking all aspects into consideration, New York has more scoring options and plays a stronger overall defense. That is hard to ignore. Additionally, this visitor is 21-8 ATS having won two of their last three games.
Though Chicago is off to a super start, after knocking off Detroit (twice). New Orleans and Toronto, this is by far their toughest test and they are 12-23 ATS when playing against a team with a winning record. The Knickerbockers are the NBA picks.
NBA Picks: Knicks +1.5 (-110) with YouWager (visit our YouWager 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.