The Chicago Bulls are laying too many points on Friday’s NBA odds board. It’s up to the Minnesota Timberwolves to take advantage.
Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Chicago Bulls
Friday, February 11, 2022 – 8:00 PM EST at United Center
When was the last time the Chicago Bulls looked this good? The Jordan Years? It may seem like it, but these Bulls (33-21 SU, 31-22-1 ATS) don’t even stack up to the Tom Thibodeau Years, let alone His Airness. That’s according to the Simple Rating System at Basketball Reference, where Chicago’s plus-1.17 SRS is seventh in the Eastern Conference as we go to press, and No. 15 overall in the NBA. They’re so mid.
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Granted, so are the No. 13-ranked Minnesota Timberwolves (29-25 SU, 28-25-1 ATS) at plus-1.67 SRS. The difference between the two is their public profile, which could make Minnesota the right choice for Friday’s NBA picks. Well, that plus the extra two points of chalk the Bulls have tacked on since the open, moving from 1.5-point home faves –3.5 at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review) as we go to press.
The Sausage Kings of Chicago
Maybe Chicago will keep steaming all the way until tip-off. They’re the feel-good story of the year – if you’re a Bulls fan, at least, and they are legion, especially if you include all the lapsed fans who grew up on Michael Jordan.
A quick peek at the public money charts on the interwebs shows the Bulls ranking second overall on the season, behind only the beloved Golden State Warriors. As for Minnesota Timberwolves fans, there aren’t any.
Okay, maybe a small handful; the Wolves are somewhere in the middle of the pack when it comes to public money, hardly a pariah like the Detroits and Orlandos of the basketball world. This is a decent team, though, one that has outperformed the Bulls statistically, if not in the standings.
Lonzo Journalism
The Wolves are also healthier than Chicago right now, although several players have just been listed as questionable as I write this – which may explain the earlier shift in the NBA odds. Clever sharps. Joining Patrick Beverley (ankle) in limbo are D'Angelo Russell (left shin contusion), Anthony Edwards (knee), Josh Okogie (quad), Naz Reid (knee), and Taurean Prince (ankle).
Delightful. The Bulls, of course, are without Lonzo Ball (knee) and Alex Caruso (wrist), which is a big blow to their defense; they’ve held the fort at 6-5 SU and 6-4-1 since those two guards last played together, with the over at a tasty 8-3. Derrick Jones Jr. (finger) remains out as well, and with Ayo Dosunmu (concussion) listed as questionable, Chicago’s backcourt could be even more devoid of defense Friday night.
It’s even more tempting to switch our official pick to the over given that it’s the Timberwolves (Over 33-22) Chicago will be facing, and given all those question marks on the Wolves roster – Beverley in particular, but also Okogie, Reid and Prince, four players whose defense has helped keep Minnesota within range of a top-six spot in the West.
Definitely wait until closer to game time, both for more line-up information and possibly a better price on the Wolves, but we’ll cover our butts here at the home office with an early recommendation on the over. We need all the coverage we can get.
NBA Pick: Over 241 (–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.
