The Chicago Bulls (8-3) roll into the Bay Area to play the Golden State Warriors (10-1) at Chase Center Friday. The tip-off is scheduled for 10 p.m. ET. Below, we look at the Bulls vs. Warriors odds and lines, and make our expert NBA picks, predictions, and bets.
Chicago has won and covered four of its past six games with the only two losses coming in a home-and-away, back-to-back with the Philadelphia 76ers. The Bulls are 7-3-1 ATS and 5-6 O/U with the fourth-best net rating (plus-7.2).
Golden State has won six straight, all by double digits, but all of those games were against sub-.500 teams. The Warriors are 8-3 ATS and 4-7 O/U with the NBA’s best net rating (plus-13.1). Golden State’s only victory against a team above-.500 was its season opener vs. the Los Angeles Clippers at home.
The Warriors have beaten the Bulls in eight consecutive meetings (6-2 ATS).
Bulls at Warriors odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:50 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Bulls +180 (bet $100 to win $180) | Warriors -230 (bet $230 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Bulls +5.5 (-110) | Warriors -5.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 221.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Bulls at Warriors key injuries
Bulls
- C Nikola Vučević (health and safety protocols) out
- PF Patrick Williams (wrist) out
Warriors
- PF Draymond Green (thigh) questionable
- C James Wiseman (knee) out
- SG Klay Thompson (Achilles’) out
Bulls at Warriors odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Bulls 109, Warriors 106
Money line
Slight “LEAN” to the BULLS (+180) for a small bet, if at all, because I’m confident enough in Chicago plus the points that I’ll “sprinkle” on the money line.
As ridiculous as it might sound, I’m also slightly fading a Golden State that has played the easiest strength of schedule in the league thus far. While the Warriors don’t have anything to prove in the regular season, the Bulls do.
Against the spread
Definitely BET the BULLS +5.5 (-110) heavier than or instead of Chicago’s money line. But, doesn’t it feel like the Warriors -5.5 (-110) is a little cheap considering how badly they are beating teams?
Granted, the Bulls are a newish team so who knows how for real they are. But, Chicago has a well-built team and contributors at all positions. Also, we have to kind of ignore Chicago’s injury report because the absence of two-time All-Star Vučević is baked into the oddsmakers’ price.
It’s tough to not just default to betting the Warriors considering how well they and Stephen Curry have played. But, in this case, I’m counting on the market overreacting to Vučević’s absence.
In fact, Golden State was a 4-point favorite on the lookahead line, according to Pregame.com. So, the Warriors have already been steamed up a couple of points way before tip-off.
Furthermore, first-year Bulls wing DeMar DeRozan‘s style matches up well against Golden State’s defense. For example, DeRozan operates predominantly in the mid-range, and the Warriors are 25th in defensive field goal percentage vs. mid-range jumpers, according to CleaningTheGlass.com.
Moreover, Bulls All-Star Zach LaVine has been outstanding as well, averaging 25.9 points per game on 49.3% shooting. However, LaVine’s scoring could actually increase since he’s averaging a career-low 33.8% from 3-point land, and that number should progress up to the mean.
Finally, the absence of Vučević should equal more touches for DeRozan and LaVine, which is what BULLS +5.5 (-110) backers prefer.
Over/Under
PASS because I don’t have a good enough read on how fast the tempo will be in this game, but I like Chicago’s odds.
Plus neither one of these teams played a tough schedule. Each has great ratings at both ends of the floor, so it’s hard to decide if this will be a low- or high-scoring affair.
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