Coming off of a tough loss to Miami, the Chicago Bulls (17-6) travel to the nation's capital to face John Wall and the Washington Wizards (4-16). The Wizards are coming off of a 3 point victory over the Charlotte Bobcats and look to make it 2 wins in a row.
Tonight's matchup is scheduled for 7:00pm ET at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C.
on NBA TV.
NBA odds boards opened with the Bulls installed as a 9 point favorites and the
total is listed at 190.5. While the total remains unchanged, most sports betting shops are now offering the spread half of a point lower at 8.5.
Can
the Wizards pull off the upset as Chicago is on the 2nd half of a back to back? Lets breakdown this matchup and determine where we should place our NBA picks tonight.
"Off
the Wall"
Guard
John Wall is finally living up to his potential and is playing off the
chart...or may I say off the Wall. In their last game, a victory over Michael Jordan's
Bobcats, Wall saw fit to play the role of the passer as center JaVale McGee was on
fire and Wall proceeded to dish out 10 assists. Along with that, he scored 13
points, grabbed 3 rebounds, and had 2 blocks and 2 steals.
Wall is an active
player with great leaping ability at 6 foot 4 inches tall. In his last 10
games, Wall has raised his level of play, averaging 18.4 points, 7.2 assists,
6.4 rebounds, 1 block, and 1 steal per game.
If
Wall was a bigger man, he would have the potential to average a triple-double
but the Wizards should definitely be satisfied with the production that Wall
has given them.
On Monday, he's slated for a tough matchup with Derrick Rose.
Although Washington is a major dog against the Bulls, I like this matchup for
John Wall. Look for a big game out of him.
Saturday's
MVP
The
Wizards should have the advantage of getting a day's rest, but Center JaVale
McGee would like to get on the court ASAP after the brilliant performance that
he had against the Charlotte Bobcats. McGee had 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 5
blocks on 9 of 14 shooting from the field. I wouldn't expect similar numbers as
this matchup is much tougher against a Chicago team with talent at the center
and forward positions. However, expect McGee to play off the momentum and play
better than his usual 11.4 point per game seasonal average.
A
lot of fantasy leaguers will look to take McGee on Monday as he brings a good
bang for the buck (he's a bargain).. This is a much improved player with youth
and great size. He should propose a problem for the Bulls.
Unsafe
to ride!
The
Chicago Bulls might be unsafe to ride or bet in this situation as they're
playing in a back to back situation and might not have the best disposition at the
moment. The Bulls also suffered their 1st loss at home on Wednesday to the
Indiana Pacers. The Bulls didn't appreciate the way that the Pacers celebrated
on their home court.
Now,
they come into this game as the NBA betting favorite as the visiting ball club, which is understandable as Washington only has 4 wins on the season, but could they have
caught the Wiz at an inopportune time? I might be reaching with this trend but
the Bulls are 2-7 against the spread when their starting players combine for a
total of more than 160 minutes on the previous day. The NBA is a grind. Can the
Bulls be tired?
The
missing piece
He
was a game time decision against the Heat and ended up playing with a groin
injury. Guard Richard Hamilton came up with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists
and 3 steals. These numbers are slightly below his seasonal averages but Rip
played in pain.
I
really think the acquisition of Richard Hamilton was a brilliant one for the
Bulls. He fell out of favor with the Pistons and the coach was misusing him as
he just sat the bench. This is a player that's won a championship and still has
plenty of gas left in the tank at 33 going on 34 years old. Hamilton is a tall
lanky shooting guard at 6 foot 7 and has fit in like a glove with the Bulls
offense. He averages 14.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game. Look
for Richard Hamilton to make the opportune plays in the games where the Bulls
need a veteran guy to stand up. Hamilton will play well against the Wizards.
He's the definition of battle tested.
Decisive
trends
Chicago
is 4-0 ATS vs. Washington in their last 4 meetings and the favorite is 4-0.
Where the total is concerned, the under has hit 8-0 in the last 8 meetings at
Washington and is 15-2 in the last 17 meetings overall.
Outcome
of the game
Look
for Washington to put up a fight as they're coming off of a victory against the
Bobcats in where some individuals had some standout performances. I'm going to
stay off of picking a side here as the Bulls are the far superior ball club and
coming off of a loss to possibly the best team in the NBA, which is nothing to
be ashamed about. Take the under in this spot. The Bulls have a great defense
and the total seems to be listed a little high by the odds makers. Listen to
the trends, as this game should be an easy under..
NBA Pick: Chicago vs. Washington under 190.5