Chicago Bulls at New York Knicks Betting Preview/Prop Picks

The Chicago Bulls, fresh off of a win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, head to face the New York Knicks. As it stands, the Bulls are fifth in the Eastern Conference, and they need to keep winning games.

Following closely behind are the Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers. A few key losses and the Bulls could fall all the way back to the seventh-place position in the East.

The New York Knicks need to win this game for another reason, a playoff spot. They're just on the outside of the top ten in the East, needing at least four wins to get in.

This is going to be tough, but starting with the Chicago Bulls is a good spot. The Bulls have had trouble closing games recently; New York can take advantage of that. So, who's the best bet to win this one?

Chicago Bulls: Bulls are at full strength for this game

The Chicago Bulls have dealt with injuries through the season, but this is the healthiest they've been. They're still missing Lonzo Ball, but he's been inactive for a sizable portion of the year.

The main news is Alex Caruso is active in this game. Caruso doesn't put up a lot of points, but he gets Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan the ball. This is will be vital to the Bulls' success. 

On average, the Bulls score 111.57 points per game, one of the best in the NBA. However, the team has taken a massive step back defensively. The defense is now ranked 16th in the NBA, allowing an average of 111.18 points per game.

In their loss to the New Orleans Pelicans and Milwaukee Bucks, each team scored over 120 points. This could be a big problem in this one.

New York Knicks: RJ Barrett looks to get a win at home

The injuries dealt to the New York Knicks haven't held them back from securing wins recently. The Knicks are currently on a three-game winning streak, taking down the Hornets, Heat, and Pistons.

The Pistons' win isn't an impressive one, but the other two are pretty monumental. The Hornets have one of the best offenses in the league, and the Miami leads the conference.

The Knicks being able to beat these teams mean they definitely have a chance here. Their defense ranks seventh in the NBA, allowing 106.79 points per game. If they can find a way to stop LaVine and DeRozan, they can win this game.

The question is, how will they do it? Barrett will be tasked with guarding LaVine, a good matchup. Julius Randle will take on DeRozan. 

Chicago Bulls at New York Knicks Betting Pick

The Bulls might be the better scoring team, but they have a lot of holes in their game. We've seen it in their recent loss to the Pelicans.

Matchups are important here as well, Randle is a large power forward, and DeRozan is undersized. In the paint, we expect DeRozan to get backed down easily by Randle tonight. 

Chicago is 3-11 against the spread in their last 14 games. They come into this game as five-point favorites.

Although some would rather take the Bulls on the road, we'd much rather take New York. We'll also take the over here because of how the Bulls' defense has performed. 

DunkelIndex Free Pick: New York Knicks +5, OVER

Prop Picks

New York (-110) OVER 108.5 Points

Chicago is allowing 111.2 points per game on defense, which ranks No. 16 in the league. That average increases to 112.6 points per game on the road. Scores have gone OVER in seven of the New York’s last nine home games.

With Dunkel predicting a New York victory by the score of 118-110, take the Knicks (-110) to finish OVER their Vegas team total of 108.5 points against the Bulls.

Julius Randle (-120) OVER 21.5 Points

Randle is averaging 20.3 points per game, which ranks No. 1 on the Knicks. That average increases to 22.7 points per game over his last 10 games and 25.7 points per game in three games versus Chicago this season.

With Dunkel predicting a strong night offensively with New York going OVER its Vegas team total, take the Randle (-120) to lead the charge and finish OVER his Vegas total of 21.5 points against the Bulls.

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