Chicago Bulls at Boston Celtics Betting Preview
Would you believe the Bulls are 5-1 and the Celtics are 2-4 to this point in the year if somebody told you? If watching basketball wasn’t a hobby or passion, then yes. But, this is actually the case, and now the teams will meet as they play their seventh game of the season. A battle that will ensue for the full 48 minutes.
Chicago got out of the gates hot, but the injury bug has reared its ugly head. Not only has Coby White yet to debut this season, but now Patrick Williams is already finished. He hurt his wrist in Game 5 and was already declared out for the entire regular season, a rarity for an injury of that sort, and it is a major loss for the squad.
As for Boston, they have all the talent they could ever hope to have. They have two All-Star wings in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Two dominant rim protectors in Robert Williams III and Al Horford. Plus, good enough point guard play from Dennis Schroder and Marcus Smart. But, they have yet to put it all together, dropping four of six games, including a pair of 2OT battles.
As the season winds on, both of these teams will experience highs and lows. But still, Boston’s start is very surprising.
Betting Odds & Lines
The spread for Monday night is set at BOS -2.5. The over/under is sitting at 216.5 points. The BOS moneyline is -140; the CHI line is +115.
Bulls Look to Stay Hot
The biggest issue with the Patrick Williams injury is that the Bulls’ early-season rotation is already in flux. Alize Johnson has already fallen down a peg, while Derrick Jones Jr. is going to play consistent minutes. And for the moment, DeMar DeRozan is again a starting power forward.
They’ve got talent with four of their starters in Zach LaVine, Lonzo Ball, DeMar, and Nikola Vucevic. But, they will have to figure out the other spot because Javonte Green is not the answer. And Alex Caruso is probably best as the high-energy sixth man.
They will need to move the ball around and take smart shots in order to down Boston.
Boston Aiming to Inch Closer to .500
At 2-4, Boston has not been the team anybody expected. To be fair, the roster had a lot of changes, plus they have a new coach now in Ime Udoka, who has never been the head man on his team before. So, this is a big change for everybody involved.
They traded Kemba Walker and completely switched up the point guard spot. And hard as it is to believe, Marcus Smart is making less than 28% of his total attempts so far. Things that were supposed to go right really have not been.
The keys to victory are pretty simple. The Jay’s need to make their threes. They need to win the assist game. And protect the rim.
Celts Win
Chicago will fall short, taking a road loss and falling to 5-2.
Betting Picks:
- Boston -2.5
- OVER 216.5
