Chicago’s high-flying offense had a rare off night as they suffered a 20-point blowout loss to the Utah Jazz Wednesday. They will look to regain their offensive flow this coming Friday against the Washington Wizards who are coming off an easy 10-point win over the struggling New York Knicks.
In this clash between two top Eastern Conference teams, who will emerge victorious? Read on below for a preview of this showdown and while you’re at it, you can check out our preview of the game between the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers here.
[sc:NBAArticles ]
Chicago Bulls vs. Washington Wizards Betting Preview
The Chicago Bulls had their three-game winning streak snapped Wednesday with a stunning 97-77 loss to the Utah Jazz. The Bulls’ 77-point performance was their lowest output of the season. That’s way below their season average of 102.4 points per game.
[sc:NBA240banner ]So what went wrong with the Bulls’ offense? The Bulls had a horrible shooting night, making just 28 of 84 field goal attempts for a measly 33 percent clip. Derrick Rose was simply atrocious, scoring just seven points on 3-of-15 shooting. Rose’s first half showing was even worse as he failed to make a single basket out of his nine field goal tries.
A worrying concern for head coach Tom Thibodeau is that Rose’s shooting slump has been going on for quite some time now. The 2011 MVP is shooting just 25.5 percent (28-of-110) from the field in his last six games.
If there’s a team though that will help Rose end his shooting woes, that team is Washington. In their last meeting with the Wizards a couple of weeks ago, Rose erupted for 25 points on 10-of-17 shooting to lead the Bulls to a 99-91 win.
Still, it won’t be that easy for Rose this coming Friday, considering that the Wizards are the fifth-best defensive team in the league this season, allowing just 97.3 points per game. If Rose’s shooting woes continue to surface against the Wizards, the onus is on Jimmy Butler to carry the scoring cudgels for the Bulls once again.
Butler has been a force on the offensive end for the Bulls this season, averaging a team-best 21.3 points per game. He scored 16 points and grabbed 11 boards in Chicago’s defeat to Utah.
The Washington Wizards started their two-game home stand with a victory Wednesday, beating the hapless New York Knicks 101-91. John Wall had 18 points, eight assists, five rebounds and three steals for the Wizards who have now won 10 of their last 12 games at Verizon Center.
The Wizards punished the Knicks in transition, scoring a total of 23 fast break points. That’s way above their season average of 13.8 fast break points per game. The onus is on Wall to keep that pace this coming Friday when they host the Chicago Bulls.
Pushing the tempo against the Bulls will be easier said than done, though. The Bulls are allowing an average of 12.7 fast break points per game. The good news, however, for the Wizards is that this Bulls team is not that great of a defensive squad compared to their teams in the past. The Bulls are eighth-worst in the league in scoring defense, allowing an average of 102.4 points per game this season.
In order for the Wizards to employ their run-and-gun style of play, it’s crucial that they first control the rebounding battle. Marcin Gortat and Kris Humphries have done an excellent job in grabbing the boards for the Wizards this season, averaging 7.9 and 6.2 rebounds per game respectively. The Wizards are 13th in the league in rebounding this season, averaging 42.8 boards per game.
Unfortunately for the Wizards, their rebounding might didn’t show in their first meeting with the Bulls. The Bulls prevailed in the rebounding battle, 52-41. As a result, the Wizards were only able to generate a total of 15 fast break points. The Bulls were able to control the game and emerged as 99-91 victors.
The Wizards can’t afford to let the Bulls dominate the boards once again. Fortunately for the Wizards, Nene is starting to be an inside presence for them once again. The Brazilian was superb against the Knicks, scoring 20 points and grabbing six boards. He and Gortat will be tasked to stop Chicago’s twin-tower combination of Gasol and Noah who are averaging a combined 21.2 rebounds per game.
