The Denver Nuggets and the Chicago Bulls are ending their 2014 on a sour note with losses to the Lakers and Nets respectively. They meet at the United Center on New Year’s Day, and only one can make a quick turnaround for a good start to 2015.
Which of these two teams start the year with a win? Read on as we break down this interesting hard court action.
Chicago fan? Another Chicago team starts their New Year with a big game in the 2015 NHL Winter Classic’s Blackhawks vs. Capitals. Check out the complete preview of that game here.
Ty Lawson and Jusuf Nurkic both had 16 points for the Denver Nuggets, but could not produce enough in a 111-103 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night.
[sc:NBA240banner ]The Nuggets struggled offensively against the Lakers, shooting .448 from the field. They may continue to struggle against Chicago’s third-ranked shooting defense (.468), especially with one of their top scorers possibly missing the game due to injury. Wilson Chandler, who has averaged 14.5 points per game for the Nuggets, left with a bruised right quadriceps after the first half. He didn’t return after scoring nine points.
Possibly playing without Chandler, the Nuggets need a bigger game from their other frontcourt players Kenneth Faried and Timofey Mozgov.
Faried was held to four rebounds on Tuesday night after nabbing 44 over his previous two games. Mozgov has been a strong presence on the boards in December with 8.7 rebounds per game. It’s crucial for the Denver big men to control the paint in this game, especially against Chicago’s fourth ranked 45.5 rebounds per game.
The Nuggets have lost four of their last five games (0-5 ATS).
Betting on the Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls’ seven-game win streak came to an end Tuesday night as they fell 96-82 to the Brooklyn Nets
Jimmy Butler averaged 26.4 points during the winning streak, but only had eight points Tuesday night. Derrick Rose was horrible from the field going 2-for-15, which included 0-of-5 from downtown, for only four points. The Chicago guards may be due to rebound in a big way against the Nuggets. Denver has allowed 104.3 points per game this season, 27th in the league.
Going against Denver’s defense may also allow small forward Mike Dunleavy to have another big game. Dunleavy scored 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting (5-for-9 from the three-point line) against Brooklyn. He was the lone Bull to score in the 20s on Tuesday night.
The Bulls’ key for success in this game will be on Joakim Noah. He is a dominant presence on the boards averaging 9.7 rebounds per game. Noah’s presence inside the paint will be crucial to deny Denver big men Faried and Mozgov from getting timely rebounds.
Pau Gasol also provides the Bulls another dominant big man inside the paint. Gasol isn’t only limited to attacking the basket and sitting around for rebounds. He can also create opportunities for his teammates as he averaged 4.6 assists over the past five games.
The Bulls are 3-1-1 ATS in their last five home games against Denver.
