What in the world is happening to Oklahoma City? The Thunder crashed to their second straight loss with a heart-breaking five-point defeat to the still unbeaten Toronto Raptors on Wednesday. Billy Donovan’s men will look to get their season back on track when they take on the Chicago Bulls in a mouth-watering clash at United Center tonight.
Read on below for a preview of this explosive matchup and while you’re at it, you can check out our NBA previews of Miami vs. Minnesota and Memphis vs. Portland.
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Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Chicago Bulls Betting Preview
Where: United Center, Chicago
When: Thursday, November 5, 2015, 8:00 PM ET
Line: Oklahoma City Thunder (+1) at Chicago Bulls (-1); total: 207.0 – view all NBA lines
Betting on the Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder stumbled to their second consecutive defeat Wednesday with a deflating 103-98 loss to the red-hot Toronto Raptors. The Thunder had no answer for DeMar DeRozan who scored 10 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter. It was a disappointing setback for the Thunder who led by as much as six points in the final two minutes of the game.
[sc:NBA240banner ]Finishing games has been an issue for Oklahoma City in its last two outings. Just before their implosion against Toronto, the Thunder also experienced a major collapse in their game against Houston. They were outscored by 16 points in the second half of that 110-105 loss to the Rockets.
For the Thunder to snap their losing skid against Chicago, they need to rediscover their form on the offensive end. Even though they shot 48 percent on Wednesday, the Thunder were held to just 98 points. That’s the first time this season that Oklahoma City has scored fewer than 100 points. The onus then is on Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook to carry the scoring load for the Thunder.
Durant has been a model of consistency for Oklahoma City this year, averaging 25 points in their first four games. He needs to be given enough touches, though, after he was only afforded two attempts in the final quarter against Toronto. Westbrook, on the other hand, will be licking his chops at the prospect of facing Chicago tonight. He averaged 39.5 points in two meetings against the Bulls last season.
The Thunder are 3-7 SU and ATS in their last 10 road games.
That’s the frank assessment of Jimmy Butler following his side’s humiliating 130-105 loss to Charlotte Tuesday night. The Bulls were outclassed in every facet of the game as they allowed the struggling Hornets to notch their first victory of the season. It was a historic night for the Hornets whose 130-point output was the most they have ever scored against a Bulls team.
It won’t get any easier for head coach Fred Hoiberg and the rest of the Bulls as lying in wait in their next match are the high-scoring Thunder. Oklahoma City is second in the league in scoring with a whopping 114.2 points per game. It’s vital for the Bulls that they return to their old defensive ways for them to stop Oklahoma City.
Prior to that blowout loss to Charlotte, the Bulls had actually been playing some excellent defense this season. They came into the game against the Hornets giving up just 91 points per 100 possessions, fourth-best in the NBA. The Bulls were also seventh at that time in points allowed per game at 95.0, sixth in opponents’ field goal percentage at 39.6 and first in opponents’ 3-point field goal percentage at 24.7 percent.
The Bulls, in particular, need to pressure Oklahoma City into committing turnovers. The Thunder’s 19 miscues on Wednesday were the main reason why they suffered that stinging collapse against the Raptors.
It isn’t just their defense, though, that was the main culprit in that loss to Charlotte. Quite alarming for the Bulls as well is the erratic form of star guard Derrick Rose. His four-point showing against the Hornets was his third-straight game with a single-digit effort. That simply isn’t enough for the Bulls who are averaging 100.6 points this season, 16th in the NBA.
The Bulls are 7-3 SU and 5-5 ATS in their last 10 home games.
