Toronto Raptors vs. Chicago Bulls Prediction, NBA Odds
Toronto is -6 on the NBA odds with a total of 233.5.
Raptors vs. Bulls NBA Betting Odds
Toronto comes out of the All-Star break sitting at fifth in the Eastern Conference but not super likely to get any higher by the end of the regular season. But the Raptors also don’t seem likely to slip lower than sixth, currently held by Philadelphia 1.5 games back. The Dinos are three clear of the East’s Play-In Tournament. They are priced -1000 to get into the conference’s full-field playoffs and +600 to not. The updated team wins total is 40.5 after being set at 39.5 entering the season.
The Chicago Bulls are +3000 longshots to make the full-field playoffs as they sit 11th in the East, 1.5 games out of the final Play-In spot held by Atlanta. The Bulls each of the past three seasons were just good enough to sneak into the Play-In and then lose. It’s a franchise that hasn’t learned to bottom out for a year or two to try and get the top pick in a draft.
Chicago simply stays mediocre year after year, although the front office did make a few fairly notable trades at this year’s deadline, including shipping out All-Star centre Nikola Jokic and guards Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu for a few flawed players and a bunch of future second-round picks.
Thursday marks the second of three regular-season meetings between the teams. The Raptors won the first, 123-107 at Scotiabank Arena on Feb. 5 behind 33 points from Brandon Ingram and 24 from Immanuel Quickley. Toronto did lose both trips to Chicago last season.
Overall, the Raptors are 4-6 SU but 6-4 ATS in the past 10 meetings with the over-under at 5-5.
Toronto Raptors
Toronto entered the break with a disappointing 113-95 home loss to Eastern Conference-leading Detroit to finish a five-game homestand at 3-2. No shame in losing to the excellent Pistons, but they were also without their top two centres in Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart due to suspension. Yet Detroit dominated the boards, 47-35, and never trailed in its seventh straight win in the series. One bright spot for the Raptors was the return of centre Jakob Poeltl from a back injury that had kept him out for 24 games. He had nine points and six rebounds in 20 minutes. Toronto fell to 7-17 this season when being outrebounded. Rookie forward Collin-Murray Boyles missed the Detroit loss with a thumb injury, but he should be ready for Thursday after competing in the Rising Stars during the All-Star festivities, although CMB didn’t play much. His role with Toronto will surely be smaller now that Poeltl is back. The Raptors are 1-8 in their past nine in the Windy City.
Chicago Bulls
Chicago is well below .500 for many reasons, but a big one is a terrible defence allowing 120.6 points per game, fourth-worst in the NBA. The Bulls are on a six-game losing streak and have given up at least 123 points in each of those. Through trades and such, the team is starting to look at some younger guys led by guards Jaden Ivey, Anfernee Simons and Rob Dillingham. The Bulls were fairly banged up entering the break with regulars Josh Giddey, Tre Jones and Isaac Okoro all missing the finale lats Wednesday in Boston. Giddey, probably the team’s most talented overall, has missed eight in a row with a hamstring injury. Not clear about Thursday, but there’s no reason to rush the Aussie back as the Bulls should be tanking anyways. Giddey is averaging 15.0 points, 6.9 assists and 6.8 rebounds in his past 10 vs. the Raptors, including back-to-back double-doubles. The over is 5-1 in the Bulls’ past six games.
TOR
CHI