The Los Angeles Clippers (37-39) travel to the Windy City Thursday to play the Chicago Bulls (44-32) at United Center with tip-off scheduled for 8 p.m. ET. Below, we look at the Clippers vs. Bulls odds and lines, and make our expert NBA picks, predictions and bets.
L.A. rallied back from a 25-point deficit at home to stun the Utah Jazz Tuesday in a 121-115 victory, snapping a five-game losing skid. Clippers wing Paul George made his return to action Tuesday and had a game-high 34 points on 50.0% shooting (6-for-9 from behind the arc) with 6 assists.
Chicago is just 3-4 straight up (SU) and against the spread (ATS) over the past two weeks with the most recent game being a 107-94 beatdown of the Wizards Tuesday in Washington.
The Bulls upset the Clippers 100-90 in L.A. Nov. 14 as 4-point road underdogs. Chicago All-Star wings DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine combined for 64 points on 23-for-43 shooting with 15 rebounds. PG had 27 points and 11 rebounds but shot just 7-for-25 from the field.
- Money line (ML): Clippers +110 (bet $100 to win $110) | Bulls -135 (bet $135 to win $100)
- Against the spread: Clippers +2.5 (-115) | Bulls -2.5 (-107)
- Over/Under: 221.5 (O: -112 | U: -108)
Clippers at Bulls key injuries
Clippers
- SF Kawhi Leonard (knee) out
- SG Norman Powell (foot) out
Bulls
- PG Lonzo Ball (knee) out
- SG Zach LaVine (knee) probable
Clippers at Bulls odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Clippers 111, Bulls 106
Money line
LEAN to the CLIPPERS (+110) only because we are getting to the party a little late and the Clippers plus the points is the wiser play. L.A. opened as +150 ML underdogs according to Pregame.com, but sharp money has lowered it to the current price so we’d be getting the worst of the number.
The Bulls have been awful when playing good defenses and the Clippers are eighth in adjusted defensive rating, according to CleaningTheGlass.com (CTG). Chicago is 9-17 SU versus top-10 defenses with a minus-7.1 adjusted net rating (ranked 24th).
L.A. is slightly more efficient in tight games than Chicago. The Clippers are second in net rating in the “clutch” at plus-16.2 whereas the Bulls are sixth in net rating at plus-11.4. “Clutch” is defined by games within a 5-point margin inside of five minutes to play.
The bottom line is L.A. has a coaching edge, which explains its net rating in close games and the CLIPPERS (+110) should pull this one out. However, L.A.’s spread is the sharper bet.