The Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks meet Friday in NBA action at Madison Square Garden. The Chicago Bulls have split their last 8 games. The New York Knicks have won 8 of their last 9 games.
The Chicago Bulls are averaging 113.2 points on 48.1 percent shooting and allowing 115.1 points on 48 percent shooting. DeMar DeRozan is averaging 25.9 points and 4.7 assists, while Zach LaVine is averaging 21.8 points and 4.4 rebounds. Nikola Vucevic is the third double-digit scorer and Ayo Dosunmu is grabbing 3.2 rebounds. The Chicago Bulls are shooting 36.5 percent from beyond the arc and 82.1 percent from the free throw line. The Chicago Bulls are allowing 37.9 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 42.2 rebounds per game.
The New York Knicks are averaging 114.1 points on 45.3 percent shooting and allowing 112.2 points on 45 percent shooting. Julius Randle is averaging 22.5 points and 9.1 rebounds, while Jalen Brunson is averaging 20.8 points and 3.2 rebounds. RJ Barrett is the third double-digit scorer and Immanuel Quickley is grabbing 4 rebounds. The New York Knicks are shooting 32.8 percent from beyond the arc and 79.9 percent from the free throw line. The New York Knicks are allowing 33.9 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 47.6 rebounds per game.
The Bulls are 1-9-1 ATS in their last 11 Friday games and 8-22-1 ATS in their last 31 games playing on 1 days rest. The Knicks are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 home games and 8-1 ATS in their last 9 games overall. The under is 4-1 in Bulls last 5 games playing on 1 days rest. The under is 8-3 in Knicks last 11 overall. The Bulls are 1-5 ATS in the last 6 meetings in New York and 2-6 ATS in the last 8 meetings.
The Chicago Bulls aren’t playing well, they’re banged up, and there are reports that things aren’t warm and fuzzy in the locker room. The Bulls could easily fall apart and eventually start selling off players. The New York Knicks are enjoying one of their best stretches in recent memory, and that includes winning their last 5 games by an average of 13 points. Just two teams going in different directions. Give me the Knicks and the chalk.