basketball | Monday, January 9, 2023 12:22 PM

Boston Celtics vs Chicago Bulls Best Bet: Bulls Offence Keeps it Tight

Milan Stanojic

Boston Celtics vs Chicago Bulls Best Bet: Monday, January 9th

The Boston Celtics host the Chicago Bulls tonight at TD Garden for their fourth and final encounter of the season. The Bulls lead the season series 2-1, but the Celtics have been amazing at home this year with a 15-5 record. Both the bookmakers and bettors are picking the Celtics to come away with this one, but you already know that we’re going against the tide again.

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Boston Celtics vs Chicago Bulls Preview
Boston Celtics vs Chicago Bulls Best Bet

Boston Celtics vs Chicago Bulls Preview

Mon, Jan 9th 23:30 (UK time)

The Boston Celtics are leading the Eastern Conference right now with 28 wins and 12 losses under their belt this season. They have been winning at a steady pace all season and are coming off a 116-121 win against the SA Spurs. However, their performance against the spread has been disappointing of late, covering in just 1 of their last 5 games. The Celtics are good, but it seems that both the bookmakers and punters are giving them a bit too much rope. According to Unibet, 87% of bettors are picking them to win tonight and the spread is set at 8.5 points.

The Celtics have had the best offence in the league this year, ranking top of the heap in offensive rating and averaging 118.8 points per game. Their 3-point shooting has been excellent and averaging 26.8 assists per game is always going to give you results on the board. However, their form has dropped off a bit recently, as they have ranked 14th in offensive rating over their last 10 games whilst allowing 113.5 points. It’s not the end of the world for Joe Mazzulla’s side, but it does open them up for fading against the spread.

We all know how bad of a start the Chicago Bulls had to the season, which is why they are now fighting to climb back up and earn themselves a playoff spot. They’ve actually managed to get their stuff together, winning 7 of their last 10 games and are riding a 3-game winning streak. The Bulls have ranked 4th in offensive rating over their last 10 whilst their defence has remained the same – ranking in the low 20s. This isn’t a team I’ve backed many times this year, but they have covered the spread in 4 of their last 5 road games. The Bulls have been in great shape offensively and we should see a very high-scoring affair.

Boston Celtics vs Chicago Bulls Best Bet

There’s no denying that the Celtics are the better team in this one, but I see the -8.5 as simply too much for a team that hasn’t been on top of their game. These two teams have already faced each other 3 times this season, and the Bulls have won 2 of those encounters at home. The third was a close 123-119 win for the Celtics at TD Garden, and I expect a similar result here tonight. I see the +8.5 points on the Bulls as a bargain and I have no problem backing them to keep the game somewhat close tonight again.