basketball | Thursday, February 16, 2023 11:38 AM (Revised at: Thursday, February 16, 2023 11:43 AM)

Chicago Bulls vs Milwaukee Bucks Best Bet: Back Bucks To Make It 12 Straight

Sam Cox

Chicago Bulls vs Milwaukee Bucks Best Bet: Thursday, February 16th

Riding an 11-game winning streak, the Milwaukee Bucks are 6.5-point favourites over the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night. This is the final game for both teams before the All-Star break, and Chicago is playing on the second night of a back-to-back after suffering their fifth consecutive loss to the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday.

Jae Crowder, Bobby Portis and Pat Connaughton are all unavailable for the Bucks. Giannis Antetokounmpo is probable though, and is averaging 38 points over his last 10 games. Khris Middleton is still on a minutes restriction, but his production has improved over the last couple of weeks.

Lonzo Ball and Javonte Green remain out for Chicago. DeMar DeRozan, Goran Dragic and Derrick Jones Jr are listed as day-to-day after sitting out the loss to the Pacers.

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Chicago Bulls vs Milwaukee Bucks Preview
Chicago Bulls vs Milwaukee Bucks Best Bet

Chicago Bulls vs Milwaukee Bucks Preview

Fri, Feb 17. 00:30 (UK time)

After flattening the Bulls in the regular season and playoffs last term, the Bucks have lost both matchups with their divisional rivals in 2022-23. The recent history perhaps contributes to this relatively small spread.

Antetokounmpo has dominated this duel in the past, partly because Nikola Vucevic is a defensive liability. Milwaukee has broken out of a midseason slump to power its way up the Eastern Conference standings, and they will be keen to finish on a high on Thursday night. Chicago, in contrast, were passive at the trade deadline and have floundered since then, losing by eight or more points in the first four games of this losing streak.

Surprisingly, Chicago’s defence is the best in the league over the last six games. While potentially a positive sign for the team going forward, that trend will not continue with how Antetokounmpo is playing at the moment. At the other end of the court, the Bulls offence has been putrid, with the 29th-ranked offensive rating over that period. Their chance of keeping pace with Milwaukee is hampered further by DeRozan’s uncertain availability.

Milwaukee has no problem going on the road, covering the spread in 64.3% of games as an away favourite in 2022-23. The rest advantage is a factor here for a veteran team, too, while the Bulls will have at least one eye on the upcoming break.

Chicago Bulls vs Milwaukee Bucks Best Bet

These teams are trending in opposite directions. Milwaukee is a far better team than when the Bulls recorded their two wins over them earlier this season, and Chicago is heading for a lost campaign after inactivity at the deadline.

The gap between them is severe. Milwaukee is a sure-fire title contender, while the Bulls have played like a lottery team for most of the year. This number is far too low – take Milwaukee to make it 12 in a row at a canter.

Selection: Milwaukee Bucks -6.5
Best Odds: 1.87 (Boyle Sports)
Stakes: 5/10

Odds as of 1:00 pm February 16th, 2023. Odds may now differ.

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