Kyrie Irving is expected to suit up when the Brooklyn Nets visit the Chicago Bulls. The presence of Irving, who can only play selected road games because he is unvaccinated, should help the Nets attract action aplenty on NBA bet slips. The Bulls have won 10 of their last 11.
- Game: Brooklyn Nets (25-14) at Chicago Bulls (27-11)
- Location: United Center
- Day/Time: Wednesday, 10 p.m. ET
- Television: ESPN
Brooklyn Nets at Chicago Bulls
Nets Should Start to Gel With Irving Back in the Fray
Irving, the enigmatic Brooklyn Nets guard, is listed as questionable with an ankle injury, but quoted as saying that he’s available to play against the Chicago Bulls. Irving has scored 22 points in each of his games as the Nets split those contests. The last was a 114-108 loss at the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday. Brooklyn was an 8½-point favorite. The Nets outscored the Blazers 36-22 in the second quarter to take a 62-55 halftime lead, but Portland exploded with a 32-19 third period to put the game away. The affair narrowly stayed under the 225½ total when betting online. Irving was injured when the Blazers’ Nassir Little dove into his ankle while trying for a loose ball, a maneuver Irving called “unnecessary.’’ Brooklyn’s James Harden did not play against Portland (knee), but is expected to participate versus the Bulls.
Bulls Running Hard into Meeting with the East’s Elite
The Chicago Bulls bounced back from their first loss since Dec. 11 with a 133-87 triumph over the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday. The Bulls easily covered as a 13½-point favorite in the Las Vegas odds while the total was a push. Chicago’s Alfonso McKinnie scored the final points with 1:19 remaining before the clubs combined to miss their final three shots, leaving over players shaking their heads. The Bulls were riding a nine-game win streak until a 113-99 loss at the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday. Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan recorded 20 points, a season-high 12 rebounds and seven assists against Detroit as he continues to excel in his first season in the Windy City. The 32-year-old is averaging a club-high 26.2 points and has formed a solid 1-2 scoring punch with Zach LaVine (25.7).
Nets
This NBA betting preview pits a pair of teams whose next meeting could be in the Eastern Conference finals. Chicago won both meetings with the Nets this season, but Brooklyn was without Irving in those games. The Brooklyn Nets have lost seven straight against the spread – all as a favorite – and are 15-24 ATS in 2021-22.
Brooklyn finds itself an underdog Wednesday for the first time since Christmas when it beat the Los Angeles Lakers 122-115 as a 2½-point dog in the City of Angels. The Chicago Bulls, meanwhile, are 23-14 ATS after losing four of their last six. With its big three intact for the second time, the Nets could be sitting on a big one and can put the clamps on the Bulls by preventing the league’s top 3-point shooting team from getting open looks from deep. The under has hit in the last six get-togethers. A value play could be for Brooklyn to win by six or more points at +175.
