Chicago Bulls vs Oklahoma City Thunder Prediction, 1/15/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Chicago Bulls vs Oklahoma City Thunder

Date: Friday, January 15, 2021

Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, OK

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma

Odds/Point Spread: Chicago (+1.5)

The Oklahoma City Thunder (5-6) play the Chicago Bulls (4-7) at Chesapeake Energy Arena on Friday. Oklahoma City opens this matchup as 1.5-point favorites. The over/under is set at 222.5.

The Chicago Bulls faced off with the Los Angeles Clippers and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 130-127 in their last contest. Chicago wrapped up the game with a 61.0% field goal percentage (47 out of 77) and converted 18 of 33 3-pointers. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Bulls knocked down 15 of their 17 tries for a percentage of 88.2%. With respect to pulling down rebounds, they compiled 38 with 3 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 30 assists for the contest while earning 6 steals and 2 blocks. In the matter of the defense, Chicago allowed the other team to shoot 48.9% from the floor on 45 of 92 shooting. Los Angeles recorded 28 assists and had 13 steals in this contest. Moreover, the Clippers pulled down 35 rebounds (12 offensive, 23 defensive) and earned 5 blocks. Los Angeles finished the game at 80.0% at the charity stripe by knocking down 20 of their 25 shots. They made 20 of 38 tries from three-point range.

Zach LaVine is one guy who was a major contributor for the contest. He left the arena with 45 points on 15 out of 26 shooting. He played 41:56 mins played and also grabbed 7 rebounds. LaVine ended up shooting 57.7% from the field and totaled 7 assists. An additional guy that was a major contributor in the game for the Bulls was Garrett Temple. He pulled down 6 rebounds and also accounted for 2 assists. He finished the contest at 87.5% from the floor in this game by connecting on 7-of-8 (18 points). Overall, Temple played for 36:07 min.

Chicago will enter this game with a record of 4-7 this season. The Bulls are hitting 37.7% on shots from beyond the arc (147 of 390) and 81.6% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 116.1 points per contest (6th in the league) while hitting 47.7% from the floor. They lose possession by turning the ball over 17.8 times per contest and as a group are committing 21.5 fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, Chicago is grabbing 43.4 rebounds per contest and has earned 274 dimes on the year, which has them ranked 15th in the league in terms of passing the ball. When they are on the defensive end, the Bulls are forcing 14.6 turnovers per game while drawing 22.3 fouls. They are currently ranked 21st in the NBA in giving up assists to their opponents with 287 conceded for the campaign. The Bulls defensively are giving up a field goal percentage of 48.0% (161 of 245) and they concede 42.5 rebounds per game as a group. They concede 39.2% on 3-point attempts and they are 28th in the NBA in opponents points per game (121.1).

The last time they took the court, the Oklahoma City Thunder walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 128-99 when they faced the Los Angeles Lakers. The Thunder were able to snag 33 defensive boards and 9 offensive boards for a total of 42 in this contest. They also rejected 6 shots while earning 4 steals in the matchup. The Lakers were called for 16 personal fouls in the matchup which got the Thunder to the free throw line for 19 attempts. They were able to knock down 15 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 78.9%. Pertaining to shots from beyond the perimeter, Oklahoma City made 10 of their 31 attempts (32.3%). In all, the Thunder went 37 out of 86 from the floor which gave them a rate of 43.0%. The Thunder allowed the Lakers to convert 47 out of their 95 tries from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 49.5% in the matchup. They went 45.9% from beyond the perimeter by going 17 of 37 and finished the game at 17 of 22 at the charity stripe (77.3%). In reference to how they attacked the glass, Oklahoma City allowed Los Angeles to get 50 in total (12 on the offensive glass).

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was important for the Thunder for the matchup. He buried 5 out of 12 for this contest giving him a field goal percentage of 41.7%, which had him finishing with 17 points. Gilgeous-Alexander snagged 2 boards in his 27:16 mins of time on the court and totaled 2 dimes in this matchup. One more player that ended up playing a role for Oklahoma City was Isaiah Roby. He ended up with 11 points in 24:09 mins played via 4 of 7 shooting for the game. Roby wrapped this one up going 57.1% from the field while also contributing 4 assists and 9 boards.

Oklahoma City has a record of 5-6 on the season. The Thunder have committed 18.8 fouls per game and they shoot 73.1% from the free throw line. They are getting an assist 21.9 times per game (29th in the league) and they turn it over 14.9 times per contest. Oklahoma City has 1,145 pts on the campaign (104.1 per game) and they grab 45.1 rebounds per game. When it comes to executing on offense, the Thunder are connecting on 44.7% from the floor, which is ranked 20th in basketball. The Thunder on the defensive end are ranked 15th in basketball in points given up per game with 110.9. The Oklahoma City defense gives up 34.6% on shots from distance (122 of 353) and opponents are knocking down 73.0% of their foul shots. They have relinquished 24.9 dimes and 48.7 rebounds every game, ranking them 17th and 28th in the NBA. They are forcing 11.5 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 46.1% from the field (16th in the NBA).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Chicago (+1.5)

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