After a loss Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Lakers, the Chicago Bulls look to get back on track Friday against the team with the best record in the East: the rival Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Chicago Bulls looked awful against the undermanned Lakers on Wednesday, and fell to 10-7 on the season. They now sit in third place in a crowded Eastern Conference where only two games separate the Bulls from the 10th place Indiana Pacers.
But, their recent setback will be completely forgotten with a win tonight against the defending NBA champion Cavaliers.
Chicago faces LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers for the first time this season, and the Bulls won’t see them again until after the new year.
The United Center has been quiet to begin the season. But, tonight should not be one of those nights. The nationally-televised ESPN Friday night game against James, Kyrie Irving and company should give Bulls fans every incentive to be as amped as possible this early in the season.
The Bulls should also hold another energy advantage, as the Cavaliers played last night at home against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Bulls have only played one game in the last week; a complete oddity in the NBA.
Chicago and Cleveland come into tonight’s contest with the fourth and third best point differentials in the league respectively. The Bulls are 6-4 in their last 10 games, while Cleveland is 7-3 in their last 10. The Bulls have played nearly double the amount of road games, and the Cavaliers look more human away from Quicken Loans Arena, where they are 9-2.
The Bulls rank 29th in the NBA in terms of percent of points scored from beyond the arc at roughly 20 percent. The Cavaliers are second at 37 percent, scoring nearly 41 points per game from deep.
However, the two teams get to the free-throw line at nearly the exact same rate. They are also not far apart in field goals made and attempted, as well as overall shooting percentage.
Chicago and Cleveland are truly separated by effective star power. The Cavaliers have three players touting a Player Efficiency Rating in the top 30 in the NBA. And, they have four players earning a PER of 20 or higher.
The Bulls have two, and you can probably guess who they are. Their “Third Alpha,” Rajon Rondo is not even in the vicinity, ranking 37th in the relatively reliable and telling stat amongst point guards alone at 12.94.
This brings us to the first of three things to keep an eye on tonight: Jimmy Butler.