Chicago Bulls vs Charlotte Hornets odds, what to watch for

The Chicago Bulls will try to avoid an all-out tailspin in Charlotte tonight. Here are the latest odds and things to keep an eye on.

Tonight is going to be a pivotal night for the Chicago Bulls. Last night, they lost in embarrassing fashion to a solid Miami Heat team. Now, less than 24 hours later, they have to face a surprisingly fun Charlotte Hornets team.

Can the Bulls use last night’s game as a learning experience or was it the beginning of the end for this young team’s playoff hopes?

How will Zach LaVine look tonight?

Zach LaVine touched on some interesting things after last night’s game, including trust issues and feeling like he got singled out. With those comments coming less than 24 hours ago, all eyes will be on LaVine and Jim Boylen tonight. How will they interact? Has Boylen lost LaVine?

There’s a chance LaVine will come out slow and frustrated tonight. That would be a bad sign of what’s to come for his future. I still believe in LaVine, though. I’m betting he’ll come out with some extra fire tonight. I think he’ll be motivated by what happened last night and by the things Boylen said about him. Zach seems like the kind of guy that would take all of this personally.

LaVine definitely has the talent to be an elite player, he just needs to stay locked in. Maybe this is what he needed to motivate him. Maybe he’s ready to take the next step forward.

Bulls odds against Hornets

• Favorite: Bulls (-1.5)
• Over/under: 218
• Moneyline: -130 Bulls/+110 Hornets

The odds are courtesy of The Action Network and are current as of Saturday at 11:45 am CT.

Analyzing the spread

I would advise not gambling on tonight’s game. It’s hard to imagine the Bulls being favored in any game after last night’s embarrassing performance, let alone in a road game against a spirited Charlotte Hornets team, but here we are.

Devonte’ Graham has been a refreshing surprise this season. He’s devastating in the pick-and-roll, and he’s a lethal shooter. He’ll be a tough matchup for the Bulls’ starting unit. Tomas Satoransky is a fine defender, but he’s not quick enough to stay in front of someone like Graham. LaVine might be a serviceable option for Graham, but I don’t trust him navigating the pick-and-roll. Maybe that means Shaquille Harrison will get some run at containing the former Jayhawk.

Miles Bridges is another guy the Bulls will have a tough guy matching up with. Normally, Otto Porter Jr. is the guy that would be tasked with stopping Bridges, but with Porter out of the lineup, there’s a gaping hole on the wing for Chi-Town. Bridges is coming off a 31-point performance last night and might be in line for another scoring outburst.

Charlotte isn’t the team most fans thought they would be heading into the season. Instead of a boring, tanking team, they’ve turned into a traveling trap game for nearly every team in the league. They play hard, they fly around and they have fun. In other words, they’re the opposite of the Chicago Bulls.

The game tips off tonight at 6 pm CT.