Game 3: at Dallas Mavericks (Jan. 6)
For the first time during the month of January, the Chicago Bulls hit the road to take MVP contender Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks. The second-year star point guard is spearheading a solid Mavericks team that is surprising a lot of people out West.
Luka and Kristaps Porzingis completely blitz power forward Lauri Markkanen, point guard Kris Dunn, and the Bulls to the tune of a 25-point first half lead. The Mavericks never really look back and run the Bulls out of the American Airlines Center.
This leaves the Bulls under fire, with a record of 0-3 in the first three games on the new decade.
Score Prediction: Mavericks 118, Bulls 97 (Record 13-24)
Game 4: at New Orleans Pelicans (Jan. 8)
With the Bulls really falling down the standings, the first 37 games of the regular season hasn’t produced the desired results under Boylen. The Bulls are now a full 4.5 games back of the Orlando Magic for the eight seed in the East. There’s all kinds of pressure coming on Boylen now with little hope remaining for the rest of the season.
But the New Orleans Pelicans present an opportunity for the Bulls to bounce back from a four-game losing streak. A solid starting five for the Pelicans is still without the ultra-talented rookie forward Zion Williamson. The Bulls are able to jump on the Pelicans early, and actually hold onto a solid lead behind more than 50 points combined from Lauri and Zach.