Chicago Bulls: Zach LaVine could dazzle in absence of James Harden

One of the final chances that the Chicago Bulls will have to continue their quest for a spot in the play-in tournament later this month comes in a key showdown with the Brooklyn Nets on May 11. The Bulls only have four games remaining for the regular season, and the schedule is anything but friendly.

Remaining on the regular season slate for the Bulls are battles with the Nets twice, and then the Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors. It will be tough to keep the winning streak going, especially against one of the top two teams in the Eastern Conference standings in the Nets.

But one aspect that will work in the Bulls’ favor is the fact that the Nets are still anticipated to be missing superstar guard James Harden as he recovers from a hamstring injury. Harden hasn’t seen game action for the Nets in at least a couple of weeks. They’re likely just hoping to get him back for the playoffs.

And it was just recently that first-year head coach Billy Donovan and the Bulls got the star duo of shooting guard Zach LaVine and center Nikola Vucevic back in the starting five. LaVine had missed 11 games due to a violation of the league’s health and safety protocol, and Vucevic had missed two with an adductor injury.

Chicago Bulls can ride the efforts of Zach LaVine to beat a Nets team without James Harden

While the Nets are expected to still have superstar forward Kevin Durant and point guard Kyrie Irving available against the Bulls, their minutes could be limited. KD is playing heavy minutes in the last few games for the Nets (more than 40 minutes in two of the four outings), but that might slow down in the final games of the regular season.

And the same could be said for Kyrie as he’s missed some time due to injury already this season.

LaVine and Vooch are both playing really well for the Bulls in the last few games. The Bulls are currently riding a three-game winning streak heading into this May 11 meeting at home with the Nets. During that span, LaVine and Vooch have both averaged more than 25 points per game, and each has other impressive counting stats and shooting percentages across the board.

It is big that LaVine won’t have to worry about chasing down someone as active as Harden on the offensive end of the floor in this game too. LaVine can focus more on producing for the Bulls on offense, and clamping down defensively on someone like Bruce Brown or Joe Harris. Those are much more manageable matchups than Harden would be for the Bulls’ first-time All-Star LaVine.

LaVine has also played really well throughout his career against the Nets. Some of his best numbers have come in his 11 career meetings against them (dating back to their days in New Jersey). He’s averaged around 23 points per game, three rebounds, four assists, one steal, and 0.5 blocks, in those 11 matchups against the Nets in his career.

LaVine and the Bulls now hold a record of 29-39 following their dominant May 9 win at home at the United Center over the Boston Celtics. Tip-off time between the Bulls and Nets is set for 7 p.m. CT in Chicago.