Two days after picking up an exciting overtime victory, the Chicago Bulls are back for their second game of Summer League action. This time, they’ll take on the New York Knicks in an intriguing battle between two currently undefeated teams.
Led by the young core of the main roster, Miles McBride, Quentin Grimes, and Jericho Sims combined for 54 points and helped propel the Knicks to a dominant 101-88 victory in their first game against the Golden State Warriors. Another interesting player to watch in this game will be Jean Montero, one of the top undrafted prospects of 2022.
While Golden State’s roster did feature Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, the rest of their team was absolutely depleted; this is why the Warriors lost by an average of 21.6 points per game en route to finishing 0-3 and last place in the California Classic.
For that reason, it’s hard to say just how good these Knicks are. At the same time, there are a lot of question marks surrounding this Bulls team without Ayo Dosunmu and Patrick Williams around to pull the weight. Now, these two teams are set to clash in a contest where only one gets to leave with a perfect record and a shot at the NBA 2K23 Summer League Championship.
How to watch Chicago Bulls vs. New York Knicks in the NBA 2K23 Summer League
Start time: 4 pm ET or 1 pm local time
How to watch: ESPN2
Watch online: Watch ESPN, ESPN app, Bulls.com
Chicago Bulls vs. New York Knicks NBA 2K23 Summer League predictions
I believe the most interesting matchup to watch in this upcoming contest will be between Chicago’s Marko Simonovic and New York’s Jerich Sims. Simonovic stunned Dallas in his first outing, posting an impressive 27 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks. However, the Mavericks lacked a true center to matchup against Simonovic, so whether or not he can maintain that level of play against a talented big man like Sims will be very interesting to see play out.
New York’s McBride and Grimes will also play similar roles for the Knicks as what the Bulls are hoping to get out of Dalen Terry and Justin Lewis next season. Whichever of these players can leave the biggest imprint on this game may very well decide who walks away victorious.
If either one of either Dosunmu or Williams were suiting up for this game, I think I could comfortably give the edge to the Bulls in this one. But as it stands, it looks like we’re in for another very close contest. That ultimately may be for the best, as this young group seems to thrive under pressure and it just might take a trial by fire for these guys to reach the next level.
Prediction: The Chicago Bulls win, 98-96