Bulls vs Cavaliers Odds, Starting Lineup, Injury Report, Predictions, TV Channel for Dec. 31

After playing the Detroit Pistons just last night, the Chicago Bulls will once again host visitors at the United Center with a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on New Year’s Eve. This will be the second time these two teams square off this season, with the first being an embarrassing 96-128 blowout in favor of Cleveland.

If you can recall, the Bulls did actually win their last three meetings with the Cavs after dropping the first game last season, so let’s hope history repeats itself here. Being blown out by Cleveland after winning the prior three contests also speaks to the excellence of newly acquired Donovan Mitchell, as he has clearly elevated the Cavaliers to a whole new level.

But if history is really going to repeat itself, why don’t we throw in another New Year’s Eve game-winner at the buzzer for good measure? With how closely these two teams stack up on paper, I wouldn’t be surprised to see it come down to that. Here’s how you can catch tonight’s game.

How to watch Chicago Bulls vs Cleveland Cavaliers

• Date: December 31, 2022
• Time: 7:00 p.m. ET, 6:00 p.m CT
• Where: United Center, Chicago, IL
• Watch: NBC Sports Chicago, NBA TV
• Stream: FuboTV

Chicago Bulls vs Cleveland Cavaliers, Spread, Over/Under

• Favorite: Cavaliers (-4)
• Over/under: 224.5 points
• Moneyline: +150 Chicago/-178 Cleveland

Gambling odds and information courtesy of FanDuel. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. Displayed odds current as of Saturday at 6:00 a.m. CT.

Projected Chicago Bulls Starting Lineup and Injury Report

• PG: Ayo Dosunmu
• SG: Zach LaVine
• SF: DeMar DeRozan
• PF: Patrick Williams
• C: Nikola Vucevic
• IR: Out – Lonzo Ball; Questionable – Derrick Jones Jr.

Seeing as how Ayo Dosunmu got the start over Alex Caruso, I expect that to continue to be the case at least for the near future while Caruso ramps back up. The starting role is nothing more than a formality with these two really, as Dosunmu logged 25 minutes to Caruso’s 20, with the disparity in minutes likely to continue decreasing as Caruso gets his legs under him. Goran Dragic also chipped in 15 minutes of his own, so the Bulls will be set at point guard regardless of who they role with.

Game Predictions

Despite their penchant for playing extremely well against the East’s best teams, the Bulls are unreliable at best and are a bad matchup against the Cavs on paper. With Mobley and Allen patrolling the paint, the only way to consistently beat Cleveland is to make it rain from deep. But with the Bulls being the NBA’s most reluctant three-point shooting team and all, I just don’t trust their ability to adjust accordingly.

Even if Chicago does manage to start jacking up the three, they still need to beat one of the league’s best backcourt duos in Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell in a shootout. I hope I’m (once again) proven wrong here, but Cleveland has everything they need to make light work of the Bulls.

My Predictions (15-20)

Bulls Upcoming Games

• Jan. 2 @ Cleveland Cavaliers (22-14)
• Jan. 4 vs Brooklyn Nets (23-12)
• Jan. 6 @ Philadelphia 76ers (20-13)