The final Eastern Conference playoff spot is up for grabs on Friday night as the ninth-seeded Chicago Bulls visit the eighth-seeded Miami Heat to conclude the play-in tournament. The Heat are favored on the NBA odds to advance and meet East No. 1 Boston in the first round of the postseason
2024 NBA Play-In Tournament Expert Analysis Chicago vs Miami | MyBookie NBA
How to Bet Bulls at Heat NBA Odds & TV Info
When: Friday, 7 PM ET
Where: Kaseya Center
TV: ESPN
Stream: ESPN+
Radio: Tunein.com
NBA Odds: Heat -2 (total 205.5)
Bulls vs Heat Season Series
The Heat and Bulls had a very interesting regular-season series as they played two games in each city back-to-back. On Nov. 18 in Chicago, the Heat lost by five but then two nights later there won by 18. On Dec. 14 in Miami, the Heat lost 124-116 but then won two nights later 118-116 to split. The teams also played in the final East play-in game last April in Miami and the Heat won 102-91 to advance. Max Strus and Jimmy Butler, the former Bull, had 31 points each.
Why Bet on Chicago Bulls?
The ninth-seeded Bulls were 3-point home favorites on Wednesday against No. 10 Atlanta and beat the Hawks 131-116. Off the best regular season of his career, Bulls guard Coby White had a career-high 42 points – his previous high was 37. Technically, though, it’s not a career-high night because play-in statistics don’t count. The games are neither regular-season nor playoff games. White added nine rebounds, six assists and two steals in 43 minutes.
Bulls Last 5
| vs 76ers – L105-104 |
| vs Raptors – W118-103 |
| vs Raptors – W125-103 |
| @ Mavericks – L111-92 |
| @ Hawks – W117-111 2OT |
“I didn’t come into the game saying I was going to put the team (on my back) or whatever,” White said. “I just wanted to be aggressive and take what the defense gave me and just try to lead. Coming into the game, I just wanted to impact winning on both sides of the ball and that’s what I focused on, and tonight I was aggressive and things went my way.”
DeMar DeRozan had 22 points, nine assists and six rebounds. This could be his final game with Chicago as the All-Star will be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. The Bulls will probably make a competitive offer unless another team presents an irresistible package. Nikola Vucevic had 24 points and 12 rebounds after closing the regular season with three straight 20-point games. Vucevic scored less than 20 points in three of their four matchups this year vs. the Heat.
The news was not all good for the Bulls as guard Alex Caruso, one of the best defenders in the NBA, reportedly suffered a significant ankle sprain and is unlikely to play against the Heat. Caruso missed games on April 7 and April 12 due to what the Bulls referred to on the injury report as a left ankle contusion and this is a re-aggravation. The injury occurred when Andre Drummond stepped on Caruso’s right foot early in the second quarter, sending him to the floor. Caruso limped to the bench, then checked back into the game a few minutes later before eventually exiting for good until early in the third quarter.
Caruso’s defense was big early on as he helped the Bulls force Trae Young into five turnovers in the first quarter. His defensive powers and 3-point shooting also helped stymie the Hawks into an 18-point first-quarter deficit. During the regular season, Caruso was the only player in the NBA to tally 130+ 3FGM, 100+ steals and 60+ blocks. He ranked third in the NBA in games with 2+ steals (37) and tied for fourth in games with 3+ steals (16).
“I do until I can’t,” Caruso said after the game when asked if he expects to play on Friday. “We’ll see how it goes the next couple days, but my mindset would be to play until my body tells me I can’t.”
The Bulls are already down Zach LaVine and Patrick Williams for the season. Ayo Dosunmu and Drummond both came into Wednesday’s game questionable, too, but both played. Dosunmu had 19 points and three assists, while Drummond managed only four points in 11 minutes off the bench.
Bet Chicago to Win
NBA Betting Odds Tonight
| Play-In Tournament Vegas Picks NBA Odds Subject to Change | SPREAD | MONEYLINE | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami | -2 | -130 | O 205.5 |
| Chicago | +2 | +106 | U 205.5 |
| NBA First Half Lines | 2nd Half NBA Lines | |||
Why Bet on Miami Heat?
The eighth-seeded Heat also lost their first play-in tournament game last year before winning the second one over Chicago to advance and of course Miami got all the way to the NBA Finals, losing to Denver. The Heat had every chance to advance as the East’s No. 7 seed on Wednesday in Philadelphia but lost 105-104 as the Sixers earned the No. 7 seed and advanced to play the second-seeded New York Knicks in the opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Heat Last 5
| vs Hawks – W131-116 |
| @ Knicks – L120-119 OT |
| @ Wizards – W129-127 |
| @ Pistons – W127-105 |
| vs Knicks – L120-119 OT |
With the game tied 96-all, Miami’s Tyler Herro was whistled for a backcourt violation. Joel Embiid slipped the ball to Kelly Oubre under the basket for the bucket, the free throw and a 99-96 lead they would not give up.
“We will do this the hard way,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “That has to be the path right now. We’re going to rest up, treat up, rally around each other up, get ready for Friday. Again, embrace these competitive games. It will be competitive in front of our home fans.”
Herro led Miami with 25 points while adding nine assists. Jimmy Butler had 19 points, five assists, four rebounds and five steals but injured his right knee at the end of the first quarter after Kelly Oubre landed on it. Butler was able to finish out the game and played 40 minutes, but clearly was bothered by the knee as in the final three quarters, he scored 12 points on 3-for-14 shooting and took just two shots in the last nine minutes of the game. The fear is that Butler suffered an MCL injury in that knee and will miss time. He was to have an MRI on Thursday.
“I fell, he landed and my knee just didn’t do well, I guess. “It had me feeling that I couldn’t do too much. I don’t know. It’s not a good feeling, I can tell you that,” said Butler, who was limping on his way out of the Wells Fargo Center. Spoelstra said Butler’s knee “started to limit him a little more” as the game went on.
Miami’s offense landed in the bottom-10 during the regular season and dropped significantly with Butler off the floor. In his minutes, the Heat averaged 116 points per 100 possessions, compared to 109 when he was on the bench. Butler averaged 20.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and five assists per game this season, his fifth with the Heat. If Butler is out, Jaime Jaquez, Haywood Highsmith and Caleb Martin would likely see more minutes Friday.
Inefficient offense and injuries have hurt the Heat all season. They scored just 111.8 points per 100 possessions on Wednesday for an offensive rating that would have ranked 24th among teams this regular season. Miami fell to 13-26 this season when posting an offensive rating under 112 points scored per 100 possessions. The Heat were without starting guard Terry Rozier because of a neck injury and three-point shooting forward Duncan Robinson also didn’t play as he recovers from a back issue. I’d expect both to go Friday with the season on the line and Butler perhaps out.
Bet Miami to Win
NBA Betting Odds Tonight
Bulls vs Heat Expert Prediction
Heat 108, Bulls 105
NBA Championship Odds 2023/24
- Boston Celtics +160
- Denver Nuggets +300
- Dallas Mavericks +1100
- Los Angeles Clippers +1200
- Oklahoma City Thunder +1200
- Philadelphia 76ers +1400
- Milwaukee Bucks +1400
- Phoenix Suns +1800
- Minnesota Timberwolves +1800
- Los Angeles Lakers +2500
- New York Knicks +3300
- Miami Heat +5000
- Cleveland Cavaliers +5000
- Golden State Warriors +5000
- Indiana Pacers +6000
- Sacramento Kings +7000
- New Orleans Pelicans +8000
- Orlando Magic +15000
- Chicago Bulls +150000
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2023 Bulls vs Heat Odds for Play-In Tournament
It’s a do-or-die game for the Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat on Friday night as they meet in the final Eastern Conference play-in tournament game with the winner advancing to face No. 1 Milwaukee this weekend. The Heat are favoured on the NBA odds.
Bulls vs. Heat Play-In Tournament | 2023 NBA Expert Analysis
How to Bet Toronto at Miami NBA Odds & TV Info
When: Friday, 7 PM ET
Where: Kaseya Center
TV: TNT
Stream: TNT app
Radio: Tunein.com
NBA Odds: Heat -5 (total 209.5)
Season Series
The Bulls were 3-0 vs. Miami in the regular season. The teams played last on March 18 in Chicago and the Bulls prevailed 113-99. DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points and shot 9-for-12 from the floor. Coby White made four 3-pointers and finished with 18 points, Zach LaVine also had 18 and Patrick Beverley added 17 as the Bulls shot 56.3% (45 for 80) from the field overall, including 17 for 34 from 3-point range. The Heat, who trailed by as many as 27, got 23 points each from Jimmy Butler and Nikola Vucevic. Kyle Lowry didn’t play.
Why Bet on Chicago?
The Bulls closed as 6-point underdogs Wednesday in Toronto but ended the Raptors’ season with a 109-105 comeback win led by 39 points, seven rebounds and three assists from Zach LaVine. After scoring nine points in the first half, LaVine took over in the third quarter. He scored 17 points in the frame, and another 13 in the fourth helped the Bulls become the first 10-seed to win a game in the play-in tournament (1-4). They trailed by 16 late in the third quarter.
“Just be aggressive and get it close before the fourth quarter,” LaVine said about his 11 straight points to close the third quarter after the Bulls had trailed 77-63 with about two and a half minutes remaining. Toronto missed 18 of 36 free throws in the game and two of three with 12 seconds left to tie when Alex Caruso fouled Pascal Siakam on a three.
DeMar DeRozan had 23 points and seven rebounds, and Nikola Vucevic 14 points, 13 rebounds and four assists. In three regular-season meetings against the Heat, Vucevic averaged 19.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.3 blocks and shot 63.2% from the field and 100% from the foul line.
Chicago’s defense, which ranked fifth in the league during the regular season, put huge pressure on the Raptors in the second half. After getting easy looks in the first half, Toronto had to work a lot harder to find even decent looks, especially from 3-point range. Toronto finished the first half shooting 42.1% from 3-point range, and the number dropped to 25% after halftime.
Coach Billy Donovan essentially said to disregard what happened in the regular season against Miami. With a chance to earn the eighth seed and face the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the NBA playoffs, Friday is a new game.
“We know going there it’s another great road test against a team that’s seasoned and coming off a loss. They’ll look to rebound and play to their identity and style,” Donovan said. “We have a lot to get ready for. There are things we can take from those three games, but those are over now. This is a new challenge.”
Why Bet on Miami?
The Heat closed as 5-point favorites on Tuesday vs. Atlanta but were upset 116-105 to be pushed to this game with the season on the line. Miami lost despite a shocking 33 points off the bench from Kyle Lowry, who is way past his prime these days. The last time Lowry scored more points than he did in this game was in May 2021, which was his final game with the Toronto Raptors. The Heat trailed by 24 points in the first half, but they pulled within six points in the fourth quarter.
Jimmy Butler always raises his game in the playoffs and had 21 points, nine assists and four rebounds. Butler, who tallied 10 points in both the first and third quarters, has tallied at least 20 points and five assists in four straight games overall. Tyler Herro had 26 points and six rebounds and has tallied at least 25 points and five rebounds on 14 occasions this year.
Starting point guard Gabe Vincent left Tuesday’s game with 7:40 left in the first quarter and didn’t return due to an undisclosed injury. Vincent tallied six points, three rebounds and two assists in 24 minutes before a collision with Sadiq Bey sent him to the locker room. If Vincent’s injury keeps him out Friday, Lowry and Victor Oladipo should see extended minutes with Lowry likely back in the starting lineup.
The Heat struggled mightily at the rim against Atlanta’s size as they shot just 4-of-12 in the restricted area on Tuesday. The Hawks, meanwhile, had a whopping 64 points in the paint. Miami also shot poorly from the 3-point line, was outrebounded badly and struggled defensively against the Hawks backcourt of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray.
“At least we have a lot of experience,” Coach Erik Spoelstra said after Tuesday’s dispiriting loss. “We’ve had a lot of ups and downs. Nothing about this season has been easy, so we’re going to do this the hard way. We’re going to get back to work, regroup, put our arms around each other, get to the film and get better from this.”
Tuesday’s game was a rematch of the first round of last season’s playoffs where the Heat won the series in five games. More recently, Miami won three of four regular season meetings and boasted an 11-1 record in its last 12 regular and postseason home games against Atlanta, including seven consecutive wins.
Game Trends
- Bulls are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 Friday games.
- Bulls are 6-2-1 ATS in their last 9 road games.
- Heat are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 home games.
- Heat are 1-8 ATS in their last 9 games following a straight up loss of more than 10 points.
- Bulls are 8-3 ATS in the last 11 meetings in Miami.
Expert Prediction
Heat 108, Bulls 106
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