Thunder vs Bulls Prediction

Chicago Bulls (0-0) vs Oklahoma City Thunder (0-0)

Game Info: Wednesday, October 25, 2023 at 8:00 pm (United Center)

Betting Odds: Chicago Bulls -1 -- Over/Under: 228

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Chicago Bulls meet Wednesday in NBA action at the United Center. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.

Oklahoma City Thunder Betting Preview

The Oklahoma City Thunder won 40 games last season and enter the fourth year under coach Mark Daigneault. The 40 wins was a 16-win jump from their 2021-22 total, so this franchise is heading in the right direction. OKC has a star in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and there’s a lot of young talent to go around, including Josh Giddy, Luguentz Dort and Jalen Williams. The Thunder will get a massive boost with the return of Chet Holmgren, who missed all of last season with injury. The Thunder added a veteran presence and shooting in Davis Bertans, while Cason Wallace is a first round pick who should get playing time right away. There’s talent in OKC and last year's massive jump should have folks excited. The Thunder will have a chance to make the playoffs for the first time since 2019-20.

Chicago Bulls Betting Preview

The Chicago Bulls are coming off a 40-win season and enter the fourth year under coach Billy Donovan. The Bulls have missed the playoffs in 5 of the last 6 seasons. Outside of replacing Patrick Beverley for Jevon Carter, the Bulls didn’t do much this offseason to improve their roster. The Bulls are banking on a veteran core of Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic. The health of Alex Caruso will help the Bulls, as he’s played just 108 games the last two seasons. The injury to Lonzo Ball doesn’t help the Bulls. There’s talent in Chicago, but there’s also a lack of depth, and it’s why the Bulls are plus money to make the playoffs this season. It could be another struggling year in the Windy City.

Randy’s Pick

The Oklahoma City Thunder should be a playoff team this season with all of the young talent on their roster, but this is the season opener and I give the Bulls veterans at home the edge. It may take OKC and its youth a week or two to really get going. The Chicago Bulls have a roster full of guys who have been there, done that, and they know how important it is to start the season strong. Rack up as many wins as you can early to prevent starting the season in a hole. Near pick em spot, give me the Bulls, one of the healthiest teams in the league currently.

The pick in this article is the opinion of the writer, not a PickDawgz site consensus.