Play-In Time: Hawks vs Bulls NBA Betting Lines & Pick

The Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks are in the NBA’s Eastern Conference play-in tournament for a second straight season as the No. 9 Bulls host the No. 10 Hawks on Wednesday with the winner facing the East 7 vs. 8 loser between Miami and Philadelphia for the final East playoff spot later this week. The Bulls are short favorites on the NBA odds.

2024 NBA Play-In Tournament Expert Analysis Atlanta vs Chicago | MyBookie NBA

How to Bet Hawks at Bulls NBA Odds & TV Info

Where: United Center
TV: ESPN
Stream: ESPN+
Radio: Tunein.com

Why Bet on Atlanta Hawks?

The Hawks (36-46) closed the regular season on a six-game skid following a 157-115 loss at Indiana on Sunday as the Pacers avoided the East play-in tournament. The 157 points matched the Pacers’ highest-scoring game since they joined the NBA in 1976. They shot 65% and made 19 of 36 3-pointers.

Trae Young recorded a double-double on Sunday with 12 points and 12 assists but also eight turnovers. Young entered needing 11 assists to pass Doc Rivers as the franchise leader in dimes, and he reached that mark early in the fourth quarter, despite being down more than 30 points. Young has dished out five-or-more assists in 160 consecutive contests, the third-longest such streak in NBA history.

Atlanta held out starting center Clint Capela for rest. Three other rotation players who average a combined 39.9 points, Jalen Johnson (sprained ankle), Saddiq Bey (torn knee ligament) and Onyeka Okongwu (sprained toe), sat out due to injury. Capela will play Wednesday but none of the other three will.

Atlanta has never lost a game in the play-in tournament and the Hawks are plenty familiar with playing in it. Two years ago, they beat Charlotte and Cleveland to get to the playoffs, then lost in five games to the No. 1 Miami Heat. Last year, they beat Miami in the first play-in game, then lost in six games to the No. 2 Boston Celtics. Young has played very well in the play-in games and Atlanta is going to need him to be the best player on the court to get into the final East playoff field.

Bet Atlanta to Win
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Why Bet on Chicago Bulls?

The Bulls (39-43) really had no reason to care Sunday in their finale but pushed the New York Knicks to the limit in a 120-119 overtime loss – the Knicks’ win and Bucks’ loss in Orlando allowed New York to grab the East’s No. 2 seed. Jalen Brunson capped one of the best regular seasons in franchise history with his 11th 40-point game to beat Chicago. The Knicks will await the winner of the play-in game between Philadelphia and Miami on Wednesday.

DeMar DeRozan scored 30 points for the Bulls, but one of the NBA’s best clutch finishers missed a short jumper with 2.8 seconds remaining in OT.

The Bulls opted to play their healthy players throughout Sunday’s game. Coach Billy Donovan said Ayo Dosunmu (bruised right quadricep) and Andre Drummond (sprained left ankle) were both still feeling pain and discomfort so neither of them played, and he is unsure if either would be ready for Wednesday’s win-or-out game.

In the two games against Atlanta earlier this season in which Hawks star Trae Young was healthy and playing, Young went a combined 5-of-23 from three and 9-of-31 from the field. Dosunmu wasn’t the only defender on him obviously, but saw heavy minutes guarding Young. Like Dosunmu, Drummond has been a Hawks killer this season, averaging 14.7 points and 18 rebounds in three games. That included a Dec. 26 showcase for Drummond in which he started for an injured Nikola Vucevic and scored 24 points with 25 rebounds.

“I don’t know where he’ll be at and if he’ll be able to do anything,” Donovan said Sunday about Drummond. “I think there’s some hope that Ayo can participate in some practices before Atlanta. But until he gets past that point, I don’t know. I would just say this: Nobody has told me those guys are definitely in or out for Atlanta. It’s one of those things that’s up in the air.”

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