Monday NBA Playoff Free Pick
(The Spread) – Game 1 between the Hawks and Bulls will take place Tuesday night at 8:00PM ET when the second round of the NBA playoffs continues.
View Current NBA Playoffs Betting Odds
Oddsmakers from online sports book SBGGLOBAL.com have made the Bulls 8.5-point favorites over the visiting Hawks, who surprised many NBA bettors by downing the Magic in Round 1 of the playoffs. The over/under total for tonight’s game is 178 points.
Atlanta took it to Orlando last round, beating the Magic in six games. The Hawks won 103-93 as an 8.5-point underdog in Game 1 and covered as a 9-point underdog in Game 2 despite losing, 88-82. When the series shifted to Atlanta for Games 3 and 4, the Hawks beat the Magic 88-84 and 88-85 as 1.5-point favorites in each contest. After taking Game 5 off in an embarrassing 101-76 defeat in Orlando, the Hawks finished the Magic off with an 84-81 victory at home in Game 6.
The Bulls didn’t have much trouble disposing of the Pacers in five games. They beat Indiana 104-99 and 96-90 in Games 1 and 2 in Chicago before winning Game 3 88-84 in Indiana. The Pacers avoided being swept by Chicago with an 89-84 victory in Game 4, but was thumped 116-89 in Game 5.
NBA Free Pick: The biggest question surrounding the Bulls heading into this series is health. Derrick Rose sprained an ankle against the Pacers in Game 4 and was less effective following that contest. Carlos Boozer is also dealing with a turf toe injury and while neither Rose nor Boozer will be out of the starting lineup, how effective they’ll be is the question. That said, the value still lies in the Bulls, even though they’re 2-7 against the spread in their last nine games as a home favorite. According to latest NBA trends, the Bulls are 6-1 ATS in their last seven games versus the NBA Southeast and 10-4-1 ATS in their last 15 Monday games. The only reason the point spread is not double-digits is because Rose and Boozer are not 100%. But if they can come out and give a great effort tonight, Chicago should roll.
MONDAY NBA PLAYOFFS FREE PICK: CHICAGO BULLS –8.5
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