Bulls vs Hornets Picks & Odds (March 31)
- Chicago is a 7-point favorite in the Bulls vs Hornets odds on Friday
- Terry Rozier is out, while Gordon Hayward is doubtful and Kelly Oubre Jr. is questionable for Charlotte
- Don’t miss the latest Bulls vs Hornets odds here, plus injury news and predictions
As the Bulls cling to the final Play-In Tournament spot in the East, online sportsbooks expect Chicago to put some distance between themselves and 11th place Washington on Friday. That’s because the Bulls have a very winnable matchup on their hands versus the Hornets, opening up as the heavy chalk in the NBA odds.
Bulls vs Hornets Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bulls | -7 (-110) | -280 | OFF |
| Charlotte Hornets | +7 (-110) | +235 | OFF |
Chicago is currently a 7-point favorite, in a contest without a total as of Thursday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 pm ET at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, NC, and will mark the fourth and final meeting between these two squads this season.
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Odds as of March 30 at DraftKings Sportsbook.
Bulls vs Hornets Injury Report
The Bulls vs Hornets injury report on Friday reads like a novel. Numerous players on both sides are hurting, with three-fifths of the Charlotte starting line-up in danger of missing the contest. Terry Rozier is out, while Gordon Hayward is doubtful. Kelly Oubre Jr. is questionable after sitting out the last three games, as is backup point guard Dennis Smith Jr. Don’t forget the team is already minus star LaMelo Ball who’s out for the season.
Gordon Hayward is doubtful for tomorrow's game against Chicago. Kelly Oubre and Dennis Smith Jr. are questionable. Terry Rozier remains out.
— Rod Boone (@rodboone) March 30, 2023
On the other side, Chicago is likely to be down a starter, as well as two key bench pieces. Alex Caruso is listed as doubtful, along with Javonte Green and Andre Drummond. That’s going to leave the Bulls extremely thin up front behind Nikola Vucevic, and force them to go deep down their bench to find minutes eaters while he rests.
Bulls vs Hornets Betting Trends
Charlotte was eliminated from the NBA playoff bracket weeks ago, but they’ve been playing really good ball lately. They’ve won three straight entering play on Friday, and four of their last five. Two of those victories were back-to-back efforts over Dallas, while they put up 137 points en route to taking down OKC last time out.
PJ Washington has been the catalyst of the offense recently, pouring in a career-high 43 points versus the Thunder. The Hornets will be leaning on him heavily again if both Hayward and Oubre Jr. sit, and he’s proven he can shoulder the load. Washington has scored at least 21 points in each of Charlotte’s last three wins, leading the team in scoring in three of his last four starts.
The Hornets found themselves in a track meet against OKC, but as we’ll discuss later, this has been one of the top units per defensive rating over the last month and a half.
What a night for PJ Washington 🔥
43 PTS (career-high)
6 REB
5 AST
5 3PM
W pic.twitter.com/qD7ocsMWbd— NBA (@NBA) March 29, 2023
That’s something they have in common with the Bulls, who enter play having dropped two straight. That followed a run where they’d won five of six, and were starting to look more like a threat to emerge from the Play-In Tournament into the playoffs.
Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Vucevic have been shouldering the load offensively for the Bulls, especially among Chicago starters. Last time out versus the Lakers, the Bulls other two starters (Patrick Beverley and Alex Caruso) combined for only 5 points. Chicago’s offensive depth is incredibly thin on the bench as well, forcing them to play strong defense to stay in games.
Chicago enters play sixth in defensive rating this season, and seventh in points allowed. This is basically a must win for the Bulls as four of their final five games are versus playoff caliber opponents. Both of these teams rank below league average in cover rate, with the Bulls struggling mightily to beat the spread as road favorites.
Bulls vs Hornets Predictions
Chicago is 2-8-1 ATS as road favorites this season, losing outright at the chalk seven times. That dismal mark includes a 15 point loss at Charlotte earlier this year, when they were laying 3 points on the road.
NBA Defensive Rating Ranks Since All-Star Break
| Team | Rank |
|---|---|
| New Orleans Pelicans | 1 |
| Toronto Raptors | 2 |
| Charlotte Hornets | 3 |
| LA Lakers | 4 |
| Boston Celtics | 5 |
The Hornets may not have anything to play for, but care-free basketball has treated them well lately in spite of their injury woes. Head coach Steve Clifford has this team playing hard every night, and something has clicked post All-Star Break. Since the ASB, the Hornets have the third best defensive rating in the NBA, despite playing half of their games against top-10 offenses.
They’ve been especially stingy against three-point shooters, yielding just a 31% field goal percentage from long range. Expect Charlotte to clamp down on Chicago keeping this game close, and potentially even stealing a victory.
Pick: Charlotte Hornets +7 (-110)
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As SBD's resident Swiss Army Knife, Chris covers virtually every sport including NFL, PGA, NBA, MLB, NCAAB, NCAAF and the Olympics. A true grinder, he'd rather pick off small edges in the player props market than swing for the fences with a 5-leg parlay.
