Milwaukee Bucks vs Chicago Bulls Prediction, Odds and Picks for Today, 12/23/24

Bobby Portis stepped up with 34 points as Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard both took the night off in Saturday’s Bucks 112-101 win over Washington. The dynamic duo is expected back in the lineup as Milwaukee tries to go up 2-1 in the regular season series vs the Bulls. The Bucks road form has been far from convincing this year at just 4-8 SU in 12 games played, that’s part of the reason why they are just 1.5 point favorites here. If we disregard the loss to Cleveland, their three-ball has been exceptional in the last 3 of 4 games with 20, 17 and 14 shots made. That’s a good weapon to have against a Bulls team that plays an up-tempo style. Milwaukee is 6-2 SU in the last 8 meetings.

At 4-10 SU in 14 games played, the Bulls haven’t been convincing either at the United Center this season. They just got destroyed by the Celtics 123-98, which ended a 3-game win streak. Zach LaVine and co. were no where to be found, shooting just 37% from the field and 34% from three. Chicago’s issues on the glass arose once again as the Celtics grabbed 16 more rebounds, including 17 total on the offensive end. Going up against a player like Giannis you’re bound to have issues on that front, only 2 teams in the entire NBA allow more rebounds per game than these Bulls.

Assuming both Dame and Giannis return here, this is a gimme for the Bucks. They beat Chicago 122-106 in their most recent meeting about a month ago, with Giannis scoring 41 on 17-for-24 shooting. Dame had 20 and 10 in that game, the Bulls just don’t have enough to compete here. Go with the road team.

Bucks vs Bulls Predictions: Bucks -1.5 is available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.