The San Antonio Spurs and Chicago Bulls are playing live on the NBA schedule on Thursday night and the matchup from the United Center is on TV from TNT and streaming online as Derrick Rose and Pau Gasol matchup with Tim Duncan and the defending champions and it comes as the team has been under fire while playing some poor ball under Tom Thibodeau.
The Bulls come into the game playing some inconsistent ball and they have lost six of the last eight games and they matchup with the Mavericks next. The team comes in after a loss against the Cavaliers and that was a tough game and now the team is trying to bounce back. The Cavs are starting to play better after a bad streak and now the Bulls are trying to do the same.
The team comes in after getting 20 points from Jimmy Butler and 11 rebounds from Pau Gasol and so far this season those two have been the best players for the Bulls. Rose has been in and out of the lineup and he vented his frustrations after the Cavs loss and now the team is looking to get back on track. The team has been much better on offense than last season, but the defense has been lacking, as they are ranked 15th in points allowed after being first last season. The team is ninth on offense in scoring after being last in the league last season.
The Bulls come in ranked sixth in rebounds per game and they are first in the central division, but right now they feel like a team in trouble. The Bulls come in against the Spurs after San Antonio won over the Nuggets and the Spurs will next play the Lakers at home after this matchup. The Spurs come into the game fourth in the stacked southwest division and they have 27 wins and should be one of the favorites in the western conference this year.
The Spurs come in ranked 11th in scoring and in the top 10 in defense and they are also sixth in assists per game. Kawhi Leonard is leading the Spurs in scoring and Butler is tops for the Bulls, while Gasol comes in leading in rebounding and those two players will be key for the Bulls on Thursday. Joakim Noah has been out for a few games and missing him has been a detriment to the Bulls D and they are hoping to get him back soon, while Mike Dunleavy has been out for 10 games and that has hurt with the rotation along with Doug McDermott being out.
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