Injury-Plagued Bulls Face Tall Odds Against Celtics

The Boston Celtics host the Chicago Bulls on Monday, January 9 at the TD Garden, with both teams looking to keep their respective winning streaks going.

The Celtics defeated the San Antonio Spurs, 121-116, while the Bulls upended the Utah Jazz on Sunday, January 8.

Jayson Tatum led the way for the C’s with 34 points and four rebounds.

Jaylen Brown also had a good game, finishing with 29 points, four rebounds, and three assists.

“We needed a game like that, to where it’s back and forth. Things aren’t going our way; they are going our way. You just don’t get a lot of those. It’s easier to say that because we won, but I’m happy the game went the way it did because we got to execute some stuff,” interim head coach Joe Mazzulla said in a report by ESPN.

The Celtics are averaging 118.8 points per game and shooting 47.9% from the field.

They are also hauling down an average of 43.9 rebounds per game.

Defensively, Boston is allowing the opposition to 113 points per game and 47.6% field goal shooting.

However, they are giving up 46.7 boards per game and own a defensive rating of 80.

Looking at the injury report, Marcus Smart has been listed as day-to-day.

On the other side, the Bulls are hoping to stretch their winning run to four games.

Against the Jazz, Zach LaVine led the way with 36 points and seven rebounds.

DeMar DeRozan finished with 35 points and seven assists, whereas Nikola Vucevic had 15 points and 16 rebounds in that win over the Jazz.

“We still got a ways to go,” DeRozan said about his synergy with LaVine. “That’s the crazy part. We knew it was going to come at some point, understanding our spots and understanding moments in the game when it’s time to be aggressive.”

The Bulls are averaging 115.1 points per game and shooting 49% from the field.

In addition, Chicago is norming 42.4 rebounds per contest.

On the defense, the Bulls are limiting opponents to 115.5 points per game and 47.7% shooting from the field, but they are giving up 43.4 caroms per game and own a defensive rating of 77.

Lonzo Ball, Javonte Green and Tony Bradley have been listed as out against the Celtics.

Alex Caruso, on the other hand, has been listed as day-to-day.

The Celtics are -8.5 spread favorites to prevail over the Bulls, who are at +8.5.

The Moneyline is -350 for Boston and +280 for Chicago.

With the tip-off set at 7:40 PM ET, the game will be broadcast over NBA TV and on fuboTV.