The Chicago Bulls (0-1) visit the Milwaukee Bucks (1-0) on NBA Friday, tipping off at 8 p.m. from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The game is airing live on Bally Sports North and streaming on NBA League Pass.
The Bucks are consensus 9.5-point favorites over the Bulls on the spread (Bucks -9.5), with the over/under currently at 234.5 points. The Bucks are -440 favorites on the moneyline to win outright, while the Bulls are +340 to pull off the upset.
Let's dive into my Bulls vs. Bucks predictions and NBA picks for Friday, October 25.
Bulls vs. Bucks Odds
| Bulls Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+9.5 -110 | 235 -110o / -110u | +325 |
| Bucks Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-9.5 -110 | 235 -110o / -110u | -425 |
- Bulls vs. Bucks spread: Bucks -9.5
- Bulls vs. Bucks over/under: 234.5 points
- Bulls vs. Bucks moneyline: Bucks -440, Bulls +340
- Bulls vs. Bucks best bet: Over 234.5
Bulls vs. Bucks Picks and Predictions
Prediction
My pick: Over 231 (Bet to 234.5)
This number should be closer to 235 in my opinion so will gladly grab 231, but it's a clear over play for me in this matchup.
For all of your NBA bets, be sure to find the best lines by using our live NBA odds page.
Spread
Bet on the Bucks (-9.5).
Moneyline
Pass, there's no reason to doubt the Bucks (-450) in this matchup.
Over/Under
This is a clear-cut over play for me as the teams clearly do not match up well with each other. The Bulls played at a 108 possession pace in game one (2nd in NBA) and ranked 2nd in pace and three point attempt rate in the pre-season.
My pick: Over 231 (Bet to 234.5)
Bulls vs Bucks Betting Trends
- 55% of bets and 59% of the money are on the Bucks to cover the spread.
- 94% of bets and 96% of the money on the moneyline are on the Bucks to win outright.
- 73% of bets and 74% of the money are on the over.
Betting trends via our live, updating NBA public betting & money percentages page.
Bulls vs. Bucks Start Time, Channel, Streaming
| Location: | Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
| Date: | Friday, October 25 |
| Kickoff Time: | 8 p.m. ET |
| TV / Streaming: | Bally Sports North / NBA League Pass |
Bucks vs. Bulls is scheduled for a 8 p.m. ET start time, live from Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Friday. The game is live on Bally Sports North and is streaming on NBA League Pass.
Bulls vs. Bucks NBA Preview
The Bulls had moments in their first game where they looked much more functional offensively but their defense was their downfall. I expected this Bulls defense to rank bottom-5 this season as they have virtually no good perimeter defenders in their primary rotation.
Sometimes you can get away with that if you have an elite rim-protector like a Gobert anchoring your defense, but the Bulls have Nikola Vucevic as their anchor. The Bulls allowed the Pelicans to shoot 56% of their shots from the rim according to Cleaning the Glass. The Pels converted on 80% of these rim-looks.
This is important to highlight for this Bucks matchup as Giannis is obviously the most efficient rim-slashers in the NBA. The Bulls really don’t have a good answer for Giannis size and athleticism.
We will likely see some Patrick Williams mixed in with some Jalen Smith off the bench but Giannis will likely dominate this matchup.
Additionally, the Bulls allowed the Pelicans a 24% transition rate (96th percentile), as they struggled to consistently get back and set their defense. This is a recipe for disaster against a player like Giannis and another reason why we should expect Antetokounmpo to feast. Giannis averaged 34 PPG on 67% from the field in 4 games against the Bulls last season.
On the flip side of the ball, the Bulls probably have some room for improvement as they turned the ball over on about 1/5th of their possessions, an awful rate. They also shot just 27.3% from the three point line and on their mid-range looks.
A good sign was the fact they attempted about half of their shots at the rim. Guys like Josh Giddey and Zach Lavine were doing a great job of penetrating the lane and creating quality shots for the team. Lavine dropped 16 in the 2nd quarter and finished with 27 points.
This will be a great matchup for the Bulls offense as the Bucks are a much bigger team that is currently playing many bigs and forwards. In many ways they are the anti-thesis of the Bulls as the Bulls lineup consists of 5-6 guards. Outside of Damian Lillard, the Bucks are playing mostly wings and bigs in their lineup and that may be an issue here as the Bulls guards should have a foot-speed advantage over guys like Taurean Prince, Gary Trent, and Pat Connaughton. I
think the Bulls could have success here if they can knock down their wide open threes and pull Brook Lopez away from the rim with Nikola Vucevic.
My pick: Over 231 (Bet to 234.5)
