Will the Bulls start with a win?

The Detroit Pistons start the new NBA season against the Chicago Bulls. From the point of view of the home side, things should go better than they did last year. Only the Rockets from Houston were weaker than coach Dwane Casey’s team at the end of the season. Nevertheless, the meagre win rate of 27.8 percent was, of course, an exceedingly poor yield.

The last time the pros from the motor city were even less successful was 27 years ago! However, the first access right could be snatched up in the draft lottery, which is why the hopes now lie first and foremost on the first pick in the person of Cade Cunningham.

For the clash at Little Caesars Arena between the Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls, the tip is aiming for an away win.

Detroit Pistons – Statistics & current form

The Detroit Pistons had to wait 51 years before they managed to get a first pick in the NBA Draft. The anticipation is all the greater for the services of Cade Cunningham. The 20-year-old Texan has attracted attention in the past, including at the 2019 U19 World Championships.

At the time, he led the USA to the gold medal and delivered the most points in the final against selection from Mali. However, the point guard received the honour of first pick mainly due to his very good performances in college. In his last season, Cunningham was also nominated for “Big 12 Player” and “Big 12 Freshman” of the year.

Cunningham is expected to lead the Pistons into the future

This double award in one season has only been achieved by three players before him and in that circle a name like Kevin Durant can be discovered. Detroit will now try to rebuild the franchise around the youngster. Recently, as described, things have not been going well at all in Michigan and last season was no exception when looking back at the last few years.

Only twice in the past 13 seasons did the Pistons reach the playoffs, and when they did, the postseason was always over for the basketball players from the Canadian border in the first round with clear 4-0 defeats.

For the upcoming match, there is still a big question mark over the use of Saddiq Bey. The small forward is suffering from an ankle injury and has already missed the last three games in the pre-season. The importance of him for the Pistons is shown by the last record, when he completed the most players in the squad and only missed two of the 72 games.

Predicted Detroit Pistons lineup:
Cunningham – Jackson – Diallo – Garza – Grant

Chicago Bulls – Statistics & current form

Chicago Bulls missed the playoffs last season as well, but they didn’t miss much. Eleventh in the East, at least the play-in was within reach. Furthermore, the 43.1 per cent win rate represented the best record in retrospect over the last four seasons.

The upswing in Chicago thus continued and it is to be expected that it will pick up speed again in the new season. The squad shows enormous potential with players like shooting guard Zach LaVine and centre Nikola Vucevic.

LaVine delivered an average scoring value of 27.4 last season and thus improved his record again in his fourth year in Chicago. In addition, he improved his throwing from downtown. With a 41.9 percent rate, LaVine also set a new career best in this area.

This season, the 26-year-old is even expected to overtake club legend Michael Jordan in terms of made threes and climb to fourth place in this all-time franchise ranking.

Bulls have made another personnel upgrade

Both LaVine and the “big man” Vucevic, who was brought in from Orlando during the season, were nominated as All-Stars last year and coach Billy Donovan was able to strengthen his squad last summer.

For Thomas Satoransky and Garrett Temple as well as some cash and a future pick, the powerful point guard Lonzo Ball was brought to Chi-Town from the New Orleans Pelicans. On top of that, DeMar DeRozan was signed. The small forward previously played for the San Antonio Spurs and is a four-time All-Star as well as an Olympic champion in 2014 with the US team.

In view of the already stronger squad, which has now been given a facelift, the odds on an away win with at least a four-point difference in the duel between Detroit and Chicago also offer value. In addition, bets on a win for the visitors – including an interval lead – are also worth considering.

Predicted line-up of Chicago Bulls:
DeRozan – Vucevic – LaVine – Ball – White

Detroit Pistons – Chicago Bulls Head-to-head comparison / H2H record

The duel went up three times last season and each time the six-time champion of the NBA prevailed. Thanks to the victories, pros from the Mud City now boast a streak of seven straight wins in this pairing. Regarding the upcoming edition of Detroit Pistons vs Chicago Bulls, the odds point to a continuation of this balance of power.

Detroit Pistons – Chicago Bulls Tip

Even though there is now a sense of optimism in Detroit thanks to first pick Cad Cunningham, the recently downed franchise will not recover that quickly. For his part, the youngster will need time to establish himself in the NBA and the rest of the squad remains average at best.

For the duel in the “Baddest Bowl” between the Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls, the tip therefore aims at a success for the visitors. The Windy City is already a few steps further along the road to successful rebuilding and has added two strong players in Lonzo Ball and DeMar Rozan.

Moreover, since the great times of the two franchises in the 1990s, the duels have always been associated with a lot of rivalry, which is why the guests will certainly not lack the necessary motivation.

Betway offers odds of 1.67 on the Pistons and Bulls clash for the prediction.