Bulls vs Sixers preview and thread: A challenge awaits

Back to backs have not been kind to the Chicago Bulls so far this season. They lost both games of their back to back last week against Washington and Cleveland. The trend continued last night as the Bulls lost to the Spurs San Antonio 129-124 on the road. Despite 33 points from DeMar DeRozan and 19 from Coby White, Chicago couldn’t pull out the victory.

Like their loss to the Wizards, it was a close finish but they can’t linger on it as they have another game in a very short time. This time, it will be against one of the better teams in the NBA.

The Philadelphia 76ers were preseason favorites to be in the top tier of the East, but have had a rough start and currently are sitting at 2-4.

Similar to the Bulls, they are also on a second game of a back to back. Last night they beat the Toronto Raptors 112-90 thanks to a career game from Tyrese Maxey. He scored a career high 44 points and willed Philadelphia to a much needed win. It was a big win for the 76ers considering Joel Embiid was out with a sore right knee and James Harden scored just 11 points.

Chicago is going to really have to lock in defensively. Philadelphia has a lot of guys who can score in their rotation. One matchup to watch will be Dosunmu against either Maxey or Harden. He will asked to guard one of them and it’s going to be a good challenge for the young point guard. Hopefully for Chicago he can hold his own defensively and slow down Philadelphia’s offense.

This will be another huge test for the Bulls to measure themselves up the East’s elite. So far they’ve gotten two victories over the Heat and Celtics, which is already eclipsing their mark against top teams all of last season.

Injury Report: Ayo Dosunmu hit his head against San Antonio but returned to the game. He is listed as probable with a thoracic contusion. Andre Drummond was also hurt during the Spurs game and is listed as questionable with a left shoulder strain.

Good news for Chicago is that Zach LaVine is listed as probable with left knee injury management after sitting last night.

As for the 76ers, Embiid isn’t listed on the injury report. Julian Champagnie and Michael Foster Jr. are out.

Game Time: 7PM CT

TV: NBC Sports Chicago

Odds: Philadelphia is a two and half point favorite at most sports books. As for the total, it is listed at 221.5