Battle of the Backcourts – Chicago Bulls vs. Detroit Pistons

Backcourt battles don’t get much better than this. In one corner you have Rose and Gordon, a set-up man and a pure scorer who decimate slow backcourts or unsuspecting victims. Rose is the preeminent front runner for MVP and Ben Gordon has been the backbone of the Bulls as they’ve tried to pull themselves out of the gutter.

In the other corner stands Rodney Stuckey and Rip Hamilton. Stuckey has been the point guard of the future in Detroit since he came in through the draft, and a back injury to Allen Iverson has allowed the versatile guard to be thrust in to the starting spotlight. His response? 16.0 points and 6.5 helpers as Rip Hamilton takes over as the leader of this team.

So when the Pistons and Bulls clash in a battle of the under card in the Eastern Conference, betting faithful across the board will be looking for two questions to be answered at once: Are the Pistons and Bulls legitimate contenders in the Eastern Conference playoffs?

NBA Betting Trends

-Detroit is 10-4 ATS in its last 14 games

-Detroit is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games

-The total has gone OVER in 7 of Detroit’s last 8 games

-Detroit is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games on the road

-Chicago is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 games

-Chicago is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games

-Chicago is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games at home

-Chicago is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Detroit

Chicago’s immense success in the past 14 games has been almost unforeseen. Nobody expected a team composed of Thomas, Noah and Brad Miller to infuse in to a head steady group that could dominate boards. Noah and Thomas are as raw as a slice of sashimi, but Miller has anchored this corp. down with some veteran common sense. In the process, it’s made the Bulls a strong bet. They’re 7-1 ATS in their last 8 at home, boasting a win over the Lakers in their last game.

Detroit Pistons (34-35) vs. Chicago Bulls (33-38)

Tuesday, March 24th — United Center, Chicago — 8:00pm EST

NBA Betting Line: Chicago -5.5 (191)

Detroit’s recent tailspin has only been highlighted by a win over the lousy Clippers in their last five games, which does nothing for me. The Pistons have been an up-and-down team all season, and going 1-for-5 doesn’t seriously encourage me to bet on them as they head in to an arena where the Bulls rank 10th overall in terms of home offense. While Stuckey is indeed the future, Rose is the “now” and the Bulls will show the Pistons exactly why teams don’t want to face Rose or Gordon come playoff time.

NBA Free Pick: Chicago -5.5 (UNDER)