Hawks Lack of Depth Could Hurt Against Bulls
Opening Hawks vs Bulls Lines Have Chicago Favored Slightly
The Atlanta Hawks will take on the Chicago Bulls in the 9-10 NBA Play-In Tournament in the Eastern Conference on Wednesday, April 17. Because the Bulls are the No. 9 seed and the Hawks are the No. 10 seed, Chicago will be home for this game in the Play-In Tournament NBA bracket.
However, a win in this game doesn’t guarantee a playoff spot for either of these NBA teams. The winner of this game will then have to face the loser of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 matchup.
Meanwhile, in the 7-8 matchup, whoever wins that game will earn the No. 7 seed and play against the No. 2 seed in the NBA Playoffs. However, the loser would play the winner of the Hawks-Bulls matchup to decide the No. 8 seed.
The No. 8 seed would play against the No. 1 seed in the NBA Playoffs. The teams without wins in the Play-In Tournament would miss the playoffs altogether.
That said, the loser between the Hawks and Bulls will be sent home regardless of the other game and miss out on being on the NBA Playoff schedule. Oddsmakers have the Bulls favored by three points, with the total at 221.
At home, can the Bulls hold on and get one more game in the Play-In Tournament to potentially earn a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference?
Let’s take an in-depth look at the Hawks vs Bulls lines for this exciting Play-In Tournament matchup on Wednesday.
Hawks vs Bulls 
Records: Atlanta Hawks (36-46), Chicago Bulls (39-43)
Location: United Center, Chicago, IL
Day/Time: Streaming: ESPN
Hawks vs Bulls Lines & Trends
Over the last ten games between these two teams, the Bulls have gone 7-3 against the spread (ATS) and 6-4 straight up.
In the most recent showdown, the Hawks earned a 113-101 win on the road as 2-point underdogs. The game went under 221 and the Hawks got the win. However, the Bulls won the previous two games prior, covering both games as underdogs in those games in December and February.
The Hawks were notoriously bad against the spread, going 29-53 this season. Meanwhile, the Bulls went 41-40-1 against the spread. However, both teams hit the over at a much higher rate.
While the Hawks struggled on the road, the Bulls were just 20-21 at home. Neither team finished the regular season with a winning record.
Atlanta’s Without Two Key Pieces
The Hawks have already announced that Onyeka Okongwu and Jalen Johnson will miss the Play-In Tournament due to injuries.
Okongwu is a backup big man who underwent a procedure on his left toe. He’ll be out for at least four more weeks. The backup center has missed 11 games since. He had averaged more than 10 points and nearly seven rebounds a game.
The Hawks also won’t have Jalen Johnson, who got injured on Tuesday with an ankle sprain. He will be re-evaluated in three weeks and won’t be in the Play-In Tournament.
This will hurt Atlanta’s depth in the Tournament. But the good news for the Hawks is that Trae Young is back in the lineup and healthy. With Young, anything can happen for the Hawks.
Chicago Began The Season 5-14
The Chicago Bulls began the season 5-14. Things were looking grim for the group. Beyond that, the Bulls lost Zach LaVine in the middle of the year due to a foot injury that required surgery.
While LaVine’s injury hurt Chicago early on, don’t forget that the Bulls never even got a chance to play a single game with Lonzo Ball, who has been sidelined for over two years. Ball hasn’t played a game since January 2022.
Still, Demar DeRozan led by example and averaged nearly 24 points per game to give the Bulls a chance at the playoffs. He, Coby White, and Nikola Vucevic all played at least 75 games this season. If you’re wondering how the Bulls got in position to even be in the playoffs, it’s because of those three.
The Hawks Look Terrible!
The Atlanta Hawks didn’t need to win their game against the Indiana Pacers on Sunday. However, the Hawks looked baffled defensively and lost 157-115. It was the most points the Pacers had scored this season and one of the highest outputs in the NBA all year.
Ultimately, the Hawks don’t have depth. We already talked about a couple of the guys being out. The major one is Johnson, who had filled the box score during his time with the Hawks this season.
Meanwhile, Trae Young played 32 minutes and attempted only nine shots. That probably can’t happen if the Hawks want to win the Play-In Tournament and make a run in the NBA Playoffs.
Conversely, the Chicago Bulls gave the New York Knicks all they could handle on Sunday. The Bulls lost, 120-119, in overtime, but they fought a Knicks team competing for the No. 2 spot in the Eastern Conference. White, Vucevic, and DeRozan each added at least 26 points and played 42+ minutes against the Knicks. Those three can put up monster NBA scores against the Hawks.
While the Bulls lack much depth, their starting lineup is much more connected on both ends.
The Hawks haven’t scored more than 116.3 points per 100 possessions since early April. They’ve also had five games where they’ve scored worse than 110.5 points per 100 possessions. Even with Young, Atlanta’s offense hasn’t been impressive.
On the other hand, the Bulls typically do well limiting offensive rebounds on the defensive end. They’re also usually good at keeping turnovers down. The offense has also scored at least 122.6 points per 100 possessions in four straight games coming into this one.
So, while neither team has much depth, you can trust the core of the Bulls way more in this one.
After reviewing the Hawks vs Bulls lines, we’ll take the Bulls at -3 (-110) in the 9-10 Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament.
Hawks vs Bulls Lines
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