Published on: Jan 24, 2022 7:48 pm IST|Updated on: Jan 24, 2022 7:48 pm IST
OKC vs CHI Dream11 Dream11: NBA midseason window has poured pain on many teams and well, as the exhaustion builds up due to the up and down action, so does the injury count, exhaustion, and with the trade deadline approaching, the weight on management and players increase further. Well, this means instability for certain teams and the type of instability that can derail the very season. However, this is why each team plays 82 games, this is the very test you have to pass through, every team goes through it!
In this game, a tested Chicago Bulls team will clash against the rebuilding and inexperienced Oklahoma City Thunder in the East-West confrontation. The Bulls have 11 wins more than losses but have lost around 80% of the games recently. Zach LaVine is questionable for the game and his absence also made the team short-handed.
On the other hand, the Oklahoma City Thunder has been struggling all season long. The team has been on lengthy losing streaks and well, it is not a surprise considering their youth and a lack of a bench. The Thunder has been steamrolled by multiple elite teams and their inefficient offense really held them back. Host: Oklahoma City Thunder Visitors: Chicago Bulls Match Timing: 25 January, @ 06:30 AM Venue: Chesapeake Energy Arena
Thunder: Perpetual turmoil Thunder has been struggling all season long and the team has been slated to do so since the beginning of the season. Oklahoma City has been unable to stack up wins mostly due to their inexperience. While Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is having a tremendous scoring season, the load has been too much for him. One huge issue for the Thunder has been the long-range shooting, even Shai has shot below 30% from the three-point line while Dort has been struggling to shoot from there as well. Giddey is still figuring out the NBA game on the offensive end while options such as Wiggins, Jerome, Mann, Williams, And Robinson-Earl are also struggling to shoot.
Overall, the team doesn’t have a strong perimeter squad and depends highly upon Shai to get them going on the offensive end. Bazley should start for the team in my opinion but yes, the team has tried harder than other rebuilding squads on the defensive end. However, overall, the Thunder has ways to go on the offensive end and has been one of the lowest-scoring teams all season long. The Thunder will most probably finish in the 20-25 wins range.
Bulls: Worst month of the season Chicago has been struggling this month, losing most games in a blowout fashion with even teams like Magic who has losing records. Bulls have been struggling on the offensive end these days, an area where they have been one of the strongest in the league. Why? Well, when you miss your leading playmaker and three-point threat Lonzo Ball and your 25+ points per game scorer in LaVine has been injured, of course, a team that doesn’t have a deep bench will face a lot of ruptures related to the bench. DeRozan has scored a bunch of points(30 or more) these days, but that hasn’t been enough because the overall offensive balance has been disturbed.
Yes, White and Vucevic have contributed but have also hit cold streaks multiple times lately. In summary, the Bulls need LaVine back if anything because the team based its identity around the LaVine-DeRozan duo. One other problem for the Bulls has been that their big Forward position is not stable since Patrick Williams has been absent and the absence of JaVonte Green has been big as well. Alex Caruso has been hurt too and overall, the Bulls have been way too injured this month causing their record to go down. Oklahoma City Thunder | Chicago Bulls Games: 46| 45 Wins: 14| 28 Defeats: 32| 17
Oklahoma City Thunder Team News
Thunder Expected Starting Five Wing/Forward: SF: Luguentz Dort Middle: PF: Jeremiah Robinson-Earl | C: Darius Bazley Guards: SG: Josh Giddey | PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
BENCH: Mike Muscala, Kenrich Williams, Aleksej Pokusevski, Tre Mann, Theo Maledon, Paul Watson, Ty Jerome, Isiah Roby, Olivier Sarr.
Chicago Bulls News:
Bulls Expected Starting Five Wings/ Forward: PF: JaVonte Green(QUESTIONABLE) | SF: DeMar DeRozan Middle: C: Nikola Vucevic Guards: SG: Zach LaVine (QUESTIONABLE) | PG: Coby White
BENCH: Ayu Dosunmu, Troy Brown Jr, Tyler Cook, Alfonzo McKinnie, Matt Thomas, Malcolm Hill
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander(OKC) Points: 29 Rebounds: 09 Assists: 06 Steals: 03 Blocks: 01 Shai is the type of guard who can take over the game and use his athleticism to finish inside but yes, shooting has been a bit off. The high-scoring guard has scored in the 21-29 points range while dishing 5-7 assists and grabbing 4 or more rebounds regularly these days. Gilgeous-Alexander can be selected as a Star/Pro Player in the Dream 11 NBA Fantasy scenario. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 37-52
DeMar DeRozan(CHI) Points: 41 Rebounds: 05 Assists: 03 Steals: 02 DeRozan has been scoring at a high clip but to be honest, this high-clip here is more of the lack of team balance with Ball and LaVine out. The guard has scored 30 or more in three games in a row. I think if LaVine plays, he will be in the 27-32 range and if he doesn’t, then in the 30-35 range most probably. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 40-51
Nikola Vucevic(CHI) Points: 13 Rebounds: 13 Assists: 03 Nikola is the leading rebounder for the Bulls and he has done a great job of cleaning up the boards. However, his shooting has been a bit off. Vucevic has scored 19 or more in three of the last five games, while clasping 10-13 rebounds a game consistently. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 30-40
Josh Giddey(OKC) Points: 08 Rebounds: 05 Assists: 03 Steals: 02 Josh is a highly talented rookie who has done a great job of scoring, rebounding, and playmaking, but yes he has ways to go as a player in the league. Giddey has usually figured in the 9-14 points, 5+ rebounds, and 3-5 assists a game regularly. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 20-31
Luguentz Dort(OKC) Points: 10 Rebounds: 00 Assists: 01 Steals: 02 Luguentz has had his massive struggles on the offensive, unable to get going from three-point especially. Dort has usually been in the 15-17 range but has scored 10 or less in the last two games. I believe he will be in the 13-17 range here. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 20-32
Coby White(CHI) Points: 22 Rebounds: 04 Assists: 00 Steals: 01 Blocks: 01 Coby’s role changed when Lonzo Ball went down with an injury as he has shifted from the bench player to a starter as of now. The high-quality scoring guard has scored 16 or more in four of the last five games. Expected Fantasy Points Range: 25-36
OKC vs CHI Dream11 Dream11 Team
PG: S Gilgeous-Alexander(PP) SG: C White, M Thomas SF: T Brown, A Wiggins PF: D DeRozan(SP) C: N Vucevic, J Robinson-Earl
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Unfortunately for Indian viewers, this game is not available on streaming services such as Voot or JIO TV. Meanwhile TV channels VH1 and MTV are also not going to broadcast this game. So, that is why, the best way to get access to the game is through the NBA League Pass, through which, if you buy the annual subscription, you get access to all the live games and if you miss the live game, you can also catch the full game replay. You can visit the official website of the NBA to get the score.