When the Chicago Bulls travel down to the Big Easy to take on the New Orleans Pelicans, it will represent a matchup between two potential "pretenders" in the league.
While one team is clearly struggling a bit more than the other, neither squad could say that they’ve met or exceeded their own expectations to start the year.
The Chicago Bulls had a fantastic campaign last season, perfectly integrating some new weapons around star shooting guard Zach LaVine.
While Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso’s fit as havoc-wreaking, perimeter pests cannot be overstated, it was DeMar DeRozan’s MVP-level play in 2021-2022 that really carried the Bulls to a 46-36 record and the sixth seed in a loaded Eastern Conference.
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While DeRozan has still been excellent this season, he’s clearly taken a step back compared to his output from last year.
That along with Lonzo’s absence and Patrick Williams’s stagnant development has led to a slow start for the Bulls who have opened up at just 6-8 through 14 games and currently find themselves outside of the playoff picture in the 11th seed.
While the Pellies have been more successful on paper thus far — currently 7-6 and seventh in the West — they’ve been equally as disappointing, if not more so than Chicago.
That’s due to the massive aspirations that New Orleans came into the season with. After trading for CJ McCollum and Larry Nance from the Portland Trail Blazers last season, the Pelicans looked like a legitimate playoff threat with the improved play of Brandon Ingram and rookies Trey Murphy III, Herbert Jones, and Jose Alvarado.
When factoring in Zion Williamson’s eventual return, fans and pundits expected the Pelicans to be one of the true few powerhouses in the league. Thus far, they’ve looked the same as last season: an upstart playoff team that shouldn’t be taken lightly but is clearly a tier below the true contenders.
Mainly, Zion has been slightly underwhelming in his highly anticipated return to the court. While he still looks dominant on offense, he’s not quite as world-breaking as he was when the world last saw him. On defense, he’s been a disaster.
Both of these squads need to garner trademark wins, build momentum, and establish themselves as true contenders in this league. This matchup will go a long way towards showing which team is simply struggling and which might need roster turnover.
The Pelicans have the edge in top-tier talent but have had a penchant for playing down to their opponents this season.
Billy’s Bulls congratulate DeMar DeRozan on 20K PTS
“Only 19,996 to go” – Alex Caruso to Dalen Terry pic.twitter.com/NYJzXlyAW3
— Barstool Chicago (@barstoolchicago) November 15, 2022
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| Title: Chicago Bulls vs New Orleans Pelicans betting preview
| Author: Andy Quach
| Date: Nov 15, 2022
