NBA Matchups: October 23

CHI @ MIL | NYK @ BOS | ATL @ CHA | DAL @ IND | MIN @ ORL | TOR @ WAS | DET @ MIA | HOU @ SAS | NOP @ UTA | MEM @ GSW | LAC @ LAL | POR @ SAC

Chicago Bulls at Milwaukee Bucks

Team Totals: Bulls 118, Bucks 119.5

Injury Report: Tobe Awaka (P, knee), Nic Claxton (O, hamstring), Zach Collins (P, quad), Josh Giddey (P, wrist), Jordan Hawkins (Q, illness), Dailyn Swain (Q, illness)

Bulls projected starters: Josh Giddey, Norman Powell, Matas Buzelis, Caleb Wilson, Jalen Smith

Bucks projected starters: Ryan Rollins, Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kyle Kuzma, Myles Turner

Splitter quotes: Said Wilson was playing too much in a crowd, said the Raptors played with physicality and it caused too many turnovers.

Jenkins quotes: Said they couldn’t keep the Wizards out of the paint, said they went against a set defense too often, said they did a fine job on Trae Young, said Burries made the right reads and was very comfortable in his first NBA game.

Stats and Notes:

*It’s only one game, but we can call this the Mike Gallagher Bad Basketball Game of the Night. These teams are terrible, and their offenses look broken. It’s fair to say that the Bulls were a competent offense because of Billy Donovan, and the Bucks just don’t have the talent. In the first game, the Bulls had the third-highest mid-range rate, and they don’t have the shooters to pull that off. Both teams should really struggle with paint defense and in transition. The Bulls did get to the line a ton in the first game, and the Bucks let the Wizards live at the line, which feels pretty sticky. The Bulls also put the Raptors on the line, too. Chicago had an absurd 24.1% turnover rate against the Raptors, and I’d expect them to be one of the worst teams there, too. While these teams are terrible, there should be points put on the board because of how poorly they control the controllables.

*Let’s start with Josh Giddey. Man, it’s bad. After the game, Giddey said he hurt his wrist in the preseason, had an MRI, and will play through it for a while. As mentioned in the last edition, he only scored four points in the first half of the preseason games, and he looked awful against the Raptors. Yeah, I’m just out despite how this matchup is very good. 

*Caleb Wilson had one of the worst matchups in the first game, and it showed on the stat sheet with nine turnovers and a 16/4/0 line. Oof. He had Scottie Barnes on him, so he gets a pass there. Well, this time it’s about as good as it gets with Kyle Kuzma likely getting that assignment. The Bulls still trusted him with the ball with his team-high 38 frontcourt touches and 33 minutes. Buy the dip.

*Matas Buzelis showed some aggression in the opener with his 16 FTAs, and he was showing he can attack the basket at a higher level in the preseason. Like Caleb, he gets a much softer matchup with Jaime Jaquez Jr. likely guarding him. Plus, with Giddey banged up, there should be a ton of usage going his way.

*Norman Powell’s elite FTA per 100 in the preseason carried over into the regular season with his 11 FTAs in just 22 minutes. The pace of this game should work to his advantage, and the Bucks have terrible wing defenders. Powell won’t be putting up much besides points, but he could easily score 30 in this matchup.

*Jalen Smith took it to Jakob Poeltl early as really the only starter who made a positive impact on offense. Zach Collins had a limit on him, and Stix should have a chance to produce again. The Bucks’ bigs look slow and have struggled to defend, so it’s an OK spot here. Still, the perimeter guys should have more success.

*Tyler Herro picked up a bigger role than expected with Ryan Rollins. Herro should have a great chance to attack the Bulls with some weak PNR coverage, and they don’t really have great guard defenders in their first unit. There just aren’t many guys who can carry usage. It should be a big opportunity for him.

*Jaime Jaquez Jr. did indeed get Trae Young in the last game to get him some extra scoring. The Bulls will probably use a weaker defender on him, and Chicago struggling in transition should suit his game very well. I like Jaime again here.

*Myles Turner looked OK in the first game, and he really gapped Kel’el Ware in minutes, 32-14. Ware just lost a lot of trust from Taylor Jenkins, so we can go to Turner here if we want. He just isn’t the profile that should kill the Bulls because he’s not big on the O boards.

Great matchups: Jaime Jaquez Jr., Tyler Herro, Caleb Wilson

Good matchups: Norman Powell, Matas Buzelis

Bad matchups: Nobody

Injured: Josh Giddey

New York Knicks at Boston Celtics