NBA Thursday Tips: Oo La La as Bulls and Pistons tipoff in Paris

Paris takes centre stage on Thursday night as the Chicago Bulls face the Detroit Pistons in the return of the league’s annual European detour. Mark Woods provides the lowdown.

Chicago Bulls @ Detroit Pistons

Tipoff: 8pm Thursday GMT (BBC3)

Allez Les Bleus. Or is it Les Bulls? After a three-year absence caused by Covid-19, the NBA finally returns to European soil on Thursday evening as Chicago faces Detroit in Paris. 

It’s the 11th time that the Old Continent has hosted a regular season game and, after the initial nine in London, it’s the French capital which once again bids bienvenue to the league and its Stateside stars. 

The last time the Bulls stampeded towards the banks of the Seine, it was during the pomp of the Michael Jordan era and all hell broke loose as wide-eyed Euro fans jostled to catch sight of this mythical aerial ace. 26 years on and the NBA is a more familiar sight in our living rooms. 

Chicago arrives more enfeebled than then - one of this year’s great underachievers with a 20-24 record and more ups and downs than the elevator that takes tourists to the top of the Eiffel Tower.

It is chemistry that is dogging the Bulls - or a lack of it. Over their last ten games, they have outscored opponents 117.9-115.2 and gone 5-5, which sums up a middling campaign. They hammered Detroit 132-118 on New Year’s Eve, but this is the terrible Pistons who are misfiring on a regular basis.

Chicago is coming off a win over Golden State last weekend and is set to bring back DeMar DeRozan after a three-game absence. The All-Star remains a net contributor this term and scored 22 points in that last meeting – 4.1 below his average in 2022-23. 

Detroit has lost five of their last six games with a differential of -9.5 and, while their offence is still ticking over, they have imploded defensively. It’s not hard to envisage a carbon-copy result with the Bulls prevailing on a spread of -8 at 2.12. But the big thing is Le Show. NBA, from Europe, welcome back.

Prediction: Bulls to win first half and over 115.5 points at half-time @ 3.1

Golden State Warriors @ Boston Celtics

Tipoff: 12.30am Friday GMT (Sky Sports Arena)

The second half of Thursday’s compelling NBA slate brings part two of the 2022 NBA Finals rematch between the Warriors and Celtics. How fortunes have diverged. Although the champs beat the C’s 123-107 in mid-December, the Warriors have posted a mediocre 8-9 record since with Boston bettering that with 12-6 in the same timeframe.

Although the Celtics have not been the defensive juggernaut of last season, they are still a cut above the Dubs. Over their last 15 games, Golden State is conceding 120.1 points per night while allowing opponents to shoot over 37% from three-point range.

Boston, by contrast, is giving up 111.3 while scoring 118.1 during that period, second only to Denver. That has led the markets to price the reigning NBA Eastern Conference champions as the favourite (4.7) to go one better and lift the title in June. The Warriors are drifting – now at 12, but fading fast. 

Their horrific 5-17 road record is to blame. On their travels, they have a net points differential of -7.5 – an extraordinary difference of +14.2 from at the Chase Center. That should give Boston ample confidence of taking revenge, especially with a home mark of 17-5 and a streak that stretches to seven straight victories despite the absence of Jaylen Brown. Those wins have come by an average margin of 13.1. Golden State, with their sheen dulled, can feel the crown slipping as the Celtics ascend.

Prediction: Celtics -6 @ 2.04 

NBA Thursday Tips

Chicago Bulls @ Detroit Pistons: Bulls to win first half and over 115.5 points at half-time @ 3.1
Golden State Warriors @ Boston Celtics: Celtics -6 @ 2.04