The Chicago Bulls (6-22 SU, 13-15 ATS) are the worst team in the Eastern Conference, but they may have yet to hit rock-bottom. After a near-mutiny against new head coach Jim Boylen, the Bulls will visit the San Antonio Spurs (14-14 SU, 14-13-1 ATS) this Saturday, beginning at 8:30 PM ET.
The rebuilding Bulls fired Fred Hoiberg on December 3 after starting the year at 5-19, although injuries played a large part in their demise. Boylen came in and immediately started cracking the whip, insulting his players in public and putting them through an old-school vigorous practice regimen. They responded by losing three of their first four games at 2-2 ATS, and have reportedly complained to the NBPA and the Bulls front office about Boylen’s methods.
Meanwhile, the Spurs have won three straight SU and ATS to start their six-game home stand. The “other” player in the Kawhi Leonard-DeMar DeRozan trade, center Jakob Poeltl, is finally getting a chance to show his stuff, and Poeltl has delivered off the bench in December, posting a healthy plus-9.5 in 18.5 minutes per game. That’s up from 12.8 minutes in November, when the Spurs were struggling at 5-10 SU and 6-9 ATS.
