The Cleveland Cavaliers are 4-1 straight up and against the spread in their last five games. With one more win or a Toronto Raptors loss, the Cavaliers can clinch the top seed in the Eastern Conference, and they'll look to do so Saturday night on the road against the Chicago Bulls.
Cavaliers vs. Bulls odds 2016: Cleveland looks to lock up East title on Saturday
The Cleveland Cavaliers will try to lock up the top seed in the East with a road win over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.
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Cleveland is currently going off at +400 to win the NBA championship this season at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. Only the Golden State Warriors (-135) and San Antonio Spurs (+300) are bigger favorites to do so this spring.
The Cavaliers had a 4-0 SU and ATS stretch snapped on Wednesday night in a 123-109 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Head Coach Tyronn Lue decided to rest LeBron James in that road game, and the loss dropped the Cavaliers’ record without LeBron James in the lineup to 1-3 SU this season and 4-14 SU over the last two seasons.
With only three regular season games remaining and the conference title seemingly in hand, it is unclear what roster choices Lue will make down the stretch, including Saturday night's game. That will affect Saturday's betting line at the sportsbooks.
Including last year's postseason series, the Cleveland Cavaliers are just 6-5 SU and 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games against the Chicago Bulls per the OddsShark NBA Database.
The Chicago Bulls dropped another must-win game on Thursday night in a 106-98 loss to the Miami Heat, falling to 3-7 SU and 4-6 ATS over their last 10 games in the process. In order to make the postseason now, the Bulls must win their remaining three games and have the Indiana Pacers lose each of their last three games.
With only a road game at New Orleans and a home game against Philadelphia left after this game, Cleveland is clearly the toughest game left on Chicago’s schedule, with or without players resting.
Chicago entered the 2015-16 season as a potential championship contender, expected to be one of the few teams in the Eastern Conference that might be able to challenge the Cavaliers for superiority in the East. Instead, the Bulls have gone just 39-40 SU and 33-46 ATS, and will need a minor miracle just to advance to the postseason.
They’ll try to keep that miracle alive with a home win over Cleveland on Saturday.
