GAME NIGHT FROM THE UNITED CENTER: Dallas: (4-8, 0-6 on the road) at Bulls: (4-9, 2-5 at home).
TV: NBC Sports Chicago: Neil Funk and Stacey King. 7PM CT.
RADIO: 670 The Score: Chuck Swirsky, Bill Wennington and Steve Kashul. 6:45PM CT.
LEADING SCORERS: Bulls: LaVine: 27 ppg. Dallas: Doncic: 20 ppg.
LEADING REBOUNDERS: Bulls: Carter: 7 per. Dallas: Jordan: 13 per.
LEADING ASSISTS: Bulls: Arcidiacono: 4 per. Dallas: Barea: 5 per.
LAST MEETING: October 22. Dallas 115 Bulls 109. The Bulls shot 51% from the floor, 56% from 3-point range and 95% from the foul line but committed 19 turnovers which allowed Dallas to hang on for the victory. Zach LaVine had a monster game scoring 34 but DeAndre Jordan was the star of the game with a wicked 18 points-16 rebounds game.
CCI PREVIEW: A busy week for the Bulls with the Mavs in town tonight followed by a grueling stretch featuring three Eastern Conference powers in Boston, Milwaukee and Toronto. A home win would be a great send off before hitting the road for contests against the Celtics and Bucks.
Ryan Arcidiacono delivered in his first NBA start and was a steady presence as the Bulls lit up Cleveland scoring 37 in the opening quarter. Zach LaVine is sending an early season message that he is not only back, but that he’s an impact star worthy of All Star status. Two tremendous rookies will grace the UC floor as Wendell Carter Jr will anchor the defense against Luka Doncic who plays with the savvy of a five year veteran. He was a European pro at 15 so he’s been in a number of big games and knows how to handle pressure on the big stage. Unfortunately for Bulls fans, we will not see Dirk Nowitzki this season. The future Hall of Fame player continues to rehab his injured ankle in what could be his 21st and final season in the NBA.
CCI 24 SECONDS NBA NEWS AND NOTES
Portland 100, Boston 94: The Blazers won their fourth straight game and post an under the radar NBA record of 10-3. A difficult two week road trip awaits. The Celtics finished their road trip 1-4.
Houston 115, Indiana 103: James Harden torched the Pacers with a season high 40 points. Carmelo Anthony sat out with an undisclosed illness. THE NY Times is reporting Anthony has been told he will be waived.
Milwaukee 121, Denver 114: Brook Lopez with a career high 8 — count them, 8 - three point hoops as the Bucks won in the Mile High City. It was Milwaukee’s first win in Denver since 2010. Credit Lopez for changing his game to the “new” NBA. He didn’t make a single three point shot in his first six NBA seasons.
Los Angeles Lakers 107, Atlanta 106: The Lakers won their third straight game. LeBron with a go ahead dunk in the final seconds coupled with Tyson Chandler’s block on Trae Young’s layup attempt sealed the win.
Charlotte 113, Detroit 103: The Hornets’ Tony Parker scored 24 points in 28 minutes.Andre Drummond with 23 points and 22 rebounds.
Orlando 115, New York Knicks 89: The Magic led 30-10 at the end of the first quarter at MSG. Fans booed the Knicks. Ballgame.
Thanks for reading CCI. Reach out at cswirsky@bulls.com or Twitter: @ctsbulls. Always a pleasure!