Bulls at Cavs NBA Playoffs Predictions

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The No. 8 seed Chicago Bulls and the No. 1 seed Cleveland Cavaliers are all set to tip off the 2010 NBA Playoffs on Saturday, April 17th. The Bulls rallied past the Toronto Raptors to steal the last playoff spot in the East while the Cavs locked up home court throughout the playoffs early and coasted down the stretch. In this article, we’ll take a look at what each team needs to do to win this series, and then I’ll make my prediction. Want more bang for your buck with your NBA betting this postseason? Bet your NBA picks at BetUS where our readers get $500 in free bonus cash!

What the Cavs need to do to win: The Cavs decided to rest LeBron James in their last few regular season games and Shaquille O’Neal has been out for some time rehabbing his thumb injury. Both will be back in the lineup in this series and that could cause some chemistry problems in the first few game. When Shaq went down, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas was not yet allowed to re-sign, the Cavs played a more uptempo game with a smaller lineup. While we have seen this style of play work well in the regular season, with Phoenix being the ultimate example, it hasn’t worked great in the postseason. Cleveland will have to find that happy balance between running and gunning and slowing the game down to a snail’s pace to beat the Bulls and continue on toward their ultimate goal. LeBron has the ball in his hands a lot, so Shaq is the one that may struggle to regain his rhythm right away. Other than that, the Cavs have more talent and more quality depth, and should move on here. NBA odds makers have listed the Cleveland Cavaliers at +170 to win the 2010 NBA Finals.

What the Bulls need to do to win: Chicago split with the Cavs this season. I know LeBron James didn’t play in the season’s last meeting, but the fact that the Bulls won two games against Cleveland does a lot for their confidence heading into this series. The Bulls will have to battle, just like they did against the Celtics last year, because if they can find a way to pull off the shocking series upset, it will be done in 7 games, no sooner. Chicago has a great young point guard in Derrick Rose, who can give the Cavs some problems, and a warrior in Joakim Noah, who plays great defense, rebounds and brings a lot or energy to the floor. One of Chicago’s biggest weaknesses this season has been three-point shooting. The Bulls rank 28th in the league from beyond the arc, shooting the three-point shot at just a 33 percent clip. Cleveland will make the Bulls make three pointers to beat them before they give up tons of penetration to Rose and company. So the best way for the Bulls to pull off the upset is to light it up from deep. You can bet the Bulls at +15000 to win the 2010 NBA Finals.

Prediction: Cavs in 5 – While teams playing with zero expectations, like the Bulls, can be dangerous, the Cavs are the deeper more talented team, and they enter this year’s playoffs very hungry after getting knocked out in the conference finals last year. Cleveland has the best player on the floor in Lebron James, and I expect him to have a big series. Bet the Cleveland Cavaliers at -190 to win the Eastern Conference Playoffs.

Jimmy Boyd enters the 2010 NBA Playoffs on a Red Hot 7-2 NBA Run. Looking back further, he is on a Ridiculous 236-183 NBA Roll (profiting $1,000/unit bettors $121,550). You can pick up his expert basketball picks clear through the playoffs by signing up for his NBA Playoffs Pass.

About the Author: Jimmy Boyd is known for his consistency. He's a proven winner in college and pro football, college and pro basketball and pro baseball. He finished as the No. 1 ranked MLB handicapper in 2007 by earning $1,000/game bettors $50,050. He also finished as the No. 1 ranked basketball handicapper in the 2008-09 season, profiting $1,000/game bettors 38,530. His basketball plays have banked $1,000/game bettors nearly $80,000 the last five years. Check out Jimmy's premium picks for tonight!
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