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NBA · Regular season

Chicago Bulls vs Denver Nuggets: Preview and Stats

Chicago Bulls 1-9
vs
Denver Nuggets 6-4
United Center, Chicago

Our picks

Our picks for Chicago Bulls vs Denver Nuggets come out after the official NBA injury report, at most 48 hours before tip-off, and at the latest (3 hours before tip-off).

We are waiting for the result of a team's previous game.

Our NBA model track record for this matchup

Our winner picks on these teams

  • Chicago Bulls 8 of 10 right (80%)
  • Denver Nuggets 7 of 10 right (70%)

Settled NBA winner picks since 21 Oct 2026.

Game details

Stage
NBA, Regular season
Tip-off
Arena
United Center
City
Chicago
Since last match
Chicago Bulls: Washington Wizards Denver Nuggets: Houston Rockets
Next match
Chicago Bulls: Cleveland Cavaliers Denver Nuggets: Dallas Mavericks

Missing production & availability impact

Share of last 10 games' offensive creation (PTS + AST) and minutes sidelined.

Chicago Bulls

Official NBA injury report not yet filed for this matchup.

Denver Nuggets

Official NBA injury report not yet filed for this matchup.

Official NBA injury report

Chicago Bulls

Official NBA injury report not yet filed for this matchup.

Denver Nuggets

Official NBA injury report not yet filed for this matchup.

Expected 8-man core rotation

Projected starters and key bench from recent usage and the official injury report.

Chicago Bulls

Projected Starters
  • F Caleb Wilson
    30.7 MPG 18.9 PPG 6.2 RPG 1.9 APG
  • G Josh Giddey
    27.7 MPG 10.2 PPG 4.6 RPG 8.3 APG
  • G Norman Powell
    28.9 MPG 19.2 PPG 2.5 RPG 1.6 APG
  • F Matas Buzelis
    26.3 MPG 13.5 PPG 4.3 RPG 2.0 APG
  • F-C Jalen Smith
    23.9 MPG 12.8 PPG 7.4 RPG 1.9 APG
Key Bench
  • G-F Isaac Okoro
    19.1 MPG 5.2 PPG 1.4 RPG 1.4 APG
  • G Tre Jones
    18.7 MPG 10.6 PPG 2.5 RPG 2.9 APG
  • F Patrick Williams
    24.3 MPG 6.7 PPG 3.3 RPG 3.0 APG

Denver Nuggets

Projected Starters
  • G Jamal Murray
    36.3 MPG 26.2 PPG 5.0 RPG 5.9 APG
  • C Nikola Jokić
    36.3 MPG 23.5 PPG 10.8 RPG 9.0 APG
  • G Christian Braun
    34.3 MPG 12.4 PPG 4.1 RPG 2.4 APG
  • F Aaron Gordon
    29.0 MPG 11.0 PPG 5.0 RPG 2.1 APG
  • F Cameron Johnson
    28.4 MPG 12.1 PPG 3.9 RPG 1.9 APG
Key Bench
  • G-F DeMar DeRozan
    23.6 MPG 10.0 PPG 2.0 RPG 3.0 APG
  • F Trevon Brazile
    19.6 MPG 7.1 PPG 5.6 RPG 0.5 APG
  • F Spencer Jones
    19.0 MPG 5.3 PPG 2.3 RPG 0.3 APG

OptimaGoal power & pace ratings

Full NBA power ratings

Neutral-court net point rating and 48-minute tempo rank across all 30 NBA franchises.

Chicago Bulls

#27 of 30
Net rating -5.1 30d: +0.9
Pace: 2.3 (#2 of 30)

Denver Nuggets

#5 of 30
Net rating +5.4 30d: +3.6
Pace: -1.8 (#18 of 30)

OptimaGoal tactical & efficiency profile (0–100)

Original 0–100 indices built from each team's last 10 played games before tip-off.

Chicago Bulls

Net 12
Shot quality (TS%) 31
3PT volume & accuracy 31
Ball security & passing 29
Rebounding control 39
Defensive disruption 37

ORtg 106.4 · DRtg 121.0 · Net -14.6 · TS 55.1%

Denver Nuggets

Net 53
Shot quality (TS%) 59
3PT volume & accuracy 45
Ball security & passing 54
Rebounding control 39
Defensive disruption 52

ORtg 114.5 · DRtg 113.3 · Net +1.2 · TS 59.1%

Chicago Bulls · Record vs point differential W-L record aligned with point differential 1W actual vs 1.4W expected (10 GP)
Denver Nuggets · Record vs point differential W-L record aligned with point differential 6W actual vs 5.4W expected (10 GP)

Halftime splits & clutch profile

Game-state outcomes and half-by-half scoring share over the last 15 games.

Chicago Bulls

Win rate when leading at HT 2/5 (40%)
Comeback wins when trailing at HT 1/10 (10%)
Scoring split (1H vs 2H)
1H: 57.1 (49.8%) 2H: 57.7 (50.2%)
Clutch (≤5 pts / OT): 0-2 10+ pt margins: 2-8

Denver Nuggets

Win rate when leading at HT 5/8 (62%)
Comeback wins when trailing at HT 2/6 (33%)
Scoring split (1H vs 2H)
1H: 57.0 (51.1%) 2H: 54.6 (48.9%)
Clutch (≤5 pts / OT): 2-1 10+ pt margins: 4-6

Scoring environment and threshold hit counts across the last 10 games.

CHIDEN
Points scored / game 113.3 114.5
Points allowed / game 128.8 113.3
Average game total 242.1 227.8
Average 1st-half total 123.4 114.9
Possessions / 48 min 106.5 99.0
Games with 220+ pts 10/10 6/10
Games with 230+ pts 9/10 5/10
Games with 240+ pts 6/10 4/10
Scored 115+ pts 5/10 4/10

Schedule density & travel spot

Rest days, multi-game compression and current home/road stretch entering tip-off.

Chicago Bulls

1 day rest
1 in 4 nights 1 in 6 nights Homestand · Game 3

Denver Nuggets

1 day rest
1 in 4 nights 1 in 6 nights Road trip · Game 4

Primary offensive threats

Available rotation leaders by scoring and shot share over the last 10 games.

Chicago Bulls

  • #1 Josh Giddey G 9.0% pts share
    10.2 PPG · 4.6 RPG · 8.3 APG · 1.0 3PM 10.4% FGA
  • #2 Caleb Wilson F 16.7% pts share
    18.9 PPG · 6.2 RPG · 1.9 APG · 2.3 3PM 18.2% FGA
  • #3 Norman Powell G 16.9% pts share
    19.2 PPG · 2.5 RPG · 1.6 APG · 2.1 3PM 14.4% FGA

Denver Nuggets

  • #1 Nikola Jokić C 20.5% pts share
    23.5 PPG · 10.8 RPG · 9.0 APG · 1.0 3PM 21.5% FGA
  • #2 Jamal Murray G 22.9% pts share
    26.2 PPG · 5.0 RPG · 5.9 APG · 4.0 3PM 20.0% FGA
  • #3 Christian Braun G 10.8% pts share
    12.4 PPG · 4.1 RPG · 2.4 APG · 1.6 3PM 11.6% FGA

Last five games

Chicago Bulls

  • L 119-124 vs San Antonio Spurs (H) 12 Nov
  • L 121-127 vs Philadelphia 76ers (H) 8 Nov
  • L 105-135 at New York Knicks (A) 5 Nov
  • L 107-126 at Philadelphia 76ers (A) 3 Nov
  • L 111-125 at Boston Celtics (A) 30 Oct

Denver Nuggets

  • W 123-118 at Memphis Grizzlies (A) 12 Nov
  • L 100-110 at Houston Rockets (A) 10 Nov
  • W 114-102 vs Indiana Pacers (H) 7 Nov
  • W 128-109 vs Toronto Raptors (H) 5 Nov
  • L 110-118 vs Portland Trail Blazers (H) 3 Nov

Most recent first, all games of the season, overtime included.

Last 10 head-to-head meetings

CHI · 6W DEN · 4W
Avg total pts: 232.5 CHI avg: 115.8 DEN avg: 116.7 225+ pt games: 5/10 CHI at home: 2-3
  • 7 Feb 2026 CHI 120‑136 DEN
  • 17 Nov 2025 DEN 127‑130 CHI
  • 24 Mar 2025 DEN 119‑129 CHI
  • 27 Jan 2025 CHI 129‑121 DEN
  • 12 Dec 2023 CHI 106‑114 DEN
  • 4 Nov 2023 DEN 123‑101 CHI
  • 8 Mar 2023 DEN 96‑117 CHI
  • 13 Nov 2022 CHI 103‑126 DEN
  • 6 Dec 2021 CHI 109‑97 DEN
  • 19 Nov 2021 DEN 108‑114 CHI

Season profile comparison

CHIDEN
Record 1-9 6-4
At home 0-4 3-2
On the road 1-5 3-2
Conference 14 of 15, Eastern Conference 9 of 15, Western Conference
Streak Lost 5 in a row –
Days of rest 1 1
Our team rating #27 of 30 #5 of 30
Pace #1 of 30 #18 of 30

Inter-conference matchup — both conference tables shown with Play-off (#6) and Play-in (#10) cut lines.

Eastern Conference standings

Full NBA standings
# Team W L PCT GB Home Road L10 Streak
1 Boston Celtics 10 2 .833 – 5-0 5-2 9-1 W5
2 Philadelphia 76ers 10 3 .769 0.5 5-2 5-1 7-3 W1
3 Detroit Pistons 8 3 .727 1.5 3-2 5-1 7-3 W2
4 Atlanta Hawks 7 5 .583 3.0 3-3 4-2 5-5 L1
5 New York Knicks 6 5 .545 3.5 4-3 2-2 6-4 L1
6 Cleveland Cavaliers 6 6 .500 4.0 4-2 2-4 5-5 W1
7 Miami Heat 5 6 .455 4.5 1-3 4-3 5-5 W2
8 Toronto Raptors 5 7 .417 5.0 2-3 3-4 3-7 L3
9 Orlando Magic 4 7 .364 5.5 0-4 4-3 4-6 W2
10 Charlotte Hornets 4 8 .333 6.0 3-4 1-4 3-7 L1
11 Indiana Pacers 4 8 .333 6.0 1-4 3-4 3-7 W1
12 Washington Wizards 4 9 .308 6.5 2-3 2-6 2-8 L6
13 Brooklyn Nets 3 8 .273 6.5 1-3 2-5 3-7 W1
14 Chicago Bulls 1 9 .100 8.0 0-4 1-5 1-9 L8
15 Milwaukee Bucks 1 11 .083 9.0 1-6 0-5 1-9 L8

Solid cut lines mark Top 6 (direct Play-offs) and Top 10 (Play-in Tournament).

Western Conference standings

Full NBA standings
# Team W L PCT GB Home Road L10 Streak
1 Los Angeles Lakers 11 2 .846 – 5-1 6-1 8-2 W7
2 San Antonio Spurs 10 2 .833 0.5 4-2 6-0 10-0 W10
3 Houston Rockets 9 3 .750 1.5 6-1 3-2 7-3 W2
4 Minnesota Timberwolves 9 3 .750 1.5 5-1 4-2 7-3 W5
5 Portland Trail Blazers 8 3 .727 2.0 3-2 5-1 7-3 W2
6 Golden State Warriors 8 4 .667 2.5 6-1 2-3 8-2 L1
7 Oklahoma City Thunder 8 4 .667 2.5 5-0 3-4 6-4 L2
8 Memphis Grizzlies 7 4 .636 3.0 2-4 5-0 6-4 L1
9 Denver Nuggets 6 4 .600 3.5 3-2 3-2 6-4 W1
10 Dallas Mavericks 7 5 .583 3.5 5-2 2-3 6-4 L1
11 Phoenix Suns 5 6 .455 5.0 5-3 0-3 5-5 W2
12 New Orleans Pelicans 4 8 .333 6.5 3-4 1-4 4-6 L4
13 LA Clippers 2 8 .200 7.5 2-3 0-5 2-8 L1
14 Sacramento Kings 1 10 .091 9.0 0-6 1-4 1-9 L4
15 Utah Jazz 1 11 .083 9.5 1-6 0-5 0-10 L10

Solid cut lines mark Top 6 (direct Play-offs) and Top 10 (Play-in Tournament).

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