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NBA · Regular season

Cleveland Cavaliers vs Chicago Bulls: Preview and Stats

Cleveland Cavaliers 6-6
vs
Chicago Bulls 1-9
Rocket Arena, Cleveland

Our picks

Our picks for Cleveland Cavaliers vs Chicago Bulls 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

  • Cleveland Cavaliers 7 of 12 right (58%)
  • Chicago Bulls 8 of 10 right (80%)

Settled NBA winner picks since 21 Oct 2026.

Game details

Stage
NBA, Regular season
Tip-off
Arena
Rocket Arena
City
Cleveland
Since last match
Cleveland Cavaliers: Dallas Mavericks Chicago Bulls: Minnesota Timberwolves
Next match
Cleveland Cavaliers: Memphis Grizzlies Chicago Bulls: Brooklyn Nets

Missing production & availability impact

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

Cleveland Cavaliers

Official NBA injury report not yet filed for this matchup.

Chicago Bulls

Official NBA injury report not yet filed for this matchup.

Official NBA injury report

Cleveland Cavaliers

Official NBA injury report not yet filed for this matchup.

Chicago Bulls

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.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Projected Starters
  • G James Harden
    32.5 MPG 17.2 PPG 4.4 RPG 5.5 APG
  • G Donovan Mitchell
    32.4 MPG 22.0 PPG 4.5 RPG 5.9 APG
  • C Evan Mobley
    31.6 MPG 16.5 PPG 7.0 RPG 3.7 APG
  • G Peyton Watson
    27.1 MPG 11.4 PPG 5.2 RPG 2.8 APG
  • C Jarrett Allen
    24.6 MPG 11.8 PPG 8.5 RPG 1.8 APG
Key Bench
  • G Meleek Thomas
    22.9 MPG 13.1 PPG 2.8 RPG 1.2 APG
  • G Sam Merrill
    23.3 MPG 8.1 PPG 3.4 RPG 1.7 APG
  • G-F Mario Hezonja
    18.9 MPG 7.5 PPG 5.7 RPG 1.5 APG

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

OptimaGoal power & pace ratings

Full NBA power ratings

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

Cleveland Cavaliers

#11 of 30
Net rating +1.5 30d: -3.0
Pace: -1.5 (#15 of 30)

Chicago Bulls

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

OptimaGoal tactical & efficiency profile (0–100)

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

Cleveland Cavaliers

Net 58
Shot quality (TS%) 53
3PT volume & accuracy 66
Ball security & passing 70
Rebounding control 47
Defensive disruption 55

ORtg 115.3 · DRtg 112.4 · Net +2.9 · TS 58.2%

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%

Cleveland Cavaliers · Record vs point differential W-L record aligned with point differential 6W actual vs 6.7W expected (12 GP)
Chicago Bulls · Record vs point differential W-L record aligned with point differential 1W actual vs 1.4W expected (10 GP)

Halftime splits & clutch profile

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

Cleveland Cavaliers

Win rate when leading at HT 4/5 (80%)
Comeback wins when trailing at HT 2/10 (20%)
Scoring split (1H vs 2H)
1H: 55.5 (49.3%) 2H: 57.2 (50.7%)
Clutch (≤5 pts / OT): 2-2 10+ pt margins: 3-5

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

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

CLECHI
Points scored / game 116.6 113.3
Points allowed / game 113.7 128.8
Average game total 230.3 242.1
Average 1st-half total 112.3 123.4
Possessions / 48 min 100.1 106.5
Games with 220+ pts 8/10 10/10
Games with 230+ pts 5/10 9/10
Games with 240+ pts 3/10 6/10
Scored 115+ pts 6/10 5/10

Schedule density & travel spot

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

Cleveland Cavaliers

1 day rest
1 in 4 nights 2 in 6 nights Homestand · Game 1

Chicago Bulls

1 day rest
1 in 4 nights 2 in 6 nights Road trip · Game 1

Primary offensive threats

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

Cleveland Cavaliers

  • #1 Donovan Mitchell G 18.9% pts share
    22.0 PPG · 4.5 RPG · 5.9 APG · 2.8 3PM 17.8% FGA
  • #2 James Harden G 14.8% pts share
    17.2 PPG · 4.4 RPG · 5.5 APG · 2.8 3PM 14.0% FGA
  • #3 Evan Mobley C 14.2% pts share
    16.5 PPG · 7.0 RPG · 3.7 APG · 2.0 3PM 12.4% FGA

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

Last five games

Cleveland Cavaliers

  • W 115-107 at New York Knicks (A) 12 Nov
  • L 112-124 at Charlotte Hornets (A) 10 Nov
  • L 97-109 vs New York Knicks (H) 8 Nov
  • W 119-95 vs Philadelphia 76ers (H) 7 Nov
  • L 116-124 at Oklahoma City Thunder (A) 5 Nov

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

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

Last 10 head-to-head meetings

CLE · 7W CHI · 3W
Avg total pts: 244.8 CLE avg: 124.7 CHI avg: 120.1 225+ pt games: 9/10 CLE at home: 4-1
  • 19 Mar 2026 CHI 110‑115 CLE
  • 19 Dec 2025 CLE 125‑136 CHI
  • 17 Dec 2025 CHI 127‑111 CLE
  • 8 Nov 2025 CLE 128‑122 CHI
  • 8 Apr 2025 CLE 135‑113 CHI
  • 4 Mar 2025 CHI 117‑139 CLE
  • 15 Nov 2024 CLE 144‑126 CHI
  • 11 Nov 2024 CHI 113‑119 CLE
  • 28 Feb 2024 CHI 132‑123 (2OT) CLE
  • 14 Feb 2024 CLE 108‑105 CHI

Season profile comparison

CLECHI
Record 6-6 1-9
At home 4-2 0-4
On the road 2-4 1-5
Conference 6 of 15, Eastern Conference 14 of 15, Eastern Conference
Streak – Lost 5 in a row
Days of rest 1 1
Our team rating #11 of 30 #27 of 30
Pace #15 of 30 #1 of 30

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).

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