The Brooklyn Nets head to United Center Wednesday for their 1st meeting this season with the Chicago Bulls, who have lost 4 of their last 5 and 11 of 13.
Two teams moving in opposite directions come together Wednesday night at United Center when the Brooklyn Nets — winners of six straight games — meet the Chicago Bulls, who have lost 11 of their last 13.
The Nets (14-18) come in on the heels of a 115-110 win at home Tuesday night over the Los Angeles Lakers and are just one win shy of the team’s longest winning streak since moving to Brooklyn, a seven-game string from Jan. 2-15, 2013.
The Bulls (7-24) lost Monday on the road to the Oklahoma City Thunder, where they were hammered 121-96. Chicago is 2-5 under new coach Jim Boylen, who took over after Fred Hoiberg was fired Dec. 3 after the team had lost 10 of its last 11 games on his watch.
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D’Angelo Russell scored 22 points and tied his career-high with 13 assists to lead the Nets past the Lakers, canning a crucial 3-pointer with 22.1 seconds left to help seal the victory.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson added 17 points and eight rebounds, Jarrett Allen also grabbed eight boards and had two blocks, while Spencer Dinwiddie finished with 18 points and six assists.
Lauri Markkanen and Bobby Portis scored 16 points each as the Bulls were routed Monday by the Thunder, trailing by as much as 30 in a game they trailed at halftime 64-44.
Makkanen added 15 rebounds and two blocks, while Kris Dunn had 12 points and seven assists and Cameron Payne added 11 points and six dimes before fouling out. Justin Holiday and Wendell Carter had two blocks each for Chicago.
The Nets are 74-92 against the Bulls since being admitted to the NBA as part of the merger with the old ABA in 1976. Chicago owns the longest winning streak in the series, taking 12 in a row from Feb. 16, 1991, to Dec. 29, 1993. The Nets took eight straight from Dec. 23, 2003, to Nov. 5, 2005.
The Bulls posted the most points by a team in the series, as well as the most lopsided decision, in a 140-96 win at Chicago on Jan. 4, 1992.
The New Jersey Nets scored 135 points in a two-point overtime win at Piscataway on Feb. 11, 1981, with their best effort in regulation coming in a 130-104 victory at East Rutherford on Jan. 14, 1982.
The Nets largest win against Chicago was a 119-86 victory at East Rutherford on Feb. 23, 1983.
Hall of Famer Michael Jordan has the single-game scoring high in the series, dropping in 58 points in a win at Chicago on Feb. 26, 1987. The high game for the Nets was 43 points from Vince Carter in a loss at Chicago on April 11, 2006.
Since moving to Brooklyn in 2012, the Nets are 8-13 against the Bulls, but have won three straight and four of the last five in the series. Brooklyn owns the highest-scoring game since the move in a 124-96 win at Chicago on April 7, while the Bulls have hit 118 twice, the last time on Oct. 31, 2016, at Barclays Center.
The biggest margin of victory since 2012 belongs to the Bulls in a 112-73 victory at Chicago on April 12, 2017. Brooklyn’s biggest win was the April 7 game at Chicago.
Allen Crabbe has the highest-scoring game since the move, putting up 41 points in an April 9 win at Barclays Center. Jimmy Butler scored 40 points for the Bulls in a Dec. 28, 2016, win at Chicago.
*-Historical research courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com.
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Here’s how to link to the action Wednesday night between the Nets and Bulls.
Brooklyn Nets at Chicago Bulls
United Center, Chicago
Time: 8 p.m. Eastern
TV: YES Network
Live stream: NBA League Pass
The skinny
Season series: First meeting (Brooklyn swept last season 3-0)
Records: Brooklyn 14-18 (10th in East), Chicago 7-24 (15th in East)
Scoring: BKN 111.1 (14th), CHI 101.2 (30th)
Defense: BKN 111.8 (20th), CHI 112.0 (22nd)
Off. Rating: BKN 110.1 (11th), CHI 99.5 (30th)
Def. Rating: BKN 110.5 (22nd), CHI 110.3 (20th)
Pace: BKN 99.75 (23rd), CHI 100.57 (17th)
Shooting: BKN 45.1% (21st), CHI 44.1% (27th)
3-point: BKN 35.8% (10th), CHI 34.1% (23rd)
Opponent shooting: BKN 47.0% (22nd), CHI 46.0% (16th)
Opponent 3-point: BKN 35.0% (13th), CHI 35.9% (22nd)
Injuries
Brooklyn: QUESTIONABLE–Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (left quad contusion); OUT–Treveon Graham (left hamstring strain), Caris LeVert (subtalar dislocation, right foot), Allen Crabbe (sore right knee), Dzanan Musa (left shoulder subluxation).
Chicago: QUESTIONABLE–Jabari Parker (stomach illness); OUT–Denzel Valentine (left ankle surgery), Zach LaVine (left ankle injury).
Last meeting
April 9 at Brooklyn: Allen Crabbe scored a career-high 41 points, including a pair of free throws with 1:08 remaining that capped a game-clinching 8-0 run in the Nets’ 114-105 victory over the Bulls.
Crabbe scored his 41 points on just 15 shots, hitting 12-of-15 overall and 8-of-11 from 3-point range, while also going 9-for-9 at the foul line. D’Angelo Russell added 21 points, 11 assists and six rebounds, while Spencer Dinwiddie went for 20 points with seven assists.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson also had six rebounds and two blocked shots and Jarrett Allen swatted away four shots.
Former Net Sean Kilpatrick led Chicago with 16 points. David Nwaba added 11 points and 10 rebounds, Cameron Payne finished with 15 points and six assists and Bobby Portis had 14 points and two blocked shots.
What’s next?
Brooklyn: vs. Indiana, Friday; vs. Phoenix, Sunday; vs. Charlotte, Dec. 26
Chicago: vs. Orlando, Friday; at Cleveland, Sunday; vs. Minnesota, Dec. 26