The Chicago Bulls and the Indiana Pacers meet on December 29 in a battle of Eastern Conference rivals. The Bulls have won 9 of their last 10 matches, the last coming at the expense of the New Orleans Pelicans, 107-100.
And from the looks of it, the Bulls may be slightly favored over the Pacers although Indiana haven't' done badly themselves as of late.
The Pacers are also doing well as of late, winning 4 of their 5 matches. Their latest triumph came at the expense of the Brooklyn Nets, 110-85.
For the Bulls (21-9), it may depend on how their bench can continue to spring up surprises and provide the necessary help for their starters. Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah are healthy and around, and so is new recruit Pau Gasol.
But it has been the likes of Jimmy Butler and Aaron Brooks who have been making a difference. Butler has been explosive as of late and this was evidently shown in their win over the Pelicans. Butler finished with 33 big points in just 27 minutes of action.
"I feel like we got a lot of easy baskets as a team," Butler said. "We rebounded the ball well and we got out into the open court and we got a lot of layups. When we're playing like that, I think we're really, really hard to beat."
Brook on the other hand has done a magnificent job quarterbacking while helping out in the scoring department as well. Brooks finished with 13 points against New Orleans.
The Pacers (11-20) on the other hand have somehow managed to win despite the continued absence of Paul George. Last time out, it was Rodney Stuckey who spearheaded seven Pacers in double figures with 20 markers.
The Bulls and the Pacers game will be shown at 7:00 p.m. ET. It will be broadcast via Fox Sports. The game can alternatively be watched online via live stream here.
