Bulls vs. Cavaliers Game 1 2010 NBA Playoffs Odds & Predictions: Saturday at 3 p.m. ET, the 2010 NBA Playoffs begin when the Chicago Bulls (41-41) tip it off for Game 1 of a best of seven series against the league's best team, the Cleveland Cavaliers (61-21), at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.
Chicago qualified for the eighth and final Eastern Conference seed by outlasting Toronto in the final week of play while Cleveland easily outdistanced the field by logging 61 wins. The Cavaliers are heavy favorites to win this first round series versus the Bulls. Chicago can only hope they catch the Cavaliers looking beyond the round like they did Boston in 2009 when their first round series went a full seven games.
NBA Predictions oddsmakers at BetUS.com list Cleveland as -4000 moneyline favorites to win the series with Chicago while Bulls backers are getting +1100 odds as the underdog.
For Saturday's Game 1, the Cavaliers are 11-chalk favorites with a 193 1/2 total. Bulls backers are getting +650 odds on the BetUS moneyline while Cleveland is giving -900.
In the regular season's final days, Chicago really stepped up its game after nearly blowing it. All-Star guard Derrick Rose sizzled in April, averaging 25.4 points on 54 percent shooting with seven assists and 4.1 rebounds as the Bulls ent 6-2 in eight critical games.
The Cavaliers should be well rested and healthy. Returning after missing from the Cavaliers lineup since Feb. 25 is center Shaquille O'Neal. The big guy has missed seven weeks after having surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb. He played just four games with trade-deadline acquisition Antawn Jamison before getting hurt.
So how do the Bulls counter LeBron James? Well-they don't but they can match up well with the other positions. The Bulls have an edge in the Rose-Mo Williams battle and Kirk Hinrich gives the Bulls the edge versus Anthony Parker.
NBA Playoffs Preciction: Chicago will not win this series but they could possibly steal a game when play shifts to United Center. Cleveland will win the series in 5-games. For Saturday's game, the edge goes to Cleveland -11.
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