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Chicago Bulls vs. Milwaukee Bucks – Game 4 (Bulls lead series 3-2)
Time, TV: Thursday, April 30th – 7:00 p.m. ET on TNT
Projected Starting Lineups:
Chicago Bulls: PG: Derrick Rose, SG: Jimmy Butler, SF: Mike Dunleavy, PF: Pau Gasol, C: Joakim Noah
Milwaukee Bucks: PG: Michael Carter-Williams, SG: Khris Middleton, SF: Giannis Antetokounmpo, PF: Ersan Ilyasova, C: Zaza Pachulia
The Milwaukee Bucks are halfway to doing the impossible, and they will have a chance to knot up their first round series against the Chicago Bulls in front of their home crowd on Thursday night.
After falling behind in the series 3-0, many wrote the Bucks off. They were too young, too inexperienced, and still do not possess any genuine start power on their roster. However, the way head coach Jason Kidd has gotten his players to come together and play as a unit has been fun to watch, and it is why the Bucks should be excited about their future.
The Bulls on the other hand have to be very concerned right now. They came into these playoffs as a juggernaut contender, and the biggest threat to take out LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers. No one questions their defense, which is still very good, but they still have problems generating enough offense to keep up with the much younger Bucks.
The key matchup for this game will be Khris Middleton vs. Jimmy Butler. Middleton had a stellar outing last game, recording 21 points while showing why he is a valuable piece to this Bucks team. Butler has been sensational and arguably the Bulls best offensive player so far, but he will need to play lock-down defense on Middleton this game if the Bulls want to close this series out on the road.
In the end, I see the Bulls finding a way to pull this one out. No one expected the Bucks to win Game 1 after losing three straight, and it was shocking they were able to win Game 5 too. Their season has already been a success in their eyes for what they’ve done in these playoffs alone. The Bulls are going to play with a strong hunger to close this one out, and I think they will get it done.
Prediction: Bulls 103, Bucks 96
Dan Schultz is a Senior Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on twitter @dschultz89. “Like” him on Facebook and add him on Google.
