Game Preview: Cavaliers v Bulls

The Chicago Bulls travel to Ohio to play the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken
Loans Arena on Saturday. The Bulls (29-29) were one of the most active teams at
the trade deadline, as they parted with some significant pieces. Both Taj Gibson
and Doug McDermott were traded to Oklahoma City, but that didn’t slow down
Chicago in their first game back. In fact, the Bulls pulled out a crucial
overtime win against the Phoenix Suns on Friday. That got Chicago back to .500
and the 14 points from Jimmy Butler in overtime shows just how valuable he is to
this team. Cameron Payne was the prized acquisition in that Thunder trade, but
he was unable to appear on Friday due to an illness. It will be interesting to
see how they deploy him too, as the guard rotation of Jerian Grant, Michael
Carter-Williams and Rajon Rondo has been influx all season long. The Cavaliers
(40-16) are one of the hottest teams in the league, as they’ve won eight of
their last nine games. What’s even crazier about this run is the fact that two
key pieces are injured, with Kevin Love and J.R. Smith both missing significant
time. While Cleveland stayed quiet at the trade deadline, they appear to be the
favorite to land Deron Williams, who was released by the Dallas Mavericks on
Thursday. That’s the veteran backup point guard that LeBron James has been
asking for all season and it will only make their solid second-unit all the more
dangerous. Kyle Korver has been a huge addition as well, as he’s hitting over 50
percent of his three’s for the Cavs, coming off the bench. Chicago are 2-0
against Cleveland so far this season.