How to Watch Bulls-Wizards 2022-23 NBA Opening Week Game On Friday
Both the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards started the 2022-23 NBA season with a win, but on Friday night one of those teams will come back from their first loss of the new season.
The Bulls and Wizards will face off in Washington in what could be an interesting game given the Bulls are shorthanded through injuries.
Zach LaVine will miss his second straight game to start the season as he recovers from a left knee injury, and Lonzo Ball remains sidelined indefinitely after complications from a meniscus injury last season.
Sophomore Ayo Dosunmu is the one to follow in Ball’s footsteps early in the season, and in the first game of the year Chicago went into the starting lineup with Alex Caruso to try and replace LaVine. Without the all-star guard in the lineup, however, it was DeMar DeRozan who put his team on the back with a fantastic performance of 37 points, the most points by any player in a game so far this season.
On the other side of the parquet, the Wizards have set themselves high expectations this season, despite popular belief that they are left out of the playoff picture earlier in the year. Bradley Beal is back for Washington and this team finally has an intriguing depth with veteran players like Kyle Kuzma, Will Barton, Monte Morris, Delon Wright, Kristaps Porzingis and others surrounding him.
Eight of the ten players who participated in the Wizards’ opening game ended up scoring at least 8 points in the game, further showing the improvements this team made in depth during the offseason. However, will it be enough to get past the Bulls, a team looking to make it back to the playoffs in a very busy Eastern Conference?
The 2022-23 NBA season has begun and here’s how to watch Friday’s game with game times and TV, lineups, bios and other important details.
How to watch Bulls vs Wizards
- WHO: Chicago Bulls (1-0) vs. Washington Wizards (1-0)
- IF: 7:00 p.m. ET, Friday, October 21, 2022
- WHERE: Capital One Arena, Washington, DC
- TV: NBA League Pass
- Stream: Fubo.tv CLICK HERE
Key stats and facts for Bulls vs. Wizards
- The Chicago Bulls recently defeated the Miami Heat 116-108 en route to the opening of the 2022-23 NBA season.
- The Washington Wizards recently defeated the Indiana Pacers 114-107 en route to the opening of the 2022-23 NBA season.
- DeMar DeRozan scored 37 points in his season debut with the Bulls after finishing second in points totals last season.
- Bradley Beal led the Wizards in their first game of the new season by 23 points.
- Chicago defeated Washington in three regular-season matchups a season ago, beating the Wizards by a total of 22 points.
Last encounter:
March 29, 2022 – Bulls 107, Wizards 94
Thanks to 73 combined points from DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic, the Chicago Bulls defeated the Washington Wizards 107-94 in their final meeting of the 2021-22 regular season. Without Braldey Beal and Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, now a member of the Denver Nuggets, and Rui Hachimura combined for 41 points. The Bulls shot 50.6 percent from the ground as a team in that game.
Latest injury reports:
Cops: Lonzo Ball (knee) – OUT, Zach LaVine (knee) – OUT
Heat: Corey Kispert (ankle) – OUT, Vernon Carey Jr. (concussion) – QUESTIONABLE, Deni Avdija (ankle) – ACTIVE
Expected starters:
PROJECTS BULLS STARTER:
- G Ayo Dosunmu6-foot-5 guard: 17.0 points, 6.0 rebound, 4.0 assists
- G Alex Caruso6-4 guard: 6.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists
- F DeMar DeRozan6-6 forward: 37.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 9.0 assists
- F Patrick Williams6-7 forward: 4.0 points, 2.0 rebounds
- C Nikola Vucevic6-10 middle: 15.0 points, 17.0 rebounds
PROJECTED WIZARDS STARTERS:
- G.Monte Morris6-2 guard: 7.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists
- G Bradley Beal, 6-4 guard: 23.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists
- F Deni Avdija (ACTIVE)6-9 forward: 4.0 points
- F. Kyle Kuzma6-9 forward: 22.0 points, 13.0 rebounds
- C. Kristaps Porzingis7-3 middle: 15.0 points, 10.0 rebounds
Betting Odds:
- According to FanDuel Sportsbook, the Wizards are currently 2.5-point favorites over the Bulls as of Friday afternoon.
- The over/under for this matchup is currently set at 222 total points.
What to look out for:
- Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan were one of the top scoring duos in the entire NBA for the Chicago Bulls a season ago, averaging 52.3 points per game.
- Bradley Beal has averaged at least 22.0 points per game over the course of a season since the start of the 2016–17 season.
- The Bulls are 129-107 all-time against the Wizards.
- Chicago averaged 111.6 points per game offensively last season, while Washington only averaged 1108.6 points per game last season.
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