Bulls vs. Celtics Prediction, NBA Odds & Best Bets (10/30)

Fact checked at 7:46 AM ET, Oct 30, 2026

Odds as of 6:50 AM ET, Oct 30, 2026

Chicago is back at TD Garden tonight for a 7:30 PM ET tip-off in an NBA Cup group game, after losing 134-99 in the same building in the first meeting. Books posted Boston at -15.5 and it's still there, while the total has climbed from 231.5 to 235.5. That puts the implied score at about 125.5-110, two points higher for each team than when the line went up.

All three picks follow from that score. Boston gets its points against the team allowing the most in the league, and Chicago plays fast enough to reach 110 behind Caleb Wilson and Norman Powell. A 126-110 Boston win clears the total. In the three Chicago games that went over 235.5, Wilson and Powell cleared their numbers too. Chicago is 1-4 and Boston 3-1, so every number from this season is a small sample.

Bulls vs. Celtics Predictions

• Pick #1: Over 235.5 (-110)
• Pick #2: Caleb Wilson 25+ Points + Rebounds + Assists (-171)
• Pick #3: Norman Powell 18+ Points (-182)

PICK #1: Over 235.5 (-110)

No team has scored fewer than 124 on Chicago. The five opponents have posted 135, 125, 124, 134 and 133, a league-worst 130.2 a game, so Boston's implied 125.5 asks for nothing unusual. Nic Claxton (hamstring) is out and hasn't played this season, which has left the Bulls small and without their rim protector. Jalen Smith, who has started all five games at center, is questionable with a finger sprain on the latest injury report.

Chicago's half is harder. The Bulls play the fastest pace in the league, and they scored 132, 127 and 120 in the three games where they kept turnovers to 14 or fewer. Their 92 and 99 came with 27 and 25 turnovers. Three-point shooting didn't separate those games much, apart from a 4-of-36 night at Toronto. The first meeting reached 233 even with Chicago going 12 of 44 from three and giving it away 25 times.

The case against starts with Boston, whose games have gone over this number only once in four (Chicago's have in three of five). A rout with a quiet fourth quarter would also sink it: Chicago's 43- and 35-point losses finished at 227 and 233. One projection model has this game at 232.8. At -110, the Over implies 52.4%, and it has 20% of the bets and 32% of the money.

PICK #2: Caleb Wilson 25+ Points + Rebounds + Assists (-171)

Wilson stays on the floor whatever the score. The rookie has played 32 to 38 minutes in all five games, including 32 in each of the two routs, so this still works in a game Chicago trails. His totals, newest first, are 30, 25, 47, 28 and 20. The 25 came in the first meeting with Boston (17 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists), exactly on the number. The 20 came at Toronto, when he shot 7 of 21 and committed nine turnovers.

Five games is a small sample and he has no earlier NBA season to test, so the longer record is college. At North Carolina last season he averaged 19.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists and reached 25 combined in 22 of 24 games, in about 31 minutes a night. The competition was weaker, but that's the same all-around production in fewer minutes than he plays now.

The price is long: -171 implies 63.1%. A bad shooting night is how this loses, and he's at 41.3% from the field. If Smith sits, more rebounds should be there for Wilson, though the Bulls haven't said how they'd line up. Wilson isn't on the injury report.

PICK #3: Norman Powell 18+ Points (-182)

Powell reached 18 in 46 of his 58 games with Miami last season, 79.3%, averaging 21.7 points in 29.6 minutes. This price implies 64.5%. With Chicago he's 4 of 5, at 30, 20, 18, 25 and 15, all as a starter.

The free throws give him a floor. He has made 35 in five games, seven a night, which is above last season's 4.5 but explains how he got 18 on 4-of-12 shooting against Washington. He also scored 20 in only 24 minutes in the first meeting and led the Bulls.

Minutes are the danger, and the bigger spread makes them a bigger one. He played 22 minutes at Toronto and scored 15, and last season he reached 18 in only 5 of 10 losses by 15 or more. He needs this game alive after three quarters, the same game the Over needs. He also shot 36.5% over his first four games before going 10 of 15 against the Knicks, so don't count on that efficiency.

21+ (18+ where permitted). Odds subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER.