Orlando Magic vs Chicago Bulls Prediction, 1/2/2026 Preview and Pick

Game: Orlando Magic vs Chicago Bulls

Date: Friday, January 2, 2026

Location: United Center in Chicago, IL

TV: CHSN

The Orlando Magic (18-14) are traveling to United Center on Friday where they will attempt to defeat the Chicago Bulls (15-16).

The Magic faced the Nuggets and went home with a win by a final score of 127-126 in their last game. With respect to fouls, the Magic walked away with 25 while the Nuggets totaled 23 fouls. They buried 11 out of their 29 attempts from distance. Denver ended up going 90.0% from the charity stripe by converting 27 of 30 shots. Additionally, Denver pulled down 49 boards (15 offensive, 34 defensive), but finished the game with no blocks. Denver earned 27 assists and had 5 steals for the game. Concerning the defense, Orlando allowed their opponent to shoot 51.2% from the field on 44 out of 86 shooting. They also dished out 32 dimes in the game while forcing the other team into 16 turnovers and earning 8 steals. Pertaining to hauling in boards, they collected 35 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. When they shot from the free throw line, the Magic buried 25 of 37 tries for a rate of 67.6%. Orlando finished the contest with a 51.7% field goal percentage (46 out of 89) and made 10 of 29 three-point attempts.

Anthony Black is someone who was a contributor for this game. Black shot 58.3% from the floor and earned 5 assists. He was on the court for 30 mins and also pulled down 6 rebounds. He had 38 points on 14 out of 24 shooting.

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Orlando steps onto the court with a record of 18-14 for the season. They have an average of 117.1 pts per contest (14th in the NBA) on 46.8% from the floor. The Magic are hitting 34.2% from downtown (362 of 1,058) and 78.6% from the charity stripe. As a team, Orlando is collecting 44.6 boards per game and is sitting with 831 assists on the campaign, which ranks 14th in the NBA in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession by turning the ball over 14.0 times per contest and as a unit are committing 21.5 fouls on a nightly basis.

When they are on defense, the Magic are able to force 15.3 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 22.8 fouls. They are surrendering 36.3% on shots from beyond the arc and they are 13th in the league in points per game allowed (115.3). The Magic are giving up a shooting percentage of 47.9% (1,349 of 2,818) and they concede 43.2 rebounds per contest as a unit. They rank 9th in the NBA in allowing assists to the opposition with 798 relinquished for the campaign.

The last time they took the court, the Bulls took a loss by a score of 112-103 when they played the Bucks. The Bulls pulled down 36 defensive boards and 16 offensive rebounds for a total of 52 in the matchup. They also turned the ball over 15 times, while recording 5 steals in this matchup. The Bucks were called for 16 fouls for the matchup which got the Bulls to the charity stripe for a total of 16 attempts. They were able to convert 12 of the free throws for a percentage of 75.0%. In reference to shots from downtown, Chicago made 13 of 38 attempts (34.2%). When the final whistle was blown, the Bulls went 39 for 93 from the field which had them shooting 41.9%. The Bulls allowed the Bucks to convert 40 out of 86 tries from the floor which had them sitting at 46.5% in this matchup. They finished the game shooting 36.1% from 3-point land by shooting 13 out of 36 and finished the contest at 19 of 24 from the free throw line (79.2%). In the matter of how they attacked the glass, Chicago allowed Milwaukee to collect 47 overall (11 on the offensive side).

Nikola Vucevic was important for the Bulls in this matchup. Vucevic recorded 16 points in his 26 mins on the hardwood and accounted for 1 assist in the matchup. He converted 7 out of 14 for this game giving him a rate of 50.0%, and had 7 rebounds.

Chicago has a record of 15-16 this season. When it comes to executing on offense, the Bulls are connecting on 47.5% from the field, which ranks 12th in the league. Chicago has totaled 3,684 points for the campaign (118.8 per game) and they pull down 45.7 rebounds per contest. They are assisting teammates 29.5 times per game (5th in the league) and they cough up possession 15.0 times per game. The Bulls are responsible for committing 19.6 personal fouls every game while shooting 78.1% from the free throw line.

The Chicago defense allows 36.4% on 3-point shots (427 of 1,172) and opponents are converting on 78.0% of their shots from the free throw line. They relinquish 27.7 dimes and 45.5 boards per contest, which has them ranked 24th and 23rd in basketball. The Bulls on defense are ranked 26th in the league in PPG surrendered with 122.0. They are forcing their opponents into 13.2 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 47.6% from the floor (20th in the league).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Orlando

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