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Bulls vs. Cavaliers 2016 odds: Chicago double-digit underdog against Cleveland

The Chicago Bulls visit the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday as double-digit underdogs as both teams return from the all-star break.

David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Bulls are one of the few teams in the Eastern Conference that have enjoyed some success against the Cleveland Cavaliers in recent seasons with a 5-5 straight up and 7-3 against the spread record in the last 10 games between them.

The Bulls will try to beat Cleveland for the third straight time this Thursday night in Cleveland.

Chicago is an 11.5-point betting underdog for Thursday's game according to sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. In the Bulls' last trip to Cleveland, Chicago won outright as a 10.5-point underdog back in January.

It has been a disappointing season overall for the Bulls, who entered the all-star break on a four-game losing streak with a record of 27-25 SU and 19-33 ATS. Since going 6-0 SU and 5-1 ATS in a stretch of games that started at the end of December, the Bulls are just 5-13 straight up and 4-14 against the spread in their last 18 games.

Outside of being the top rebounding team in the NBA this season, the Bulls haven't been able to get much right.

Historically, the Chicago Bulls have put up a strong fight as a double-digit underdog, going 11-3 ATS in their last 14 instances as one per the OddsShark NBA Database. The Bulls have won all three of their games as a double-digit dog outright this season.

The Cavaliers have played fairly well under new head coach Tyronn Lue, bouncing back from the ugly loss to Chicago in his head coaching debut with an 8-2 SU and 5-5 ATS record over the last 10 games.

Cleveland is in championship or bust mode, and is the clear top contender in the Eastern Conference with a 38-14 SU and 23-27-2 ATS record. The Cavs are 13-13 ATS at home this season with a 22-4 SU record.

Wednesday's total is set at 207 points. The OVER is 6-2 in Cleveland's last eight games.

With the direction these two teams are trending in, Cleveland is a pretty clear favorite to win this game outright, as indicated by the big spread. But with a 6-11-1 ATS record in their last 18 games as a double-digit favorite, the Cavaliers haven't been great at covering big spreads.