Heat vs. Bulls Showdown: Can Underdogs Defy the Odds in This Thrilling January 29 Clash?

The Miami Heat, riding the wave after snagging two wins in their last three outings, head into Chicago tonight to face off against a Bulls squad eager to regain ground. Originally slated for January 8, this clash got pushed back thanks to some unruly weather — but here we are, ready for the showdown at the United Center. Both teams nursed losses just last night: Miami fell to the Magic in a high-scoring affair, despite a fiery 23-point contribution from Simone Fontecchio, while Chicago edged out a nail-biter in Indy but ultimately came up short by three, with Nikola Vucevic doing his best with 25 points. It’s a tale of near misses and gritty battles as the Bulls, now sitting below .500 and clinging to tenth in the Eastern Conference, try to find consistency — especially with Josh Giddey’s availability fluctuating, a critical piece missing too often. On the other side, Pat Riley’s relentless pursuit to bolster the Heat roster continues, with Norman Powell leading Miami’s attack at 23 points a night, seeking to push their Eastern standing upward. This is the second faceoff of four on the regular season calendar — the Heat took an early convincing triumph here in Chicago, and tonight promises more fireworks. We’ll dive deep into the lineups, injury updates, and key stats shaping the betting lines and game flow. Dive in and get the edge you need. LEARN MORE

Winners of two of their last three, the Miami Heat (25-23) are in the Windy City tonight to play the Chicago Bulls (23-24). This game was originally scheduled for January 8 but had to be rescheduled due to inclement weather.

Each of these teams played last night…and each team lost last night. The Heat lost at home to the Magic, 133-124, despite 23 points off the bench from Simone Fontecchio. The Bulls lost by three in Indianapolis to the Pacers. Nikola Vucevic led the Bulls with 25 points in the 113-110 loss.

That loss was the second in a row for Josh Giddey and the Bulls who are now under .500 and in tenth in the Eastern Conference. Giddey has been exceptional this season averaging 18.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 8.8 assists per game but has missed nearly 25% of the Bulls’ games. This team is not deep enough to succeed too often when he is absent.

While Pat Riley desperately tries to get Giannis to South Beach, the Heat continue to sputter along sitting in eighth in the East but just one game out of sixth. Acquired last offseason, Norman Powell is Miami’s leading scorer averaging 23 points per game.

This is the second of four regular season meetings between these teams. They met earlier this season on November 21 at the United Center with the Heat rolling to a 143-107 win.

Lets take a closer look at the matchup and take into consideration lineups, injuries, and other factors affecting the line and total.

We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch tipoff, odds courtesy of DraftKings recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.

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Game Details and How to Watch Live: Heat at Bulls

Date: Thursday, January 29, 2026
Time: 8PM EST
Site: United Center
City: Chicago, IL
Network/Streaming: FanDuel Sports Network Sun, Chicago Sports Network

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Game Odds: Heat at Bulls

The latest odds as of Thursday courtesy of DraftKings:

Moneyline: Miami Heat (-130), Chicago Bulls (+110)
Spread: Heat -1.5
Total: 238.5 points

This game opened Bulls -1.5 with the Total set at 242.5.

Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & player props for every matchup this week on the NBA schedule!

Expected Starting Lineups: Heat at Bulls

Miami Heat

PG Davion Mitchell
SG Norman Powell
SF Pelle Larsson`
PF Andrew Wiggins
C Bam Adebayo

Chicago Bulls

PG Josh Giddey
SG Coby White
SF Isaac Okoro
PF Matas Buzelis
C Nikola Vucevic

Injury Report: Heat at Bulls

Miami Heat

Davion Mitchell (shoulder) is listed as questionable for tonight’s game
Tyler Herro (ribs) is listed as doubtful for tonight’s game

Chicago Bulls

Tre Jones (hamstring) is listed as doubtful for tonight’s game
Zach Collins (toe) has been ruled OUT of tonight’s game

Important stats, trends and insights: Heat at Bulls

The Bulls are 15-10 at home this season
The Heat are 10-15 on the road this season
The Bulls are 24-23 ATS this season
The Heat are 27-21 ATS this season
The OVER has cashed in 21 of the Bulls’ 47 games this season (21-26)
The OVER has cashed in 25 of the Heat’s 48 games this season (25-23)
Jaime Jaquez Jr. has picked up at least 4 assists and 5 rebounds in 5 of his last 7 games
Coby White has scored at least 22 points in 5 of his last 6 games

Rotoworld Best Bet

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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NBA calendar based on data points like recent performance, head-to-head player matchups, trends information and projected game totals.

Once the model is finished running, we put its projections next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.

Here are the best bets our model is projecting for tonight’s Heat and Bulls’ game:

Moneyline: Rotoworld Bet is recommending a play on the Bulls on the Moneyline
Spread: Rotoworld Bet is leaning towards a play on the Bulls +1.5 ATS
Total: Rotoworld Bet is staying away from a play on the Game Total of 238.5

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