The New York Knicks (12-12) head to the United Center for a saturday night matchup against the Chicago Bulls (4-20).
The Knicks defeated the Memphis Grizzlies in their most recent game on Wednesday by the score of 99-88. New York won on the strength of their second and third quarters when they outscored the Grizzlies 53-35. Courtney Lee led the Knicks with 24 points, while Kristaps Porzingis scored 18 after missing the previous two games with an ankle injury.
Chicago had lost 10 games in a row and 15 of their last 16 before they defeated the Charlotte Hornets 119-111 in overtime on Friday.
The Bulls held Charlotte to 40 percent shooting from the field for the game and outscored the Hornets 13-5 in the overtime period. Rookie Lauri Markannen scored 24 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, Kris Dunn added 20 with 12 assists, and Robin Lopez chipped in with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Knicks/Bulls projected starting lineups
Knicks: PG - Jarrett Jack, SG - Courtney Lee, SF - Lance Thomas, PF - Kristaps Porzingis, C - Enes Kanter
Bulls: PG - Kris Dunn, SG - Justin Holiday, SF - Denzel Valentine, PF - Lauri Markkanen, C - Robin Lopez
Knicks/Bulls stat leaders
Knicks: Scoring - Kristaps Porzingis 25.4, Rebounding - Enes Kanter 10.5, Assists - Jarrett Jack 6.1
Bulls: Scoring - Lauri Markkanen 14.7, Rebounding - Lauri Markkanen 8.1, Assists - Kris Dunn 4.9
Injuries
Knicks: Out - Tim Hardaway Jr.
(leg)
Bulls: Out - Zach Lavine (knee), Cameron Payne (foot)
What to know and watch for
It has been nearly a month and a half since the Knicks won a road game. That was a surprising 114-95 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on October 29. That still remains their only win away from Madison Square Garden on the season. They have been outscored by an average of 17.6 points in their other seven road games.
After missing Chicago's first 23 games due to facial injuries from an altercation with teammate Bobby Portis, Nikola Mirotic returned to action on Friday scoring six points in 15 minutes. The 26-year-old has played some of his better basketball previously against the Knicks. In nine career meetings, he has averaged 15.4 points while connecting on 42.6 percent of his threes.
He scored 35 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in the two games he played against New York last season.
The Knicks will continue to not have Tim Hardaway Jr. for some time due to injury, and need a clear-cut second scorer behind Kristaps Porzingis. Courtney Lee answered the call in New York's last game with 24 points and has been playing arguably the best basketball of his career so far this season. He is averaging career-highs pretty much across the board, including his averages of 13.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.4 steals, 49.8 field goal percentage, 46.5 three-point percentage, and 92.5 free throw percentage.
Knicks/Bulls regular season history
The Knicks and Bulls have met 222 times in the regular season with Chicago holding a 118-104 advantage in the win column.
New York has now won five in a row in the head-to-head matchup after sweeping the three-game series last season. In the one game played in Chicago last season, the Knicks won 117-104.
