What to expect from this week's Bulls games with new lineup

Photo Courtesy of Kamil Krzacynski/USA Today

The Chicago Bulls didn't start out last week too well, but they closed it out well against the shorthanded Toronto Raptors Monday night in a 118-95 win.

The Bulls will kick things back up at home tonight against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Bulls' starting veteran Thad Young and Tomas Satoransky will benefit the team going forward since Young and Sato are the better defensive options, compared to Coby White and Wendell Carter Jr.

Here's a look at what's ahead for the Bulls this week and what to expect from each matchup, although you can't really predict anything considering how inconsistent they've been this season.

Tonight: Thunder at Bulls

This will be the second time these two teams meet this season. OKC defeated Chicago 127-125 in their last matchup on Jan. 15, where the Bulls allowed the Thunder to overcome a 22-point deficit.

The Thunder are made up of young talent, but this doesn't mean it's going to be totally easy for the Bulls. They can't be too relaxed because often times they lose focus and give up their lead by not being able to finish in the fourth quarter.

Playmaker Shae Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 33 points in their last matchup with the Bulls. He's coming off a 30-point night in the Thunder's 128-122 win against the Memphis Grizzlies Monday night.

Also, Thunder rookie Alex Pokuševski dropped 23 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in his first career start. Poku became the second-youngest player in NBA history to make five 3-pointers in a game, trailing only LeBron James.

The Bulls, who are 8-13 at home, have to come out and be ready to play against the Thunder who are 9-10 away.

Wednesday: San Antonio Spurs at Bulls

The Spurs have been producing well this season, handing the Detroit Pistons their fourth-straight loss last night, 109-99.

They have a veteran in DeMar DeRozan and they have a great defensive team, which is something that can give the Bulls a hard time in this matchup because they've been so susceptible to turnovers. The Bulls only had 11 turnovers in their last matchup against the Raptors, but that's nothing to be impressed about since they were playing against a undermanned team.

Offensively, the Spurs aren't too crazy of a threat to the Bulls. DeRozan is their primary threat. Despite having to deal with the loss of his father this season, he's averaging 20.3 points per game, 4.7 rebounds and 7.3 assists.

The best way for the Bulls to stop DeRozan offensively is to put rookie Patrick Williams on him, since he is the best option on the team when it comes to defending wing players. So, I wouldn't be surprised if Donovan puts him up against DeRozan.

Williams is already shining in his rookie season:

Friday: Denver Nuggets at Bulls

This might be the toughest matchup of the week for the Bulls. The main priority is to lock down Nikola Jokic. They must put more than one body on him. Jokic has been putting up career highs, averaging 27.1 points per game, 11.1 rebounds and 8.6 assists this season.

Jokic has already had nine triple-doubles this season.

He's one of the best passers in the game right now, already establishing himself as perhaps the best passing big man in NBA history. He ranks sixth league-wide with a 39.9 assist percentage.

The Bulls are definitely going to struggle against Jokic's Nuggets, who dominated the Bulls earlier this season. Jokic dropped 39 points in a 118-112 victory on March 1, scoring 17 points just in the fourth quarter.

He'll make it tough for them considering how limited the Bulls' interior defense has been. They allowed 78 points in the paint against the Philadelphia 76ers last week -- without stars Joel Embiid or Ben Simmons in the game.

Sunday: Bulls at Detroit Pistons

The Pistons sit at the very bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, so this should be the easiest game of the week for the Bulls. This could give them a chance to close out the week with a win, but one can never be too sure when it comes to the Bulls.

They had a tough time against the Pistons in their last matchup with them on Feb. 17, but the Bulls overcame a 25-point deficit and won 105-102.

The Pistons are better than what their record suggests though. Earlier this season, Pistons forward Jerami Grant dropped a career-high 43 points against the Bulls.

So the Bulls must lock Grant down by putting either Williams or Thad Young on him. They're the best defensive players on the team.

The Bulls can't be letting the Pistons get 50 in the paint.

Altogether, the Bulls need to be fully locked in this week. They've done a good job of controlling the 3-point arc this season defensively. But they need to unitedly protect the paint and not allow so many free passages to the rim. They also need to not give opposing teams the opportunity to run out on the break for easy scores.