NBA: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Boston at Portland
Slumping Blazers try to halt an 0-7 SU, 1-6 ATS slide when Celtics pay a visit to the Rose Garden on Sunday. Tough spot for any visitor to this building as Blazers are 17-9 (12-12 ATS) on home court. However, defense a big problem for Portland giving up 108.9 PPG on 51.1% shooting over the skid puts them in dangerous betting territory. The Blazers are 4-8 ATS after allowing =>110 points, 1-6-1 ATS at home giving up 105 or more points to the visitor. At the other end, Celtics arriving off a 113-88 smacking of Phoenix last time out fits nicely in this hostile environment. The Celtics are on a smart 3-0 ATS road streak following a 20 point win the previous game and enter 9-4 ATS in their last eleven overall, 6-1 ATS in their last seven games against Western Conference clubs. Boston 13-1 (11-3 ATS) in this series including 5-1 SU/ATS in Portland consider Celtics as your NBA Sports Pick.
Lakers - Mavericks Preview
Sportspic.com
Both teams in this Sunday matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks have something to prove. The online sports betting crowd thinks that the Mavericks, despite its terrible start to the season, can still make a second half surge and get into the playoffs. Dallas is in the middle of a group of teams that are only three or four games out of the playoffs in the Western Conference, and the Mavericks has way too much pride to at least not make some kind of run as the playoffs get closer.
The online casino players know that the Los Angeles Lakers is in that same crowd with the Mavericks, but this season has turned into something much more personal for Los Angeles. Every detail of the Lakers' collapse this season has been front page news all over the country. A team can only take so much of that before it starts to feel a personal need to pull itself up by the bootstraps and get back to work. The recent passing of former Lakers' owner Dr. Jerry Buss also adds a strong level of personal motivation that the Lakers can use to make a run to the playoffs.
Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks appeared to right the ship just before the All-Star break when the team played .500 ball in the last 10 games before the All-Star break. The best sports betting sites had the Mavs written out of the postseason when not even the return of Dirk Nowitzki was enough to push the team to the next level. There was even a point where Nowitzki himself was calling for his own benching because the team was playing so poorly. But things seem to be looking up in Dallas and the team at least wants to finish the season at .500. That may even be the cut-off point for the playoffs in the Western Conference this season.
Los Angeles Lakers
It was no coincidence that the Lakers started playing better basketball when Steve Nash returned to the lineup. The betting sites noticed that Dwight Howard stopped pouting long enough to start being a contributor to a winning effort. It has become extremely evident that this can be a good team when it wants to play together and win. The problem is that all of the drama in Los Angeles may have pulled the cohesiveness right out of the Lakers and left the team for dead.
The Bottom Line
Of these two teams, the Lakers has the best shot at making the playoffs. But that does not mean that the Mavericks is going to roll over and just let the Lakers win this game. This will be a competitive game from both teams and it should be exciting to watch. But, in the end, the Lakers should come away with the win.
Pick: Los Angeles Lakers
Bulls at Thunder: What Bettors Need to Know
By Covers.com
Chicago Bulls at Oklahoma City Thunder (-8.5, 196)
The Chicago Bulls have the second-best road record as they visit one of the top home clubs in the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday. Chicago’s 17-10 road mark trails only the San Antonio Spurs but the Bulls will face a tough test in battling Oklahoma City, which is a gaudy 24-4 at home. The Bulls are just 4-6 over their last 10 games but Oklahoma City lost a season-worst three straight games before downing the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday.
Oklahoma City shot 57.8 percent from the field and matched a season-best for points in the 127-111 win over the Timberwolves. But the Thunder’s recent play on the defensive end remains substandard in the view of coach Scott Brooks and several players. “All five guys that are on the court have to be tied on a string,” center Kendrick Perkins said after the win over Minnesota. “It only takes one guy to mess up the whole thing as far as our defensive concepts.” Chicago routed the Charlotte Bobcats 105-75 on Friday one night after a woeful 86-67 loss to the Miami Heat. Oklahoma City defeated the Bulls 97-71 in Chicago on Nov. 8.
ABOUT THE BULLS (32-23): Chicago reached 100 points for just the second time all month with the trouncing of the Bobcats. Perhaps more pleasing was that the Bulls had 37 assists on 42 baskets and committed just six turnovers. The Bulls had 27 miscues in the loss to the Heat. “I thought we played a great team game and we needed this game after (Thursday) night,” forward Luol Deng said afterwards. “I thought we didn’t play well at all (against Miami). It feels good just to get a win. We’ve just got to keep it moving.” Point guard Kirk Hinrich (elbow) has missed nine of the last 10 games.
ABOUT THE THUNDER (40-15): Guard Russell Westbrook had a splendid performance with nine assists and seven rebounds to go with a season-best 37 points in the victory over the Timberwolves. Westbrook was 13-of-22 from the field and made all nine of his free-throw attempts. “He had nine assists, that’s good basketball,” Brooks said afterwards. “The way he scored, he took a lot of good shots and had a high percentage. Russell had a very, very good all-around game.” Westbrook is averaging 27.4 points over the last five games. Forward Kevin Durant had 27 points and is averaging 29 over the past four outings.
TRENDS:
* Bulls are 4-0 ATS in their last four road games.
* Thunder are 8-1 ATS in their last nine home games.
* Over is 4-0 in Thunder’s last four overall.
* Over is 4-1 in Bulls’ last five vs. Western Conference foes.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Chicago has split four meetings in Oklahoma City.
2. The Thunder made all 22 of their free-throw attempts in the victory over Minnesota.
3. The Bulls are 23-7 when holding opponents below 90 points.
Inside the Paint - Sunday
By Chris David
VegasInsider.com
Sunday’s pro basketball slate features nine games and seven of those contests will be played this evening. ESPN will offer up a primetime double-header, with Memphis visiting Brooklyn in the opener before the Bulls and Thunder tangle from Oklahoma City in the night cap.
With the help from a handful of VegasInsider.com handicappers, let’s take a closer look at some of the key games on tap.
Sacramento at New Orleans: This matchup isn’t exactly intriguing but it does fit into a solid total trend that I’ve been playing for years. Anytime you have non-playoff teams squaring off in the second-half of the season, the style tends to be looser and the defense is horrible. Since the All-Star break, we’ve had a handful of these matchups and the ‘over’ has produced profits. For example, the Cavaliers and Magic rolled the ball out Saturday and they combined for 212 points on a closing total of 200. On Friday, the Mavs and Hornets went ‘over’ and New Orleans also went ‘over’ on Wednesday versus the Cavaliers. Tonight’s number opened at 202½ and it’s already up to 204. It’s not going to be 100 percent but if you like the ‘over’ already then this should give you more confidence with your wager.
Cleveland at Miami: Another system that we’ve mentioned in our “Inside the Paint” columns is fading a team at home in their first game back from a road trip of three or more games. Tonight’s play would be on the Cavaliers, who face the Heat after a three-game road trip. VI handicapper Bruce Marshall is leaning Cleveland as well. He explains, “At American Airlines Arena on Nov. 24, the Cavaliers nearly pulled a major upset in narrow 110-108 loss to Miami. Full-strength Heat needed almost all of King James’ 30 points to survive that night vs. an aroused Cleveland side that was minus then-hurting All-Star PG Kyrie Irving, in the midst of his finger-injury absence. Miami’s win streak has reached 10, and Heat scoring 107.6 PPG and shooting 51.4% from floor in latest win streak, but Cavs playing better lately, too, winners in seven of their last 12.
Philadelphia at New York: It’s hard to imagine the Knicks laying double digits to anybody right now, considering they’ve lost four straight. However, the line could be too small when you realize the opponents is Philadelphia, who has also dropped four games in a row. Do you lay the wood? Take the points? Or perhaps pass all together? VI expert Dave Cokin has an opinion. “New York is playing lousy ball right now, but this is the most likely spot for them to get the wheels back in motion. The play here is against the 76ers. Philly is awful playing the second of back-to-back games, standing a woeful 2-10 both outright and against the line. The 76ers are also below par when playing away from home off a loss. So there are some substantially strong current trends that indicate a Philly fade is the right move,” said Cokin.
Boston at Portland: Since All-Star point guard Rajon Rondo (knee) was ruled ‘out’ for the season, the Celtics have gone 9-3 both SU and ATS. Keep in mind that six of those wins came at TD Garden and playing outside of Massachusetts hasn’t been kind to Boston according to VI handicapper Stephen Nover. He explained his analysis, “Boston has failed to cover 13 of its last 19 road games and is 1-7 straight up when playing Western Conference foes on the road. That lone win came against Phoenix this past Friday, the worst team in the West. Also, the Celtics have multiple injuries and their key players are old and this marks their fourth road game in six days.”
All those facts definitely make you lean Portland but can you really back a team that has lost seven straight (1-6 ATS) games? Nover still believes in the Trail Blazers at home. “Portland doesn't have a strong bench, but Wesley Matthews has returned from an injury and the Trail Blazers are playing for just the third time in 11 days. Portland has one of the toughest venues to play at, the Rose Garden. The Trail Blazers have won four of their last five home games, including defeating the Pacers, Clippers, Mavericks and Jazz during this span. The Trail Blazers did lose in their last home game, a surprising 102-98 loss to the Suns this past Tuesday.”
Chicago at Oklahoma City: If you follow the Association daily and bet totals like myself, then you’re probably aware that the ‘over’ has gone 14-5 (74%) the past two nights. Will the shootouts continue? I’ve said it before that all things balance out in the long run and this nationally televised game sets for an ‘under’ look and VI expert Jimmy Boyd has great trends to back that thought. He said, “You should play the under on a game where one team, Chicago, has allowed 90 points or less in three straight games is playing against an opponent, Oklahoma City, scoring 100 points or more in three straight games. This trend is 28-8 (77.8%) over the last five seasons. Chicago is also 23-11 to the under versus good teams that are outscoring their opponents by 3 or more points per game over the last 2 seasons.”