Thursday's Best NBA Bets
By Covers.com
Los Angeles Lakers at Portland Trail Blazers (-3.5, 190.5)
Many figured the Los Angeles Lakers were set to take a step back this season. If Andrew Bynum keeps playing like he has lately that may not be the case.
Bynum went off for 21 points, 22 rebounds and three blocks in Tuesday night’s win over Houston and is averaging 22.7 points, 17 rebounds and two blocks over the last three games.
"I think I'm getting a lot more touches, so it's easier to be confident," Bynum told reporters. "Before the practices every day, I'm putting in work, so it's paying off."
His conditioning is still nowhere near it needs to be and trade rumors persist, but if he can keep this drive going and the Lakers keep feeding him the ball, this could be a breakout year.
Bynum and the Lakers will need to bring it against one of the best rebounding teams in the Association.
Pick: Lakers
Milwaukee Bucks at Sacramento Kings (-1.5, N/A)
Part of Milwaukee’s problem right now is trying to find court time for a handful of power forwards.
Drew Gooden, Luc Mbah a Moute, Ersan Ilyasova, Larry Sanders and rookie Jon Leuer are all battling for minutes.
"We knew we were going to have plenty of bodies there and we hoped it would be a good problem to have, which means everybody is healthy and that we are at full strength," coach Scott Skiles told reporters.
The good news is that 10 Bucks are averaging at least 14 minutes so far this season while the club trudges through this brutal stretch that has them playing five games in seven days.
If nothing else, that should have Milwaukee relatively fresh against a Kings team that was in Denver Wednesday.
Pick: Bucks
Thursday's NBA Tips
By Kevin Rogers
VegasInsider.com
The Thursday NBA card is the lightest one through the first two weeks of the season with just four games to bet on. However, three of those contests involve playoff teams from last season, including a solid TNT doubleheader. We'll begin with a Southeast Division rivalry at Philips Arena as Atlanta looks to beat Miami for the second time in four days.
Heat at Hawks
There's very little time to reflect on the previous game in this fast-paced season, as Atlanta hits the home court after blowing a 19-point lead in a 76-74 setback at Chicago on Tuesday. The Hawks managed their second straight road cover as 9½-point underdogs, but blew a golden opportunity to move to 5-1 with a win over the Bulls. However, Atlanta put together a strong fourth quarter effort on Monday night to surprise previously undefeated Miami, 100-92.
In that victory, the Hawks outscored the Heat, 33-21 in the final quarter, while getting a 16-point effort from Tracy McGrady off the bench. Miami dropped to 0-2 SU/ATS with no rest after that loss, as Erik Spoelstra's team is averaging 94 points per game on the second end of a back-to-back. The Heat played without Dwyane Wade on Wednesday night against the Pacers, as the star shooting guard rested an injured foot. Wade is listed as a game-time decision on Thursday night.
There has been plenty of 'unders' so far this season, as the Hawks are one of the leading teams in this category with a 5-1 mark to the 'under' through six games. In fact, Atlanta has yet to allow 100 points in a game, while the winning team has reached the 100-point mark only four times in the last 10 meetings with Miami.
Mavericks at Spurs
The battle inside the Lone Star State takes place between a San Antonio team that is unbeaten at home against a Dallas squad that is slowly turning the corner. The Mavs started the season at 0-3, but have won two of their past three to begin Thursday's play 1½ games behind San Antonio for first place in the crowded Southwest Division. The Spurs continue to play without guard Manu Ginobili, who suffered a broken left hand in Monday's loss at San Antonio.
Gregg Popovich's team has been pretty easy to handicap this season by going 3-0 SU/ATS at home and 0-2 SU/ATS on the road. The Spurs are one of four teams in the league to be listed as a favorite in every game so far this season (Heat, Thunder, and Bulls the others), but San Antonio will have its work cut out for them coming up. The Nuggets invade the AT&T Center on Saturday, followed by a trip to Oklahoma City on Sunday, in which the Spurs will likely be listed as a road 'dog.
Dallas is winless in two road games, but covered in its lone contest as an away underdog in a 104-102 defeat at Oklahoma City. The Mavs cashed when receiving five points to the Thunder, but their chance at an outright win was shot down by Kevin Durant's game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer. Rick Carlisle's squad is playing their fourth game in five nights following Wednesday's home contest against the Suns, as Dallas beat Oklahoma City at home in this rest situation on Monday.
Lakers at Blazers
Portland returns to the Rose Garden after a solid road underdog triumph at Oklahoma City on Tuesday, as the Blazers welcome in the Lakers. Los Angeles finally hit an 'over' following six consecutive 'unders' to start the season in a 108-99 home victory over Houston. The Lakers will be playing their league-leading eighth game already, but Mike Brown's club hasn't traveled west of Denver yet through nearly two weeks.
The Blazers return home where they own a 3-0 SU and 2-1 ATS mark, while eclipsing the 100-point plateau in all three contests at the Rose Garden. Four of the next five games (including Thursday) will be played in the Pacific Northwest for the Blazers, as Portland is likely to be favored in each contest (at Suns, home vs. Cavs, Clippers, and Magic). The Lakers won three of four meetings last season, including an overtime win at Portland as 2½-point favorites last February.
Hot Teams
-- Miami won six of first seven games, but only loss was to Atlanta at home Monday. Hawks are 2-0 at home, winning by 18-7 points.
-- Spurs are 4-0 at home (3-1 vs spread) winning by 13-25-15-6 points. Dallas won three of last four games, but is 0-2 on road, losing by 2-17.
-- Portland won four of its first five games.
Cold Teams
-- Sacramento won/covered once in its last six games. Bucks are 0-3 on road, losing by 1-5-12 points (0-2-1 v spread).
-- Lakers lost both their road games, both by nine points.
Totals
-- Five of seven Miami games went over the total.
-- Last three Dallas games stayed under the total.
-- Under is 3-0 when a team is playing third night in a row.
-- Six of seven Laker games stayed under the total.
Wear and Tear
-- Heat is playing 4th game in five nights. Atlanta is playing its 7th game in last ten nights.
-- Dallas is playing 6th game in eight nights. San Antonio is playing its third game in last four nights.
-- Kings are playing third night in row. Milwaukee is playing its third game in last four nights.
-- Second game in four nights for both Portland/Lakers.
MIAMI vs. ATLANTA
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Miami's last 8 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Miami's last 5 games when playing Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Atlanta's last 8 games
Atlanta is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games when playing Miami
DALLAS vs. SAN ANTONIO
Dallas is 17-7 SU in its last 24 games
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Dallas's last 9 games when playing San Antonio
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of San Antonio's last 9 games when playing Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 9 of San Antonio's last 12 games at home
MILWAUKEE vs. SACRAMENTO
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Milwaukee's last 5 games when playing Sacramento
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Milwaukee's last 9 games when playing on the road against Sacramento
Sacramento is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games at home
Sacramento is 14-6 SU in its last 20 games when playing Milwaukee
LA LAKERS vs. PORTLAND
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of the LA Lakers last 6 games when playing Portland
The total has gone UNDER in 12 of the LA Lakers last 17 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Portland's last 8 games when playing at home against LA Lakers
Portland is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
Hoop Trends - Thursday
By Vince Akins
VegasInsider.com
SU TREND OF THE DAY:
The Heat are 12-0 ATS (11.5 ppg) since February 19, 2010 on the road when they held their opponent to fewer than 85 points in their last game.
OU TREND OF THE DAY:
The Heat are 0-10 OU (-19.7 ppg) since February 17, 2000 on the road after a double digit home win in which they had at least 12 steals.
PLAYER BASED TREND OF THE DAY:
The Kings are 9-0 OU (10.3 ppg) since February 04, 2011 after a loss in which Demarcus Cousins was the Kings’ high scorer.
CHOICE TREND:
The Mavericks are 11-0 ATS (9.5 ppg) since December 16, 2009 on the road when they won their last two games and both were at home.
TODAY’S TRENDS:
The Hawks are 0-10 ATS (-6.8 ppg) since March 16, 2004 at home when playing the first game of four-games-in-five-days.