NBA Knowledge
Thursday's hot teams
-- Portland won its last five games (7-1 last 8HF).
-- Toronto won 12 of its last 13 games (1-3 last 4AU).
Cold teams
-- Detroit lost three of last four games (11-2 last 13HF).
-- Knicks lost six of their last seven games (4-1 last 5AU).
-- Lakers lost 11 of last 12 games (7-14 last 21AU).
-- Pelicans lost last two games, by 13-15 points (3-6 last 9HF).
-- Suns lost 20 of last 22 games (6-3HU).
-- Houston lost three of its last four games (4-5AF).
Series records
-- Pistons won four of last six games with New York.
-- Lakers lost five of last six games with New Orleans.
-- Raptors lost their last four games with Portland.
-- Rockets won five of last six games with Phoenix.
Totals
-- Five of last six Detroit games went over, if they played nite before.
-- Under is 7-2 in Pelican games if they played night before.
-- Seven of last eight Portland games stayed under total.
-- Five of last six Houston-Phoenix games went over total.
Back/backs
-- Detroit lost seven of last nine if it played night before.
-- New Orleans covered four in row if it played night before.
Armadillosports.com
NBA: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Toronto at Portland
Every team has that one team where it's always a struggle. That's the case for the Toronto Raptors when it comes to the Portland Trail Blazers. In thirteen meetings the result has been one win vs twelve losses for the Toronto Raptors with a money-burning 3-10 record against the betting line. Here in Portland, the Raptors are a lowly 1-11 straight-up the past twelve visits with a 5-7 record at the betting window.
The Raptors have certainly been dominant recently winning twelve of thirteen on the hardwood (8-5 ATS) with a 9.0 points/game winning margin. However, the jinks, hex, curse or whatever you want to call it, won't be easy to overcome. The Blazers have been on a solid run themselves the past three weeks reeling off a 9-2 SU, 8-3 ATS record including a sparkling 7-1 (6-2 ATS) on home court behind 107.1 points/game while allowing visitors 97.3 per/contest. Additionally, Raptors have had problems cashing tickets during the month of February. They're already 0-2 ATS this season which drops the mark to 3-10 ATS including 1-6 ATS in enemy territory.
Inside the Paint - Thursday
By Chris David
VegasInsider.com
More often than not the point-spread matters in the Association and that’s been the case again this week but the favorites have been coming out on top lately and total bettors riding the ‘over’ have done very well during this span too. Perhaps that’s why we have some hot handicappers on VegasInsider.com?
All kidding aside, favorites have started off this week 19-6 straight up and 15-10 against the spread while the ‘over’ has produced a 14-8-3 mark since Monday. Even though it was very close, the big boys (Warriors, Spurs) both notched wins, covers and ‘over’ tickets last night which helped favorites go 8-3 SU and 6-5 ATS overall.
The two underdogs that did cash were impressive as the Hornets (+300) and Timberwolves (+625) captured outright upsets against Cavaliers and Clippers respectively.
Thursday’s card slows down a bit with four games and below is my quick handicap.
New York (23-28 SU, 29-22 ATS) at Detroit (26-23 SU, 26-21-2 ATS)
Injuries have played a major toll for the Knicks recently and they’ve struggled to a 3-8 record both SU and ATS in their last 11 games. They've dropped five straight on the road and have gone 1-4 ATS in those setbacks. The backcourt is a mess and the only wins they’ve captured in this span came against teams (76ers, Jazz, Suns) with worse guards.
Tonight, they meet Detroit (-5½) and it has two quality point guards. Stan Van Gundy’s team isn’t in great form either, losers in three of their last four but all of the setbacks came by single digits.
The Pistons did fall 102-95 to the Celtics on Wednesday and they are 3-7 SU and 4-5-1 ATS on zero days rest this season. However, all seven losses were on the road and the three wins came at The Palace.
Detroit dropped a 108-96 decision to New York on Dec. 29 as a 1½-point road favorite. The ‘over’ (198½) cashed in that game and is 4-1 in the last five encounters between the pair.
L.A. Lakers (10-41 SU, 22-28-1 ATS) at New Orleans (18-29 SU, 20-27 ATS)
The highest line of the night takes place in “The Big Easy” as the Pelicans (-10½) host the Lakers in the second game of the TNT double-header. New Orleans put up an early fight at San Antonio last night but wound up losing 110-97 while getting outscored by nine points in the final quarter.
The Pelicans had dropped its first seven games on zero days rest this season but has since won three in a row when facing back-to-back situations. Overall, the Pelicans are 6-4 ATS and the ‘under’ is 7-3 in games played on no rest this season.
The Lakers enter this game off a 119-115 win over Minnesota on Tuesday as a 4½-point home underdog. The victory snapped an 11-game losing streak for the club. Los Angeles has only earned back-to-backs games twice this season which came during a three-game winning streak at the start of January and against the 76ers and Suns.
New Orleans isn’t in that class and it will be looking to avenge a 95-91 loss to Los Angeles when the pair met on Jan. 12 from the Staples Center. The Pelicans didn’t have Anthony Davis for that game and still led for the majority of that game. Davis is expected to go tonight but Tyreke Evans (knee) is ‘questionable’ and Eric Gordon (finger) remains out.
Total bettors are staring at number between 208 and 209 for this game and it might rise by tipoff. The Pelicans are 9-0-1 to the ‘over’ in their last 10 games and both teams are allowing over 105 points per game. New Orleans has been on point offensively lately, averaging 110.2 PPG in their last 11 games and the 3-point percentage (44.1) has been lights out.
Toronto (33-16 SU, 26-22-1 ATS) at Portland (24-26 SU, 27-23 ATS)
This is the best game tonight and should’ve been part of the national TNT broadcast. You can make an argument that these teams have two of the best backcourts in the NBA with Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan squaring off against Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. Oddsmakers sent out Portland as a one-point favorite and that number has dropped to pick ‘em at a few spots. Based on the home-away numbers for Portland (15-10 SU, 14-11 ATS) and Toronto (15-10 SU, 13-11-1 ATS), you can definitely see why the line is so tight.
Toronto enters this game on a 12-1 run its last 13 games but it has burned bettors with a 0-4 ATS mark over its last four. Meanwhile, Portland has won five straight and nine of its last 11 games and this winning stretch started with a great come from behind victory over Oklahoma City on Jan. 10 when they couldn’t miss down the stretch.
The Trail Blazers, known for chucking 3-pointers, have been in great form defensively lately. They’ve held four straight opponents under 100 and that’s resulted in four consecutive ‘under’ tickets. Toronto is no stranger to defense, ranked fifth in scoring (97 PPG) and seventh in defensive efficiency.
The total of 204 is low for Portland at home, which could tell you that this game could be more of a defensive struggle rather than a shootout.
Portland has owned Toronto recently, winning nine of the last 10 meetings and covering eight of those victories. However, the last two encounters in Portland were tight with the Blazers earning five and three-point victories.
Houston (26-25 SU, 22-29 ATS) at Phoenix (14-36 SU, 19-31 ATS)
The Rockets opened as 8½-point favorites and the early money dropped the line to 7 ½ at a few books and I’m not sure why. Houston hasn’t been a great road bet (10-13 SU, 10-13 ATS) at all this season but this Phoenix team is a complete mess.
The Suns have dropped five straight and 20 of their last 22 games. They did put forth a nice effort at home Tuesday versus Toronto for interim coach Earl Watson but still lost 104-97 and the reason it was close is because they shot well (47%).
I talked about Phoenix’s backcourt woes this past Tuesday and now they face one superstar (James Harden) and a pair of quality backups (Patrick Beverly, Ty Lawson) tonight. Plus, Harden loves playing in Arizona where he went to school down the block at ASU. His career 26.6 average in Phoenix is his highest in any NBA city.
If Phoenix doesn’t come close to its offensive production that it put up Tuesday, this is more than likely a wire-to-wire blowout. While this matchup doesn’t bode well for the Suns, I would lean to them on Saturday versus the Jazz because Utah’s backcourt is far from great.
Due to the injuries for the Suns, past meetings are a wash here but note that Houston has gone 5-1 both SU and ATS in its last six meetings against Phoenix and the ‘over’ has also produced a 5-1 mark.
Lakers, Pelicans meet in NOLA
By Sportsbook.ag
LOS ANGELES LAKERS (10-41) at NEW ORLEANS PELICANS (18-30)
Sportsbook.ag Line: New Orleans -10.5, Total 209.5
The Lakers will be going for their second straight victory when they face the Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on Thursday.
Los Angeles snapped a 10-game losing streak with a 119-115 win at home against Minnesota on Tuesday. The Lakers turned the ball over just nine times in that game and forced the Timberwolves to cough it up 15 times. They will need to continue to take care of the ball moving forward and it also helps that they hit 50% of their shots against the Timberwolves. It was the first time they shot 50% or better since a loss in Sacramento on Jan. 7.
New Orleans, meanwhile, has now dropped two straight after losing 110-97 as a 12.5-point road underdog in San Antonio on Wednesday. The team has also failed to cover in three straight games and four of the past five.
The Pelicans are just not defending well, as they have allowed each of their past two opponents to shoot over 50% from the field and they have not held an opponent to under 40% shooting since facing this same Lakers team in Los Angeles on Jan. 12. The Lakers won that game 95-91, though.
Despite that victory for Los Angeles, the Pelicans are 6-2 SU and 5-3 ATS in this head-to-head series over the past three seasons.
That includes a 3-0 SU and 2-1 ATS record when playing at the Smoothie King Center. The Pelicans are, however, just 4-12 ATS revenging a road loss versus an opponent this season. Fortunately the team is facing a Lakers team that is 6-15 ATS after a game where it covered on the year.
PF Larry Nance Jr. (Knee) is out indefinitely for the Lakers on Thursday and SF Tyreke Evans (Knee) is questionable for the Pelicans, who are already without SG Eric Gordon (Finger) for the next few weeks.
The Lakers were able to get back into the win column on Tuesday night and that was strictly because SG Kobe Bryant (16.4 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.0 SPG) had a throwback night at the Staples Center. Bryant went off against the Timberwolves, finishing with 38 points, five assists, five boards and two steals in 33 minutes of action. He was 10-for-21 from the field and 7-for-11 from the outside in the game and if he can come anywhere close to touching those numbers then the Lakers could beat this Pelicans team in New Orleans.
PG D’Angelo Russell (12.0 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.3 APG, 1.1 SPG) also played well against the Timberwolves on Tuesday, finishing with 18 points, three assists, three boards and a steal in 28 minutes of action. Russell is starting to get more minutes for the Lakers and he will need to continue to make good decisions with the ball in order to stay on the court. This Pelicans team struggles defensively and it’s important that Russell takes advantage of that by driving to the hoop and finding his teammates for open shots.
PF Julius Randle (11.0 PPG, 9.7 RPG) could also help this team win games by continuing to dominate around the basket. Over the past five games, Randle is averaging 15.6 PPG and 11.2 RPG. He has really found his game for Los Angeles and is starting to realize how impossible he is to stop when he puts his head down and drives the ball to the rim. His strength could give Anthony Davis a lot of problems on the glass in this one.
The Pelicans have been really disappointing this season, but one guy that has continued to play at an elite level is PF Anthony Davis (23.0 PPG, 10.3 RPG, 2.4 BPG, 1.3 SPG). Davis has been a monster this season for New Orleans and most recently put up 28 points with 10 boards, four assists, four blocks and four steals in a loss to San Antonio on Wednesday. Davis is a mismatch for his opponents whenever he steps on the floor and he will need to impact the game in multiple ways on Thursday.
His offensive numbers will mean nothing if he cannot protect the rim against a red-hot Julius Randle in this one. Another guy that will need to play well in this game is PG Jrue Holiday (14.4 PPG, 5.3 APG, 1.1 SPG). Holiday has been on fire recently, averaging 21.4 PPG and 6.6 APG over the past five contests. He is healthier than he has been in the past two seasons and is really starting to come into his own for New Orleans.
He will, however, need to start shooting the ball better for the Pelicans. He is hitting just 25% of his threes over the past five games and he is a much better shooter than that, as evidenced by his 35.7% shooting from the outside on the year.