NBA betting trends, odds and predictions for Thursday, January 5th, 2017from various handicappers and websites
NBA Knowledge
Brooklyn lost eight of its last nine games, is 7-8-1 vs spread as a road underdog. Five of Nets’ last six games stayed under total. Indiana won/covered its last three games; they’re 8-5 as home favorites. Over is 5-1-1 in Pacers’ last seven games. Home side won six of last seven Net-Pacer games; Brooklyn lost by 7-24-21 in last three visits to Indy. Over is 8-2 in last ten series games.
Utah won four of last five games; they’re 1-7 as a road underdog- favorites are 15-2 vs spread in Jazz road games. Under is 7-2 in their last nine games. Toronto lost three of last four games but they’re 6-2 vs spread in last eight home games. Over is 11-6 in their last 17 games. Raptors won six of last seven games with Utah; Jazz lost last three visits to Toronto by 10-24-18 points. Over is 8-2 in last ten series games.
Hornets are 3-5 in last eight road games, 5-1-2 vs spread as road underdogs. Five of last six Charlotte games went over total. Pistons lost eight of last ten games, are 1-5 in last six games as a home favorite. Three of their last four games went over. Home side won six of last seven Charlotte-Detroit games; Hornets lost by 39-7 points in last two visits here. Three of last four series games went over total.
Oklahoma City lost three of last of last four games; they’re 3-7 as road underdogs. Four of their last five games stayed under total. Rockets won their last five games (4-1 vs spread); they’re 9-6 as home favorites. Six of their last seven games went over the total. Thunder lost seven of last ten games with Houston; they’ve lost last four visits here (0-4 vs spread). Three of last four series games stayed under.
Hawks won three of last four games; they covered last four tries as a road underdog. Over is 6-2-1 in their last nine road games. New Orleans won four of last five games; they’re 5-8 as a home favprite. Four of their last five games stayed under the total. Pelicans are 5-3 in last eight games with Atlanta; Hawks won three of last five visits to Bourbon Street. Over is 5-3 in last eight series games.
Phoenix lost its last six road games (1-5 vs spread); they’re 10-9 overall as a road underdog. Suns’ last four games stayed under total. Mavericks are 6-5 in last 11 home games, 1-0 as a home favorite. Over is 6-2 in their last eight home games. Suns lost their last four games with Dallas (1-3 vs spread); Phoenix lost by 3-10 points in last two visits here. Under is 3-2 in last five series games in Dallas.
Lakers lost nine of last ten road games, are 4-8 in last 12 games as a road underdog. Over is 3-1 in their last four road games. Portland lost three of last four home games; they’re 8-3 as home favorites. Blazers’ last six road games stayed under the total. Lakers lost their last eight games with Portland (1-7 vs spread); LA lost its last four visits to Moda Center, by 4-16-12-18 points. Five of last seven series games stayed under.
San Antonio won five of last six games; they’re 11-6 as road favorites. Four of Spurs’ last five games stayed under total. Denver lost its last three games; they’re 2-2 as home underdogs. Last three Nugget games went over the total. Nuggets lost nine of last ten games with San Antonio; over is 5-2 in last seven series games. Spurs won/covered four of last five visits to Denver.
Armadillosports.com
NBA: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Utah Jazz at Toronto Raptors
Toronto Raptors return to the comfort of the Air Canada Centre after a six game road swing which ended with its worst defeat of the season a 110-82 thumping in San Antonio.
The best thing Toronto supporters can do after the spanking is "fuhgeddaboudit". That's because, Raptors will put that dissaster behind them and get back to they're old money-making ways. Raptors the second best ATS team in the league at 21-12-1 have shown a habit of recovering cash for supporters after a loss. In ten losses prior to the defeat in San Antonio the Raptors rebounded the next effort winning seven with a profitable 6-3-1 record against the betting line.
NBA handicappers keeping tab on Toronto will be quick to note, Raptors learn lessons after playing San Antonio as they're 7-0 SU, 5-2 ATS after running the hardwood against Spurs. Those digging deeper will also point out, Raptors returning to home court following a road loss have been a good choice going 5-2 SU, 4-2-1 ATS and are 3-1 ATS in front of the home audience following a loss by 15 or more points. A final betting nuggets favoring Toronto. The Raptors have been money in the bank facing Jazz cashing six of seven tickets (6-0-1 ATS). Currently Raptors can be had for -6.5 (-$1.10) at most shops.
Thursday's NBA Essentials
By Tony Mejia
VegasInsider.com
Game of the Night - Oklahoma City at Houston
Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook was the Western Conference’s Player of the Month for November, averaging 29.8 points, 10.2 rebounds and 11.2 assists. James Harden was the recipient for December’s work, averaging 28.3, 9.1 rebounds and an NBA-high 12.0 assists. It’s no wonder that they’ve separated themselves in the early race for MVP, putting distance between themselves and everyone else one triple-double at a time.
At Sportsbook.ag, Westbrook is currently the favorite at -160, while Harden is +200 (2/1). LeBron James, who ranks third, is all the way back at +600 (6/1). Obviously, things can change between now and mid-April, but there’s no question that Westbrook and Harden, friends and former teammates, have earned the adulation as we approach the regular season’s halfway point.
The star guards meet for the third time this season this evening as the Thunder visit Houston for the first time. Harden gained a split of the games in Oklahoma City, avenging a 105-103 loss on Nov. 16 in which he scored a season-low 13 points on 4-for-16 shooting by helping Houston to a 102-99 win on Feb. 9 despite making just 6-for-23 shots from the field. The two games against OKC are by far Harden’s poorest efforts in terms of field goal percentage, so Billy Donovan and his staff have clearly had an effect on his production with their defensive schemes. Westbrook has shot just 37.8 percent, but has averaged 28.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists against the Rockets.
Westbrook is the league’s leading scorer (30.9), while Harden ranks fourth (28.6) in points per game, a shade behind Anthony Davis (28.9) and DeMarcus Cousins (28.6). Westbrook continues to lead all guards in rebounding (10.5) and ranks second in assists (10.5). Harden is the NBA’s assist leader (11.9) and ranks second among all guards in boards (8.2). Westbrook has an NBA-high 16 triple-doubles, while Harden now has nine, including three straight, after going for 23-10-10 against the Wizards in Houston’s last game on Monday.
Averaging a triple-double, a feat that has only been accomplished by Oscar Robertson (1961-62), may earn Westbrook the MVP nod if he can maintain his averages, but Houston’s success due to Harden has definitely narrowed the gap and puts him in position to stake claim to the award.
The Rockets have won 16 of 18 games entering tonight’s encounter with the Thunder, posting a 24-6 mark over the last 30. They’ve covered in 21 of those contests, demonstrating a killer instinct by posting an 8-2 mark ATS when deemed a double-digit favorite. Mike D’Antoni was named December’s Western Conference coach of the month, a recognition he hadn’t earned since April 2013. Some may joke that was his only good month with the Lakers and not be joking. Houston went 15-2 in December, tying a franchise record for wins in a month while leading the NBA in scoring (120.9), point differential (12.9) and 3-pointers per game (16.4).
January opened with a 101-91 home win over Washington despite the absence of guard Patrick Beverley, who is expected to return to help Harden handle Westbrook. Those two have quite the history since Beverley injured Westbrook in a 2013 first-round playoff series, colliding with him on a reckless steal attempt and tearing his meniscus. Beverley is booed mercilessly any time he plays in Oklahoma City, but is a fan favorite at home where tonight’s game will take place.
The Rockets are 14-3 at the Toyota Center, a home record only surpassed by Cleveland (18-3) and Golden State (16-2). They’ve lost there only once in the last 54 days, falling to San Antonio on Dec. 20. The Thunder arrived in town late after falling in Charlotte 123-112 on Wednesday despite Westbrook’s 33 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists. The Hornets got to the free-throw line 49 times, converting on 40 to pull out the win.
Oklahoma City is winless on its current three-game road trip that wraps up tonight and is playing 12 of 15 games away from home in January. The Thunder are playing on the second night of a back-to-back for the first time since Dec. 14 and are 2-4 (SU and ATS) in that situation this season, suffering each of the losses by double-digits. Conversely, Houston hasn’t played since Jan. 2, but is just 3-3 (2-4 ATS) with multiple days between games. Westbrook is shooting 4-for-24 (16.7 pct) from 3-point range over his last three games after shooting 2-for-12 from beyond the arc in Charlotte. On the second night of back-to-backs, he’s shooting just 38 percent from the field (47-for-123) but has averaged 26.7 points, 10.7 boards and 9.8 assists. The Rockets have won seven of the last 10 meetings between the teams, but the last six have been split down the middle. The 'under' has prevailed in four of those six.
Notable Head-to-Head Trends
The Pacers have been a substantial favorite against the Nets in each of their last 10 games but have only covered on four occasions and have lost outright four times. The Pacers are seeking their first four-game winning streak since Nov. 2015 and looking for their first streak of four straight covers this season. The Nets are out to avoid losing four in a row. Clearly, this matchup is brought to you by the number four.
Jazz point guard George Hill remains stuck in concussion protocol and may be there for some time, but 21-year-old Aussie Dante Exum has a chance at returning from a knee injury tonight. Toronto has won six of its last seven meetings against the Jazz, including a 104-98 triumph in Salt Lake City on Dec. 23 where Kyle Lowry shot 15-for-20 to finish with 36 points. Hill and Exum were absent then too.
Games between the teams of Detroit's Stan Van Gundy and his former assistant Steve Clifford have been decided by 10 points or more in six of the nine encounters. The Hornets are 5-4, including a 2-1 mark in the games that weren't blowouts. The teams have split this season's two contests, both of which were played in Charlotte.
After being swept in last year's season series, the Pelicans will look to turn the tables this season, having already won in Atlanta 112-94 on Nov. 22. Anthony Davis played a season-low 19 minutes in the win, scoring just 13 points after missing two full quarters with a knee bruise. New Orleans led 34-14 after one.
With slumping Minnesota off tonight, the loser of Phoenix-Dallas will again take up residency as the team with the Western Conference's worst record despite each having won their last contest. The Mavs won all three meetings last season and have won four straight in the series.
The Spurs had won 10 consecutive games against the Nuggets prior to a 102-98 loss in Denver last April, so they'll be looking to start a new run tonight with a team that's completely healthy and won't play again until Saturday night in Charlotte. This will be San Antonio's only stop in Denver this season.
Injury concerns highlight the second half of TNT's doubleheader since there's a chance Damian Lillard will return from an ankle injury that has cost him the past few games. The Lakers could be without Luol Deng, who is dealing with a biceps injury. Portland fell to 2-3 without Lillard after last night's 125-117 loss at Golden State, but it has won eight consecutive games against the Lakers, last losing in March of 2014. All but two of the Blazers wins have come by double-digits.