NBA Knowledge
Hot Teams
-- Wizards won eight of last nine games (3-7 last ten HF).
-- Nets won last two games by 18-27 points (3-3-1 HF).
-- Dallas won four of last five road games (3-3 HF, 0-3 last three).
-- Pelicans won three of last four at home, covered seven of last nine games overall (5-3 HF).
-- Warriors won last 16 games, covered five of last six.
-- Memphis won nine of its last eleven games.
-- Thunder won last six games, covered last four.
Cold Teams
-- Minnesota lost eight of last nine games (1-6 last seven AU).
-- Miami lost six of its last eight games (4-6 AU).
-- Knicks lost 11 of last 12 games, covered five of last seven.
-- Jazz lost 11 of their last 12 games (1-4 last five AU).
-- Kings are 2-7 since Cousins got sick; they changed coaches Sunday.
Series Records
-- T'wolves lost five of last six visits to Washington, losing last two by 13-4 points.
-- Nets lost five of last six games with Miami.
-- Knicks lost nine of last thirteen games with Dallas.
-- Pelicans won three of last four games with Utah.
-- Warriors won last two games with Memphis, after losing previous 11.
-- Thunder won its last eleven games with Sacramento.
Totals
-- Five of last six Minnesota road games went over.
-- Seven of last nine Miami road games stayed under.
-- Last four Dallas road games went over the total.
-- Eight of last nine Utah home games went over.
-- Over is 7-2-1 in last ten Memphis home games.
-- Eight of last ten Thunder games stayed under.
Back-to-Backs
-- None
East vs West
SU: West 82-40 ATS: West 68-54
East teams HF vs West: 14-20
East teams HU vs West: 16-18
West teams HF vs East: 23-22
West teams HU vs East: 7-2
Armadillosports.com
Game of the Day: Warriors at Grizzlies
By Covers.com
Golden State Warriors at Memphis Grizzlies (-2.5, OFF)
The Golden State Warriors survived a back-to-back on the road with their winning streak intact and are staring at their toughest test of the last month. The Warriors will attempt to push their franchise-record winning streak to 17 games when they visit the team closest to them in the Western Conference in the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday. The Grizzlies are winners of four in a row but needed overtimes to knock off lowly Charlotte and Philadelphia in the last two.
Golden State was forced into overtime in its last game as well but Stephen Curry scored eight of his 34 points in the extra period and the Warriors pulled off a 128-122 victory to run their record road winning streak to 10 in a row. Memphis appears to be in the best position to knock off Golden State, which is playing the finale of a three-game road trip and will again be without center Andrew Bogut (knee) and forward David Lee (hamstring). The Grizzlies recovered from an 18-point deficit in the fourth quarter and forced overtime on Mike Conley’s 3-pointer in Saturday’s 120-115 win at Philadelphia.
INJURY REPORT: Warriors - F David Lee (Out, hamstring), C Andrew Bogut (Out, knee), F Harrison Barnes (Questionable, nasal fracture).
COVERS POWER RANKINGS: Warriors (-13.5) + Grizzlies (-12.8) + home court (-3.0) = Grizzlies -2.3
WHAT CAPPERS SAY: "The Warriors haven't lost a game in what seems like an eternity. With that being said, I do see this as a tricky spot as they head to Memphis to face a Grizzlies squad that has reeled off four consecutive wins, and owns a terrific 11-1 record at home this season. Memphis has dropped the last two meetings in this series but had dominated the Warriors for years previously. Much better scheduling spot for the Grizz here as the Warriors are road weary to say the least." Covers Expert Sean Murphy.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (21-2): Golden State had to fight hard to earn a win over Dallas on Saturday and was down eight in the fourth quarter against New Orleans before rallying behind Curry. “This is kind of what I expected — not the crazy pyrotechnics from Steph (Curry), although that doesn’t ever surprise me — but it’s natural to have a letdown,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters. “We didn’t (defend or take care of the ball), but thankfully, we’ve got really, really talented players, and we’ve got an incredibly strong competitive desire to win.” Curry has gone for 20 or more points in four straight games and handed out at least five assists in every game this season.
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES (19-4): Memphis trailed 95-77 with 7:39 left in the fourth quarter at Philadelphia before Conley took over, nailing a pair of 3-pointers to keep it close before tying it up at the buzzer and draining another triple to help seal it in overtime. The result was a career-high 36 points for Conley, who is averaging 23.8 points over the last four games while going 36-of-57 from the floor. The Grizzlies are leaning hard on their point guard, and Conley matched a season high with 42 minutes in each of the last two games.
TRENDS:
* Favorite is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings.
* Grizzlies are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games playing on two days rest.
* Under is 6-2 in Warriors last eight overall.
* Warriors are 2-5 ATS in the last seven meetings.
COVERS CONSENSUS: Accord to Covers Consensus, 55 percent of bettors are backing the Warriors.
Tuesday's Tip Sheet
By Kevin Rogers
VegasInsider.com
Wolves at Wizards
It’s hard to be competitive in this league when three of your top players are sidelined for an extended period of time. That’s the case for Minnesota, who continue to play without Ricky Rubio, Kevin Martin, and Nikola Pekovic, as the Wolves have lost eight of their past nine games to fall to a Western Conference-worst 5-18. It’s easy to make money off Minnesota on the road, just fade them. The Wolves are 1-7 SU and 1-6-1 ATS in the past eight away contests, with six of those losses by double-digits.
Washington continues to fight it out with Atlanta for the top spot in the Southeast Division, as the Wizards have won eight of their last nine contests. The Wizards escaped past the Jazz on Sunday night, 93-84, but failed to cover as 11-point favorites, as Randy Wittman’s team is now 1-4 ATS the last five games. Since outlasting the Celtics in two overtimes last week, the Wizards have allowed 96 points or less in their last three wins, cashing the ‘under’ each time.
Heat at Nets
The injury bug has nailed the Heat at the worst possible time, as Chris Bosh is sidelined indefinitely with a calf injury, while Josh McRoberts is likely done for the season following knee surgery. To boot, Dwyane Wade is questionable for tonight’s action with an illness, as the Heat are coming off an ugly 93-75 home loss to the Bulls on Sunday night. Miami has dropped six of its previous eight games, while scoring 87 points or fewer in six of the past nine trips to the court, resulting in a 6-3 ‘under’ run.
The Nets will look to take advantage of Miami’s struggles and limited roster as Brooklyn tries to avenge a 95-83 home loss to the Heat last month as eight-point favorites. Brooklyn sits two games below .500 entering tonight’s action with a tough road swing at Toronto and Cleveland coming up. However, the Nets can get right back in the playoff race with games against the Pistons, Nuggets, Celtics, Pacers, and Kings coming up before the New Year. The 114 points up in Saturday’s blowout of Charlotte snapped a 14-game streak of scoring 100 points or less in regulation.
Warriors at Grizzlies
Golden State continues to dominate, whether it be in the Bay Area or on the highway. Steve Kerr’s squad is riding a 16-game winning streak as the Warriors improved to 21-2 with Sunday’s 128-122 overtime triumph at New Orleans, but the Pelicans barely covered as 6 ½-point underdogs. During this hot streak, the Warriors have covered 11 of 16 times, including an impressive 7-3 ATS road record. Golden State split four meetings with Memphis last season, while dropping four of the past five visits to FedEx Forum.
The Grizzlies look for their fifth straight victory tonight, although the last two weren’t easy to come by against struggling squads. Memphis rallied past Charlotte on Friday in two overtimes, then needed to erase a six-point deficit in the final minute the next night against the lowly 76ers in a 120-115 triumph. The Grizzlies failed to cover in each of those wins as double-digit favorites, as Memphis is in the midst of a rough gauntlet with a trip to San Antonio tomorrow night, followed by games against the Bulls and Cavaliers. The Spurs are the only team to leave Memphis with a victory this season, as the Grizzlies own an 11-1 SU and 6-6 ATS mark at home.
Jazz at Pelicans
Utah continues a five-game road trip tonight in the Big Easy, as the Jazz have lost seven of their past eight on the highway. Quin Snyder’s team dropped the opener of this swing at Washington, 93-84, as Utah held the Wizards to 37 first half points, but a 30-16 third quarter run by the Wizards put the game out of reach. The Jazz has scored 93 points or less in five straight road games, while Utah is 0-5 ATS in its previous games off a cover, coming off an ATS win at Washington as 11-point ‘dogs.
Anthony Davis is a game-time decision for the Pelicans tonight after missing Sunday’s loss to the Warriors with a chest injury suffered in Friday’s win over the Cavaliers. New Orleans has covered each of its past five games, while riding a four-game ‘over’ streak. In eight home contests, the Pelicans have cashed five times, while New Orleans goes for its second win over Utah this season after blowing out the Jazz last month, 106-94 in Salt Lake City.
Mavericks at Knicks
Dallas is looking to avoid just its second two-game losing streak of the season, coming off Saturday’s home loss to streaking Golden State, 105-98. This season, the Mavs are 6-1 SU and 4-3 ATS off a defeat and hope to get swingman Chandler Parsons back in the lineup after missing Saturday’s game with a back injury. Dallas held off New York in its past matchup in overtime last month, 109-102 as the Knicks covered as 14-point underdogs with Carmelo Anthony sidelined due to injury.
Anthony’s Knicks are past hitting the skids, as New York has dropped 11 of its previous 12 games with the lone victory in this stretch coming last Friday night at Boston. The Knicks have lost five straight games at Madison Square Garden, but Derek Fisher’s team has managed three straight covers as home ‘dogs in losses to the Raptors, Blazers, and Cavaliers. The struggles to figure out the triangle offense is resulting in plenty of ‘unders,’ especially at home by cashing the ‘under’ in six of the last seven at MSG.
Thunder at Kings
That was fast. Oklahoma City and Sacramento each own identical 11-13 records even though the Thunder began the season at 3-12 and the Kings put together a respectable 9-5 start. Obviously the return of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant to the OKC lineup will make any team more competitive, as the Thunder has won six straight games, while covering each of the past four contests. Since Westbrook has come back to the lineup, the Thunder has eclipsed the 103-point mark in seven of the previous eight games, as OKC hit that mark just once in the first 16 contests of the season.
The Kings begin the Tyrone Corbin era tonight, as the former Jazz head coach takes over for Michael Malone, who was fired after putting together a 39-67 record. DeMarcus Cousins will miss his 10th straight game tonight with a viral infection, as Sacramento has lost seven of the past nine contests. The Kings were limited to 35% shooting in Saturday’s 95-90 home loss to the unrested Pistons, while Sacramento has covered just once in its past seven games at Sleep Train Arena. Sacramento will look to snap a long skid against Oklahoma City, losing each of the past 11 meetings with the Thunder since 2012.
AccuScore NBA Pick
By: Rohit Ghosh
AccuScore.com
AccuScore’s computer simulates games 10,000 times to predict their outcome. Throughout the basketball season, we’ll be stacking up these forecasts against Las Vegas money-lines and spreads. When AccuScore gives a team a better chance to win than the money-line odds imply or suggest a high chance of covering the spread, it’s a recommended play.
In three seasons with the Knicks, center Tyson Chandler won the Defensive Player of the Year award, made the All-Star game and was part of two winning seasons. Chandler heads back to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, now as a member of the Mavericks. The Knicks look to avoid their sixth straight home loss. Neither are impressive ATS: New York holds a 10-16 record, while Dallas is 12-12-1.
AccuScore has the Mavericks as 63.6 percent favorites to win, a number that would warrant a -175 at the bet window. Vegas has them priced at -350, so there isn't any value on the money-line.
The average score after 10,000-plus simulations is 102-96, and there is a 58.2 percent chance the total combined score stays UNDER 202.5. The total has stayed UNDER in six of the Knicks' last seven games at home.
There is a 53.4 percent chance New York covers a +7 spread, a 3-star (out of 4) AccuScore hot trend. Dallas is 1-4 ATS in its last five games when playing New York.
Keep an Eye Out: What stands out most in the simulated box score is the slight advantage the Mavs have on the offensive glass. Dallas averages 2-3 more offensive rebounds than New York; in a fairly close game, just a couple of extra chances at scoring can be the difference.
Projected Leaders
Dirk Nowitzki: 19 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 1 steal, 1 TO
Carmelo Anthony: 22 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 TOs