NBA Knowledge
Hot Teams
-- Raptors won three of last four games (2-4 last six AF).
-- Detroit won three of last four games (4-1 last five HU).
-- Oklahoma City won five of last six games (3-1 last four HF).
-- Lakers are 3-3 in last six games, 10-3 vs spread in last 13.
-- Miami won three of its last four games (5-2 AF).
-- Spurs won ten of their last twelve games (4-1 last five AF).
-- Kings won last two games, by 10-23 points (2-7 last nine HF).
-- Golden State won 11 of its last 12 games (2-8 last ten AF).
Cold Teams
-- Milwaukee lost its last six games (2-4 last six HU).
-- Dallas is 5-7 in its last twelve games (1-4 last five HU).
-- 76ers lost their last 14 road games (1-5 last six AU).
-- Portland lost its last four games (2-0 HU).
Series Records
-- Raptors won five of last six games with Detroit.
-- Lakers lost six of last seven games with Oklahoma City.
-- Bucks won their last three games with Miami.
-- Home teams won last five San Antonio-Dallas games.
-- 76ers won five of last six games with Sacramento.
-- Warriors won six of last eight games with Portland.
Totals
-- Six of last seven Toronto-Detroit games went over total.
-- Over is 4-1-1 in Thunder's last six home games.
-- Seven of last nine Laker games stayed under.
-- Four of last five Miami games stayed under total.
-- Five of last six San Antonio road games went over.
-- Four of last five Philly's road games stayed under total.
-- Under is 8-3 in last eleven Golden State road games.
Back-to-Backs
-- Warriors are 3-1 vs spread on road if they played at home nite before.
East vs West
SU: West 233-164 ATS: West 205-189-3
East teams HF vs West: 49-56
East teams HU vs West: 45-45
West teams HF vs East: 81-76-3
West teams HU vs East: 24-18
Armadillosports.com
Game of the Day: Spurs at Mavericks
By Covers.com
San Antonio Spurs at Dallas Mavericks (+2.5, 205.5)
The up-and-down nature of the Dallas Mavericks has hit another downswing at a bad time. The Mavericks will try to avoid a third straight loss when they host the defending champion San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday. Losses to Memphis and at Phoenix over the weekend allowed the Spurs to jump over Dallas in the standings, leaving the Mavericks in seventh place in the Western Conference, one game behind San Antonio.
Dallas bridged February and March with a stretch of five losses in seven games but appeared to be pulling out of the funk with an impressive three-game winning streak before falling flat again over the weekend. "This is a Dallas Mavericks hard-play problem, all right?" coach Rick Carlisle told reporters. "We don't play hard all the time. And that's a problem.” The Spurs have won three in a row and are coming off a 114-95 triumph at East-leading Atlanta on Sunday.
LINE HISTORY: Most shops opened the Mavs as 2-point dogs, but that line was moved up to +2.5 at the time of writing.
ABOUT THE SPURS (44-25): San Antonio gets a chance to solidify the No. 6 spot this week and possibly move forward in the West with its next three games against the two teams below it in the standings in Dallas (twice) and Oklahoma City. The Spurs shot 56.1 percent from the floor and needed only eight points from Tony Parker to put up 114 against the Hawks as Tiago Splitter (23 points) and Kawhi Leonard (20 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and four steals) carried the load. "I'm feeling healthy. I'm feeling like I can push myself,” Splitter told KENS5.com “I feel like I have nothing against it. I'm just going in there and putting everything on the court. I'm running better, I'm rebounding better and just feeling stronger. The confidence, of course, goes together with that.”
ABOUT THE MAVERICKS (44-27): Dallas fell behind by 15 points at the half in the 98-92 loss at Phoenix on Sunday and is looking for a better effort from the start over the last 11 games. “We’re not playing up to our ability right now,” forward Chandler Parsons told reporters. “There’s ups and downs in a season, so we can’t get too low right now. Everyone tends to do that when we have a loss, but we still control our own destiny.” The Mavericks’ next seven games are against teams fighting for playoff spots, with the lone sub-.500 opponent in that span at Indiana on Sunday.
TRENDS:
*Mavericks are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 home games.
*Over is 8-1 in Spurs' last 9 overall.
*Underdog is 10-1 ATS in the last 11 meetings.
*Over is 5-1 in Mavericks' last 6 overall.
NBA: Streaks, Tips, Notes
Sportspic.com
Toronto Raptors at Detroit Pistons
Tonight the Toronto Raptors are traveling to the 'The Palace of Auburn Hills' to take on the the Detroit Pistons. What should get the attention of NBA handicappers, there is an 'Over'-Whelming' chance the matchup between these cross-border rivals plays 'Over'. Toronto with its porous defense has been one of the better 'OVER' bet in the Association at 39-31 O/U including a profitable 23-11 O/U when stepping outside the Air Canada Center. Looking at recent performance (March) the Raptors defensive woes have gotten worse as they've allowed the competition 109.4 points per 100 possessions in posting an 8-3 O/U mark. NBA handicappers would also be quick to note Raptors, Pistons have a penchant for making 'Over' bettors happy in this series producing 7 'Over' 1 'Under' last eight meetings. Another positive for 'Over' gamblers the Raptors have played 'Over' in 7 of the past 8 on foreign hardwood, Pistons have played 'Over' in 4 straight on home court.
Inside the Paint - Tuesday
By Chris David
VegasInsider.com
The NBA regular season is coming to a close and five of the 16 playoff berths have been clinched, Chicago doing so last night.
Most would agree that the eight seeds in the Western Conference are locked up unless Oklahoma City has another key injury, which would open the door for Phoenix or New Orleans. The seeds in the West, in particular three through seven, are up for grabs and will be tight races the rest of the way.
In the East, the first five seeds are all but set while the final three are up in the air. Miami and Boston currently hold the last two spots but Charlotte, Indiana and Brooklyn are all within striking distance.
The oddsmakers at Sportsbook.ag don’t believe any of the seeding will matter and expect the Warriors and Cavaliers to meet in this year’s NBA Finals. Bettors can wager on that possible matchup and others at the offshore outfit.
NBA Finals Possible Matchups
Cavs vs. Warriors (2/1)
Cavs vs. Spurs (5/1)
Hawks vs. Warriors (6/1)
Cavs vs. Grizzlies (7/1)
Cavs vs. Clippers (12/1)
Monday’s card watched the favorites go 4-2 both straight up and against the spread last night while the total produced a 3-3 record. The visitors went 4-2 and oddsmakers are expecting a repeat performance on Tuesday with four of the six matchups having the road team favored.
Toronto at Detroit: The Raptors opened as short road favorites (-2½) and they could be without point guard Kyle Lowry (back), who has missed the last two games. Detroit won’t likely have center Greg Monroe (knee) again and that could be a good thing for the Pistons, who have won three of four without the big man. That run has come after Detroit dropped 10 straight games and knocked itself out of the playoff race. This will be the fourth and final meeting between the pair this season and the first three games were fun to watch. Toronto won two of the first three and the ‘over’ cashed in all three as the teams combined for 210, 225 and 224 points. Stan Van Gundy’s team has gone 6-12 SU and 10-8 ATS as home underdogs this season but Toronto has been great as a road favorite, going 11-3 SU and 8-6 ATS.
L.A. Lakers at Oklahoma City: The Thunder hold a 2½-game lead over Phoenix for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West and games like tonight are considered must-win spots, but not necessarily must-bet spots. The Thunder have gone 8-0 as a double-digit favorite this season but they’ve burned bettors with a 2-6 ATS mark. Oklahoma City has won three straight (2-1 ATS) and would appear to be a good lean tonight against Los Angeles but it does have an important game tomorrow at San Antonio, so the look-ahead spot could be in play. L.A. just beat Philadelphia 101-87 on Sunday and it rarely wins back-to-back games, just six times all season. Make a note that the Lakers have gone 10-3 ATS (4-9 SU) since the All-Star break as underdogs and the worst loss came by nine points. OKC has defeated the Lakers twice this season by a combined eight points but both games were played at the Staples Center.
San Antonio at Dallas (TNT): Somebody likes the Spurs in tonight’s matchup! San Antonio opened as a one-point road favorite and that number has been pushed up to 3½ at most betting shops. Based on current form, it’s hard to ignore the move. The Spurs have gone 10-2 SU (9-3 ATS) in their last 12 games while the Mavericks are 8-7 SU and 5-10 ATS since the All-Star break. A lot of pundits are placing blame on point guard Rajon Rondo and some of its deserving but not having backup guards Devin Harris (illness) and Jose Barea (ankle) healthy are bigger concerns. This is a tough matchup for both clubs because they’ll meet again on Friday in San Antonio. You can argue it’s more difficult for the Spurs, who will host OKC tomorrow, which means three games in four nights and we all know what head coach Gregg Popovich does in these situations. The two teams have split the first two meetings and the margins were one and six points. The ‘under’ cashed in both contests.
Miami at Milwaukee: Oddsmakers opened Miami as a one-point road favorite and that say a lot. Including Sunday’s loss at Oklahoma City (93-75), the Heat have dropped four straight on the road yet they’re still laying points to a Milwaukee team that has already beaten them three times this season? The Bucks are a mess right now, losers of six straight and is 4-13 since the All-Star break. The trade for Michael Carter-Williams hasn’t worked out and if Milwaukee doesn’t get it together, it could fall down to the seventh or eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. Miami hasn’t dropped back-to-back losses in March plus its gone 4-2 this season after the offense was held to a number in the seventies.
Philadelphia at Sacramento: Tricky game and the best bet is likely a pass. Sacramento has won and covered two straight and is giving eight points to the 76ers in this spot. The Kings haven’t won three straight since mid-November, which is also the last time they covered three in a row too. So should we expect them do so on Tuesday? They’re not playing the Warriors, rather the 76ers. However, Philadelphia ran past Sacramento a couple weeks ago at home, beating the Kings 114-107 as 4½-point home underdogs. The George Karl ‘over’ trend has simmered down with 2 straight ‘under’ tickets but it wasn’t Sacramento’s fault, who scored 101 and 109 points.
Golden State at Portland (TNT): The Warriors are ridiculous right now, winners of six straight and five of the victories came by double digits which has led to a 5-1 ATS mark. Even though Golden State is playing on no rest tonight, it’s likely catching a break with Portland missing All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge (hand). The Warriors have gone 12-3 SU and 9-5-1 ATS on zero days rest this season. These teams met in early November at the Moda Center and Golden State captured a 95-90 victory as a 3½-point road underdog. Portland has only been a home ‘dog twice this season and it’s won and covered both games. These teams will meet once again this season on Apr. 9 from the Bay Area.
Tuesday's Top Action
By Sportsbook.ag
SAN ANTONIO SPURS (44-25) at DALLAS MAVERICKS (44-27)
Sportsbook.ag Line: San Antonio -2.5, Total: 205.5
The Spurs look to win their fourth straight game when they face the Mavericks in Dallas Tuesday.
The Spurs went into Atlanta Sunday and dominated the Hawks in a 114-95 victory as 1.5-point road favorites. San Antonio has now won-and-covered in three straight games, averaging 109.7 PPG and allowing just 95.7 PPG. This team is playing very well on both sides of the ball and it’s a huge reason that it has been able to go 10-2 SU and 9-3 ATS in its past 12 games.
The Mavericks, meanwhile, lost 98-92 as 4.5-point road favorites against the Suns on Sunday. Dallas has now lost two straight games SU and four straight ATS. The team has allowed its opponent to shoot over 50% from the field in two straight games and four of its past six. These teams have met twice this season and both teams won SU but lost ATS when hosting the other.
Over the past three seasons, the Spurs are 13-4 SU but just 8-9 ATS against the Mavs. When playing in Dallas in this head-to-head series, the Spurs are 5-3 SU and ATS over the past three seasons. San Antonio is 20-6 ATS in March games over the past two seasons. Dallas, however, is an outstanding 10-0 ATS after trailing in its previous game by 15 or more points at the half over the past three seasons.
SG Manu Ginobili (Ankle) is probable for the Spurs, who are likely to be without PF Aron Baynes (Ankle) in this one. PGs Devin Harris (illness) and J.J. Barea (Ankle) are both expected to miss this game for the Mavericks.
The Spurs have really found themselves as of late and SF Kawhi Leonard (15.9 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 2.5 APG, 2.3 SPG) is playing the best regular season basketball of his career. He had 20 points, 10 boards, seven assists and four steals in 32 minutes in the win over Atlanta on Sunday. Over the past five games, he’s averaging 16.8 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 2.6 APG and 3.4 SPG. He’s shooting 57% from the outside in those games and his defense is too much to handle at times. If a poor dribbler is anywhere near him then Leonard will find a way to take the ball from him. He’ll need to keep up the intensity against Dallas on Tuesday.
PG Tony Parker (14.9 PPG, 5.0 APG, 2.0 RPG) had just eight points and five assists against the Hawks. He did not need to do much offensively in that game, but that should not be the case moving forward. Parker is one of this team’s most reliable weapons on offense and he must get himself going against Dallas. He had 23 points in 35 minutes the only time he faced the team this season and will need to do more of the same Tuesday.
PF Tim Duncan (14.1 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 3.1 APG, 1.9 BPG) played a great all around game against Atlanta, finishing with 12 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four blocks in 31 minutes. Duncan must play well in his matchup with Dirk Nowitzki Tuesday as the outcome of that battle in the post could determine who ends up winning this game.
C Tiago Splitter (8.0 PPG, 4.8 RPG) has come on strong for this team recently, averaging 14.2 PPG and 7.2 RPG in 23.8 MPG over the past five contests. He’ll need to be very active in this game, as he can’t afford to be completely outworked by Tyson Chandler.
The Mavericks have lost two straight games and now will look to turn things around against the Spurs.
PF Dirk Nowitzki (17.3 PPG, 5.9 RPG) is averaging 17.6 PPG over his past five games and is shooting an absurd 62% from the outside in those contests. He’ll need to stay hot in this one because his team will have no chance of beating San Antonio if Tim Duncan were to drastically outplay him.
PG Rajon Rondo (8.9 PPG, 8.1 APG, 5.6 RPG, 1.4 SPG) also has his work cut out for him in this game, as he’ll need to hold his own against Tony Parker. Rondo has, however, played much better recently, averaging 9.2 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 4.4 RPG and 1.8 SPG over the past five games. He’s shooting 51% from the field in those contests and will need to continue to play well on both sides of the ball moving forward.
C Tyson Chandler (10.2 PPG, 11.4 RPG, 1.3 BPG) struggled against the Suns last game, finishing with just seven points (2-for-7 FG), 11 boards and no blocks in 31 minutes. The Mavericks will need him to do a better job of protecting the rim on Tuesday and he also can’t afford to miss that many shots, as pretty much all of his attempts come from within a few feet of the basket.
Another player who drastically needs to turn it around is SG Monta Ellis (19.0 PPG, 4.2 APG, 1.9 SPG). Ellis was a miserable 4-for-22 from the field against Phoenix, finishing with 11 points in 37 minutes. He’s averaging just 11.5 PPG over the past two games and the Mavericks need him to start scoring.
SF Chandler Parsons (15.6 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 2.4 APG, 1.0 SPG) has struggled against the Spurs this season, averaging just 10.5 PPG in two games against the team. He can really help the Mavericks if he could reach 15 or so in this one.
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (57-13) at PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (44-24)
Sportsbook.ag Line: Golden State -6.5, Total: 203.5
Two of the Western Conference’s elite teams, the Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers, meet for what should be an exciting matchup on Tuesday night.
Golden State has unquestionably been the best team in the NBA this season and is riding a six game SU winning streak (5-1 ATS) coming into this one. Each of those games was played at home as it defeated teams by an average of 19.2 PPG behind 112.0 PPG of scoring. One of the Warriors’ biggest victories came on Monday when they hosted the Wizards as big 11-point favorites and came away with a hug 107-76 dismantling of their opponent. The Warriors held Washington to a meager 33.3% shooting in the win and allowed them to score just 27 total points in the second half.
Portland has had its issues of late, playing each of the past five games on the East Coast and going a meager 1-4 SU and ATS during the road trip. The Blazers were the favorite in two of the losses and showed some poor defense, giving up 105+ points on three occasions. The Grizzlies were their latest opponent and they went in as 3-point underdogs only to lose 97-86 on Saturday. The Blazers actually shot a better percentage from the floor in the defeat, but had 17 turnovers and allowed Memphis to nail 11-of-18 three-pointers (61.1% 3PM).
Golden State has seemed nearly human when playing on the road as it has compiled a 23-11 SU record (15-17-2 ATS) in away games and will face-off against a Portland group which is a tremendous 28-6 SU (19-14-1 ATS) at home. This will be the second of three meetings between these teams this year and it was way back on Nov. 2 when the teams last met, as the Warriors earned a 95-90 win on the road as 3.5-point underdogs. It was an ugly game as each team had at least 17 turnovers and saw the Blazers make 40.2% of their shots; including a putrid 7-of-27 from behind the arc (26% 3PM).
Overall in the past three years, this has been Golden State’s series as it is 6-2 SU (5-3 ATS) in that time and has won each of the past four meetings. As far as trends are concerned, the Warriors are 13-2 ATS (87%) after two straight games where they were called for 18 or less fouls in the past three seasons and Portland is 13-4 ATS (76%) when playing eight or more games in 14 days.
Injuries could really be the difference-maker in this game as Golden State comes in with a clean slate while PF LaMarcus Aldridge (Hand), C Chris Kaman (Shoulder) and SF Nicolas Batum (Back) are expected to miss the game for Portland and SG Wesley Matthews (Achilles) is out for the rest of the season.
There has been no match for the Golden State offense as the team leads the league in scoring (109.7 PPG), field goal percentage (47.7%) and three-point percentage (39.3% 3PM). On the other side of the ball the Warriors have managed to play solid as well, allowing 99.0 PPG (14th in league) behind a league-best 42.4% shooting.
PG Stephen Curry (23.3 PPG, 7.9 APG, 4.3 RPG, 2.1 SPG) has shot 42% on his three-pointers this year and has back-to-back 24-point performances where he made 8-of-14 threes leading up to this contest. He hit on just 6-of-18 shots against this Portland group earlier in the year but had a decent overall game with 21 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals.
SG Klay Thompson (21.7 PPG, 1.1 SPG, 43% 3PM) returned from a three-game absence on Monday, playing just 18 minutes and scoring eight points on 3-of-9 shooting. He was phenomenal against the Blazers in their first meeting, netting 29 points behind 11-of-22 shooting with three steals.
SF Draymond Green (11.8 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 1.6 SPG, 1.3 BPG) continues to contribute in some way during every game and had 13 points, six rebounds, one block and one steal in just 22 minutes against Washington on Monday. He didn’t do much (5 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block) in the win over Portland back in November.
The Blazers continue to be a solid offensive unit as they are putting up 102.6 PPG (10th in league) on 44.7% shooting (13th-worst in league). They have been tremendous defensively, though, giving up 97.9 PPG (10th in league) behind 43.6% shooting (5th in league).
PG Damian Lillard (21.3 PPG, 6.2 APG, 4.7 RPG, 1.3 SPG) will need to carry the team on his back if they want to have any chance in this one and is coming off a solid showing (27 points, 7 assists) in the loss to Memphis on Saturday. He couldn’t find his stroke in the defeat at the hands of Golden State earlier in the year as he made a putrid 4-of-18 shots, leading to 11 points as he added six rebounds and five assists.
C Robin Lopez (9.8 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 1.5 BPG) will also be looked upon to carry a heavy workload in this one as both Aldridge and Kaman sit but has played poorly (8.6 PPG, 5.2 RPG) over his past five outings. He will look to rebound against a Warriors group which he put a double-double (12 points, 10 rebounds) up against in November.
SG Aaron Afflalo (13.7 PPG) has failed to crack double-digits in each of the past two contests but has been hot from beyond the arc with 11-of-22 shots from long range dropping over the past five games. He saw Golden State once this year when he was a member of the Nuggets and was horrible with two points on 1-of-8 shooting in 24 minutes on the floor.