NBA betting trends, odds and predictions for Wednesday, March 8th, 2017 from various handicappers and websites
NBA Knowledge
Bulls lost three of last four games, are 1-4 vs spread in last five road games. Under is 6-2 in their last eight games. Magic lost nine of last 12 games; they’re 3-8 vs spread in last 11 home games. Last three Orlando games went over the total. Home side won five of last six Chicago-Orlando games; Bulls lost three of last four visits to Orlando (1-3 vs spread). Last five series games stayed under total.
Charlotte won three of last four games, covered five of last six; they’re 6-2 vs spread in last eight road games. Under is 8-3 in their last 11 games. Heat won three of last four games overall; they won 11 of last 12 home games (10-2 vs spread). Under is 5-2 in their last seven games. Hornets won five of last seven games with Miami (under 7-0); teams split last six series games played here.
Nets split their last four games since their 16-game losing streak ended; they’re 8-4 vs spread in last 12 road games. Over is 6-2 in their last eight games. Atlanta lost its last three games; they are 2-9 vs spread in last 11 home games. Under is 5-2-2 in their last nine games. Hawks won five of their last six games with Brooklyn; under is 8-2 in last ten series games. Nets lost last five visits to Atlanta (0-3 vs spread in last three).
New York split its last six games, covered four of last five; they’re 6-5 vs spread in last eleven road games. Four of their last five games stayed under. Bucks won six of last nine games; they’re 3-7 vs spread in last ten home games. Under is 4-0-1 in their last five games. Knicks lost seven of last ten games with Milwaukee; they won two of last three games in this building. Over is 4-1 in last five series games played here.
Clippers are 3-4 since All-Star break; they’re 7-2 vs spread in last nine road games. Under is 5-2-3 in their last ten games. Timberwolves won four of last six games; they’re 4-7 vs spread in last 11 home games. Six of their last seven games stayed under. Clippers won eight of last ten games with Minnesota; road team won last five series games. LA won its last three games in Twin Cities, by 4-23-14 points. Over is 7-3 in last ten series games.
Raptors won six of their last seven games; they’re 6-13 vs spread in last 19 road games. Seven of their last nine games stayed under. Pelicans are 2-5 since All-Star break but covered their last four games; they’re 2-4 vs spread in last six home games. Under is 9-1 in their last ten games. Toronto won eight of last ten games with New Orleans; five of last seven series games went over. Raptors won four of last five visits to Bourbon Street.
Indiana lost nine of last 12 games; they covered three of last four road games. Last eight Pacer games stayed under total. Pistons won five of last seven games; they’re 9-2 vs spread in last 11 home games. Under is 9-4 in their last 13 home games. Pacers won five in row, eight of last nine games with Detroit, winning/covering last four games played here. Under is 3-2 in last five series games played here.
Utah won three in row, six of last eight games; they’re 4-10 vs spread in last ten road tilts. Over is 6-1 in their last seven road games. Rockets won eight of last 11 games; they’re 4-2 vs spread in last six home games. Over is 6-1 in their last seven home games. Jazz won three of last four games with Houston, but lost three of last four visits here- home teams won seven of last nine series games. Six of last eight series games went over.
Sacramento lost its last five games (1-4 vs spread); they’re 1-4 vs spread in last five road games. Under is 8-1 in their games since the Cousins trade. San Antonio won its last eight games; they’re 0-4 vs spread in last four games. Five of their last seven games stayed under. Spurs won their last eight games with Sacramento but Kings are 2-0-1 vs spread in last three; Kings lost last three visits to Alamo (2-1 vs spread). Five of last six series games stayed under.
Washington three of its last four games; they’re 7-2-1 vs spread in last 10 road games. last three Wizard games went over total. Denver won three of last four games; they’re 9-4 vs spread in last 13 home games. Four of their last five games stayed under. Wizards/Nuggets split their last ten games; teams split last four series games played here. Three of last four series games went over. Washington is 4-3 vs spread on road if they played night before.
Boston is 3-4 in its last seven games, 2-3 vs spread in its last five road games. Under is 6-0-1 in their last seven games. Golden State won six of its last eight games; they’re 7-2 vs spread in last nine home games. Under is 5-1 in their last six games. Warriors won six of last seven games with Boston, but Celtics are 5-2-1 vs spread in last eight; seven of last nine series games stayed under. Celtics lost three of last four visits to Oakland, but covered three of the four.
Armadillosports.com
Wednesday's Tip Sheet
By Kevin Rogers
VegasInsider.com
Game of the Night – Celtics at Warriors
Boston (40-24 SU, 32-30-2 ATS) continues to hold a 2½-game edge over Toronto atop the Atlantic division in spite of suffering consecutive losses to the Suns and Clippers on their five-game road trip. The Celtics built a 66-53 advantage at Los Angeles on Monday, but the Clippers stormed back to outscore Boston, 63-36 over the final 16:07 to win, 116-102. One night after the Celtics were stunned at the buzzer at Phoenix, Brad Stevens’ team fell to 2-4 SU/ATS the last six road contests.
Golden State (52-11 SU, 28-33-2 ATS) rallied from a 15-point deficit to stun the Hawks on Monday in the final game of their road trip, 119-111 to cash as 5½-point favorites. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson each overcame poor shooting nights to score a total of 37 points, while Andre Iguodala came off the bench to pump in 24 points. The Warriors snapped a six-game ATS slide, while covering for the first time in six tries away from Oracle Arena.
The Warriors are in an interesting scheduling situation on Wednesday as they return from five games on the highway, then head back on the road on Friday for a two-game trip to Minnesota and San Antonio. Golden State goes for the sweep of Boston after cruising past the Celtics at TD Garden in mid-November, 104-88 as 8½-point favorites. The Warriors shut down the C’s in the third quarter, 31-9, while holding a 29-point lead heading into the final quarter.
Last season, the Celtics ended Golden State’s 54-game regular season home winning streak in a 109-106 upset as 11½-point underdogs to cover in Oakland for the third straight time. However, the Celtics have slumped to a 5-10 SU and 7-6-2 ATS record in the role of a road underdog this season. The Warriors haven’t struggled in their first back from a long road trip by compiling a 6-0 SU and 5-1 ATS mark in Oakland off an away swing of three games or more.
Good to See You Again
The Jazz and Rockets are both headed to the playoffs (eventually) in the Western Conference as the two teams hook up in Houston. The two squads split a pair of matchups back in November with the home team winning each time, as both games sailed OVER the total. The Rockets couldn’t hold onto a 16-point advantage after one quarter in Monday’s 112-110 defeat at San Antonio, in spite of 39 points and 12 assists from James Harden.
Utah is riding a three-game winning streak even though the Jazz haven’t beaten great competition in this span by topping the Nets, Kings, and Pelicans. Quin Snyder’s team has stumbled to a 2-10 SU/ATS record in the role of a road underdog, but came out with a victory in its last attempt at Washington in late February. Utah has been involved in plenty of high-scoring affairs away from Salt Lake City recently by compiling a 6-1 mark to the OVER the last seven road contests.
Last Chance
The Pacers attempt to pull off the four-game season sweep of the Pistons at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana dominated Detroit in its last matchup, 105-84 as three-point favorites, as the Pacers have captured eight of the past nine meetings with the Pistons. Stan Van Gundy’s squad is heating up at the right time by winning five of the past seven games, including a 109-95 home triumph over the Bulls on Monday.
Indiana returns home following a 2-3 road trip, capped off by Monday’s 100-88 setback at Charlotte. The Pacers are riding an eight-game UNDER streak, while dropping four of their past five games at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Pistons have struggled as a road underdog recently by compiling a 1-7 SU and 2-6 ATS mark, while dropping four visits to Indianapolis.
Buckin’ it Up
Milwaukee suffered through a horrible January and early part of February before winning seven of its past 10 games. The Bucks picked up a pair of solid home victories over the Clippers and Raptors before blowing out the 76ers as 5½-point road favorites on Monday, 112-98. Milwaukee begins a three-game homestand against New York as the Knicks have lost 10 straight contests coming off a victory.
The Knicks outlasted the Magic on Monday, 113-105 to pick up its fourth consecutive cover in the role of an underdog in spite of Carmelo Anthony sitting out due to a left knee injury. Anthony is expected to return to the lineup on Wednesday as the Knicks and Bucks have split a pair of matchups this season. New York rallied from a 13-point deficit to shock Milwaukee in its last meeting at BMO Harris Bradley Center on January 6 as five-point ‘dogs, 116-111, as Anthony drilled four three-pointers and scored 26 points.
Well Rested
The Raptors have been off since Saturday’s 101-94 setback to the Bucks as Toronto continues a five-game road swing in New Orleans. Toronto has cashed in each of its last three opportunities in the road underdog role, including in last Friday's victory at Washington. The Raptors head to New Orleans going for the season sweep of the Pelicans after a 108-106 overtime victory on January 31 at the Air Canada Center.
The Pelicans dropped to 2-5 since the trade for DeMarcus Cousins (1-5 with him in the lineup) following Monday’s five-point setback at Utah. New Orleans is currently riding a 9-1 run to the UNDER, including six of the past seven hitting the UNDER since the All-Star break. The Pelicans have won seven of their last nine in the home favorite role, while losing four of the past five home matchups with the Raptors.
Playoff Rematch
The Heat outlasted the Hornets in seven games of the first round of the playoffs last season as the two Southeast rivals meet at American Airlines Arena. Charlotte knocked off Miami in the first two meetings this season, while the past seven matchups between these squads have finished UNDER the total. The Heat continue to push towards a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference after pulling off a home-and-home sweep of the Cavaliers, capped off by Monday’s 106-98 triumph at Cleveland as 9½-point ‘dogs.
The Hornets are seeking their first three-game winning streak since late January after topping the Pacers at home on Monday. Charlotte finished its past road trip with an impressive 10-point triumph at Denver, but the Hornets have lost 15 of their previous 18 games away from Spectrum Center. Steve Clifford’s club has fared well against division opponents this season by winning and covering six of eight matchups with the only two defeats coming to the Wizards.
Head-to-Head Trends
The Bulls continue their up-and-down season as they travel to Orlando, looking to beat the Magic for the third time this season. The last five meetings between the Bulls and Magic have finished UNDER the total, while Orlando has posted 80 and 92 points in two losses to Chicago this season.
Atlanta and Brooklyn meet for the final time in the regular season as the Hawks won each of the last two matchups by over 20 points. The Hawks look to snap a three-game home skid, while seeking their second cover in the last eight contests. Brooklyn picked up only its 11th victory on the season in Monday’s upset of Memphis, as the Nets have yet to win back-to-back games this season.
Minnesota has been the hottest ATS team since the All-Star break by covering in all five opportunities as the Wolves welcome in the Clippers. Los Angeles won at the Target Center in November, while Minnesota rallied past the Clippers in mid-January at Staples Center. The Clippers have owned the Wolves in Minneapolis by winning nine straight visits to the Target Center since April 2012.
Speaking of ownership, mark down a victory whenever the Spurs face the Kings. San Antonio has won an astounding 18 of the last 19 matchups with Sacramento dating back to 2012, including seven straight victories at AT&T Center. The Kings are making their first trip to San Antonio after losing a pair of home games to the Spurs earlier this season.
The Wizards head to Denver with no rest following Tuesday’s victory at Phoenix as Washington has put together a 4-7 record on the second of a back-to-back. The Nuggets blew an early 11-point lead in a 92-85 setback at Washington in December, as Denver looks for its 10th home victory in its last 14 tries.
Wednesday's Best Bet
By Sportsbook.ag
Toronto Raptors vs. New Orleans Pelicans
Sportsbook.ag Odds: New Orleans (-2); Total set at 203.5
The Toronto Raptors get their first look at the new-look Pelicans tonight and seeing DeMarcus Cousins on the other side of the floor is not a welcome sight to Toronto by any means. Cousins scored 22 and 19 points in two games vs. Toronto this year as a member of the Sacramento Kings, helping the Kings go 2-0 SU and ATS in those contests. That's been the norm for Cousins vs. Toronto throughout his career and now that he's teamed up with Anthony Davis, Toronto better find answers in a hurry to slow down the big duo in the paint.
Toronto is in a battle with Boston and Washington for the 2nd seed in the Eastern Conference and can ill-afford for the rest of this road trip to go sour. They've started off the trip 1-1 SU and ATS after winning in Washington and losing in Milwaukee, and with trips to Atlanta and Miami on deck, Toronto will definitely have their hands full.
They did beat the Pelicans 108-106 in OT back at the end of January, but the Pelicans are a completely different team today, and Toronto is without Kyle Lowry who had 33 points in that win.
The Raps are a different team as well with the additions of Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker, but missing Lowry's offensive ability hurts when a key to success for Toronto tonight will be dominating the scoring matchup between the guards.
New Orleans has still yet to hit their stride with Cousins in the fold but everyone can see that it's only a matter of time before the entire team figures it all out. In Cousins' two home games the Pelicans were blown out by Houston in the first game back from All-Star weekend, and fell 101-98 in OT to the Spurs last week. Those are the elite of the elite teams in this league and while Toronto is arguably a step below those foes, it's not like they aren't a very good team in their own right.
For New Orleans to win tonight they'll need their two All-Stars up front to dominate because the Raptors have trouble guarding the paint at times. Ibaka was brought in to help in that regard, but he can't cover both Davis and Cousins, meaning one of them will always have an advantage inside.
G Jrue Holiday has become the third option on the Pelicans and he's got to be exicted to play tonight as he had 30 points in the first meeting with the Raptors and did the bulk of the offensive work for New Orleans that night. If New Orleans can get all three of those guys going, the two points they are laying will be way too few and it will be an easy Pelicans cover.
Yet, even if New Orleans only has two of those three guys producing, they should still get this win. Not having to deal with Lowry is a huge plus for a Pelicans defense that can be shaky at times, meaning most of their attention can go to DeMar DeRozan tonight to force others to beat them. With Cousins and Davis patrolling the paint, that's the formula for success for New Orleans tonight and bettors should not be surprised to see this game play out like that.