Hot and Cold Bets - Week 11
By Matt Fargo
NBA Cold Bets
Thursday – Portland Trailblazers at New Jersey Nets
The Nets are hanging tough in the weak Eastern Conference but this team is a pretty bad .500 team. Since a 9-3 run in mid-November and early-December, the Nets have gone 8-11 in their last 19 games and have been the true word of inconsistent. Three of those eight wins came in overtime, while another came by just a single point. Only nine teams in the NBA have a negative scoring margin at home and the Nets are the only team with that claim sitting in a playoff spot. That is nothing to be proud of. New Jersey is 9-12 at home and 8-13 against the number in those 21 games. Portland comes in at 23-14 and it is starting to pick things up following a rough stretch in December and January where it went 6-8. Facing the Eastern Conference has been a positive situation as the Blazers are 12-2 straight up and 8-6 against the number. The Nets have played the 29th ranked schedule and are 1-4 against the top ten while Portland has played the 6th ranked schedule and is 12-2 against team ranked outside the top 16.
NBA Today
SCOREBOARD
Thursday, Jan. 15
Phoenix at Denver (10:30 p.m. EST). The Nuggets are 9-3 in their last 12 games, while the Suns have won three straight and six of seven.
STARS
Wednesday
— Chris Paul, Hornets, had 33 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds and seven steals in New Orleans’ 104-97 victory in Dallas.
— John Salmons, Kings, hit a 17-footer with 1.6 seconds remaining in the third overtime and finished with 25 points, a career-best 14 rebounds and seven assists in Sacramento’s 135-133 triple-overtime victory at Golden State.
— David Lee, Knicks, had 30 points and 10 rebounds in New York’s 128-122 home victory over Washington.
— Andre Iguodala, 76ers, had a season-high 29 points in Philadelphia’s 110-79 win over visiting Portland.
— Manu Ginobili and Roger Mason, Spurs. Ginobili scored 27 points, and Mason completed a three-point play with 10 seconds left in San Antonio’s 112-111 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
— Derrick Rose, Bulls, scored 17 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and added 10 assists in Chicago’s 102-98 victory at Toronto.
— Danny Granger, Pacers, scored 24 points and made the tying shot with 3.9 seconds left in regulation in Indiana’s 110-106 overtime win over Detroit.
— Daequan Cook, Heat, hit six 3-pointers and had a career-high 24 points in Miami’s 102-99 victory in Milwaukee.
— Paul Pierce, Celtics, scored 18 of his 22 points in the third quarter in Boston’s 118-86 win over visiting New Jersey.
— Josh Smith, Hawks, had 26 points in Atlanta’s 97-80 road win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
STREAKS
Boston beat New Jersey 118-86 on Wednesday night for its third straight victory. After opening 27-2 for the best 29-game start in NBA history, the Celtics went 2-7 before starting their current winning streak. … Philadelphia has won five straight. … The Los Angeles Clippers have a 12-game losing streak.
STATS
Andrea Bargnani had a career-high 31 points and finished with 10 rebounds in Toronto’s 102-98 loss to Chicago on Wednesday night. … Oklahoma is 4-4 in its last eight games to improve to 7-33.
SPEAKING
“Every night I just try to take what the defense gives me. They were going under ball screens and forcing me to shoot, so that’s what I had to do.”—New Orleans’ Chris Paul after finishing with 33 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds and seven steals in the Hornets’ 104-97 victory in Dallas on Wednesday night.
PORTLAND (23 - 14) at NEW JERSEY (19 - 19)
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
PORTLAND is 3-1 against the spread versus NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
PORTLAND is 3-1 straight up against NEW JERSEY over the last 3 seasons
2 of 4 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
CLEVELAND (30 - 6) at CHICAGO (16 - 22)
Top Trends for this game.
CLEVELAND is 26-10 ATS (+15.0 Units) in all games this season.
CLEVELAND is 23-8 ATS (+14.2 Units) as a favorite this season.
CLEVELAND is 16-6 ATS (+9.4 Units) after a win by 10 points or more this season.
CLEVELAND is 14-5 ATS (+8.5 Units) when playing against a team with a losing record this season.
CLEVELAND is 140-107 ATS (+22.3 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 99+ points/game since 1996.
CLEVELAND is 8-0 ATS (+8.0 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game this season.
CHICAGO is 52-68 ATS (-22.8 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
CHICAGO is 7-16 ATS (-10.6 Units) revenging a loss vs opponent this season.
CHICAGO is 23-36 ATS (-16.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
CLEVELAND is 6-5 against the spread versus CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
CLEVELAND is 6-5 straight up against CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
8 of 11 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
PHOENIX (22 - 13) at DENVER (26 - 13)
Top Trends for this game.
PHOENIX is 13-22 ATS (-11.2 Units) in all games this season.
DENVER is 47-34 ATS (+9.6 Units) as a favorite over the last 2 seasons.
PHOENIX is 311-258 ATS (+27.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
PHOENIX is 5-3 against the spread versus DENVER over the last 3 seasons
PHOENIX is 5-3 straight up against DENVER over the last 3 seasons
6 of 8 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
PORTLAND vs. NEW JERSEY
Portland is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against New Jersey
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 5 games when playing on the road against New Jersey
New Jersey is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of New Jersey's last 6 games
CLEVELAND vs. CHICAGO
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Cleveland's last 5 games when playing on the road against Chicago
Cleveland is 10-5 ATS in its last 15 games when playing Chicago
Chicago is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games at home
Chicago is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games at home
PHOENIX vs. DENVER
Phoenix is 3-8 ATS in its last 11 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Phoenix's last 8 games on the road
Denver is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Denver's last 10 games
Portland Trail Blazers vs. New Jersey Nets
The Trail Blazers got pounded 100-79 by the 76ers on Wednesday, as 2-point favorites on the road. That game's 179 points went UNDER the posted total of 193.
Brandon Roy had 27 points with five rebounds and six assists in a losing effort.
The Celtics extended their win streak to three games with a 118-86 victory over the Nets on Wednesday. The Celtics covered the 10-point spread, and the combined score made it OVER the posted total of 189.
Brook Lopez had 13 points and eight rebounds for the Nets. Devin Harris had a team-high 17 points in the loss.
Team records:
Portland: 23-15 SU, 18-20 ATS
New Jersey: 19-20 SU, 21-18 ATS
Portland most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 5-5
Before playing Charlotte are 1-7
After playing Philadelphia are 2-8
After a loss are 7-3
New Jersey most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 7-3
Before playing Boston are 7-3
After playing Boston are 4-6
After a loss are 7-3
A few trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland's last 5 games when playing on the road against New Jersey
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Portland's last 11 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Portland's last 9 games when playing New Jersey
Portland is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games when playing New Jersey
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New Jersey's last 5 games when playing at home against Portland
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New Jersey's last 6 games at home
New Jersey is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of New Jersey's last 9 games when playing Portland
Next up:
Portland at Charlotte, Saturday, January 17
New Jersey home to Boston, Saturday, January 17
Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Chicago Bulls
LeBron James went for 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists, as the Cavaliers downed the Grizzlies 102-87 on Tuesday night.
Cleveland cashed as 9-point road favorites as the game played over the 183-point total listed by linesmakers.
The Bulls fended off a late surge and got past the Raptors in a 102-98 upset on Wednesday, as 4-poin road underdogs. The game's 200 points made it OVER the posted total of 199.
Derrick Rose led the Bulls with 25 points and 10 assists, while Luol Deng had 16 points in that win.
Current streak:
Cleveland has won 3 straight games.
Team records:
Cleveland: 30-6 SU, 26-10 ATS
Chicago: 17-22 SU, 17-22 ATS
Cleveland most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 8-2
Before playing New Orleans are 6-4
After playing Memphis are 5-5
After a win are 7-3
Chicago most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 6-4
Before playing San Antonio are 4-6
After playing Toronto are 4-6
After a win are 2-8
A few trends to consider:
Cleveland is 21-3 SU in its last 24 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Cleveland's last 6 games when playing Chicago
Cleveland is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Cleveland's last 5 games when playing on the road against Chicago
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Chicago's last 6 games when playing Cleveland
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Chicago's last 5 games when playing at home against Cleveland
The total has gone OVER in 12 of Chicago's last 17 games
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Chicago's last 9 games at home
Next up:
Cleveland home to New Orleans, Friday, January 16
Chicago home to San Antonio, Saturday, January 17
Phoenix Suns vs. Denver Nuggets
Shaquille O'Neal scored 26 points and hauled down 10 rebounds to lead the Suns over the Hawks 107-102 on Tuesday night.
Phoenix couldn't cash as 6.5-point home favorites as the game played under the 212-point total listed by oddsmakers.
Chauncey Billups finished with 23 points to lift the Nuggets over the Mavericks 99-97 on Tuesday night.
Denver failed to cash as 5-point home favorites as the game played under the 207-point total set by sportsbooks.
Current streak:
Phoenix has won 3 straight games.
Team records:
Phoenix: 22-13 SU, 13-22 ATS
Denver: 26-13 SU, 21-17-1 ATS
Phoenix most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 7-3
Before playing Minnesota are 7-3
After playing Atlanta are 5-5
After a win are 6-4
Denver most recently:
When playing on Thursday are 3-7
Before playing Orlando are 7-3
After playing Dallas are 6-4
After a win are 6-4
A few trends to consider:
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Phoenix's last 8 games on the road
Phoenix is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Phoenix's last 7 games when playing Denver
Phoenix is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Denver
Denver is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
Denver is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Denver's last 7 games when playing Phoenix
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Denver's last 10 games
Next up:
Phoenix home to Minnesota, Friday, January 16
Denver home to Orlando, Saturday, January 17
Tips and Trends
Cleveland Cavaliers at Chicago Bulls
Cavs (-8.5, O/U 194.5): LeBron James is starting to torture the Bulls much like a former #23 used to do to Cleveland during his legendary career. James is averaging nearly 30 points per game vs. Chicago in 23 games, including a pair of 41-point performances in two wins back in early November. In fact, the Cavs are 3-0 SU & ATS in the last three meetings with the Bulls, winning each by an average margin of 16 points. Chicago had won and covered each of the previous three meetings before this season.
Cavs are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 Thursday games.
The OVER is 5-1 in the last 6 meetings.
Key Injuries - C Ben Wallace (flu) is day-to-day.
PROJECTED SCORE: 103 (Side Play of the Day)
Bulls: Rookie point guard Derrick Rose will be looking to rebound from the worst game of his young career in a rematch with James and the Cavs. Rose totaled a career-low three points on 1-of-6 shooting in a 117-92 loss at Cleveland back on January 2nd. James finished with a triple double in the latest meeting and blocked one of Rose's shots off the glass, which initially looked like an easy layup. “He’s so athletic,” Rose said of James. “I wasn’t surprised at all.” Rose scored 25 in a 102-98 win at Toronto on Wednesday, which is his highest total since December 27th.
Bulls are 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games overall.
The OVER is 6-2 in Chicago's last 8 games vs. Central Division.
Key Injuries - NONE
PROJECTED SCORE: 91
Phoenix Suns at Denver Nuggets
Suns: Shaquille O'Neal has been a real difference maker for Phoenix since early December. O'Neal is averaging 22.4 points and 10.1 rebounds in his last 12 games and has seen the Suns go 10-2 during that stretch. They are 1-2 in games he missed over that period. Teammate Grant Hill noted that the players are finally feeling comfortable under first-year head coach Terry Porter and seem to be finding their groove. "We talked in November and December that we were a work in progress,” Hill said. “I think we’re here now. We’re confident. We feel better about ourselves than we did four or six weeks ago.”
Suns are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 road games.
The OVER is 13-6 in Phoenix's last 19 games overall.
Key Injuries - NONE
PROJECTED SCORE: 111 (OVER - Total Play of the Day)
Nuggets (-2, O/U 219.5): Like O'Neal, Denver's Chauncey Billups has stepped up as a leader lately with his new team. Billups has averaged 22 points and 6.4 assists in the last seven games as the Nuggets have gone 6-1. His increased production is especially noteworthy because star Carmelo Anthony has missed the last three games and could miss another couple weeks of action. Denver improved to 25-10 since acquiring Billups with a 99-97 win over Dallas on Tuesday.
Home team is 13-3 ATS in the last 16 games.
The OVER is 8-2 in Denver's last 10 games overall.
Key Injuries - F Carmelo Anthony (hand) is OUT.
PROJECTED SCORE: 113
Cleveland (30-6, 26-10 ATS) at Chicago (17-22 SU and ATS)
The Cavaliers take the NBA’s best record into the United Center in Chicago for a matchup with the struggling Bulls.
LeBron James and his crew have won three straight and come into this one off Tuesday’s 102-87 blowout of Memphis, covering as an 8½-point road favorite as James delivered a triple-double. The Cavaliers are 11-6 SU and ATS on the road, and they’ve been on a roll lately, shooting 50.8 percent from the floor and 44.6 percent from the three-point line over their last five games while holding the opposition to 84.6 points per game and 39.9 percent shooting.
Chicago is just 4-7 SU (3-8 ATS) in its last 11 games, but got a road victory in Toronto on Wednesday, beating the Raptors 102-98 as a 4½-point pup. The Bulls are just 2-4 ATS in their last six home games and they’ve dropped consecutive contests at the United Center to Oklahoma City (109-98 as 8½-point favorites Saturday) and Portland (109-95 as two-point underdogs Monday).
Cleveland has already beaten the Bulls three times this season (3-0 ATS), including a 117-92 blowout on Jan. 2 as a 12½-point home chalk. Back on Nov. 8, the Cavs went to the United Center and scored a 106-97 win as two-point favorites. Despite that road victory by Cleveland, the home team is on a 15-6 ATS roll in this rivalry, while the favorite has cashed in five of the last seven.
The Cavaliers are on a plethora of positive ATS runs, including 37-14 overall, 16-7 on the highway, 20-6 as favorites, 22-8 against Eastern Conference teams and 16-6 after getting a day of rest. The Bulls are 5-1 ATS in their last six Thursday games, but otherwise they are on negative ATS streaks that include 2-6 overall, 1-5 at home, 2-5 as a ‘dog, 5-10 against the Eastern Conference and 2-6 at home against teams with a winning road record.
Cleveland has stayed under the posted total in eight of its last 10 games after getting a day off and four of its last five Thursday outings, but the Cavs have gone over the total in 15 of their last 23 games as a road chalk. Chicago is on “over” stretches of 12-5 overall, 8-3 against Eastern Conference teams, 5-1 as an underdog and 5-1 on the second night of back-to-backs. Finally, in this rivalry, the over is 5-1 in the last six meetings overall and 4-1 in the last five in the Windy City.
ATS ADVANTAGE: CLEVELAND
Phoenix (22-13, 13-22 ATS) at Denver (26-13, 21-17-1 ATS)
The Suns have found their offense and now go in search of a fourth straight win when they visit the Pepsi Center to take on the Nuggets.
Phoenix has topped the century mark in seven straight games (6-1 SU, 2-5 ATS), including Tuesday’s 107-102 home win over the Hawks, but the Suns failed to cash as 7½-point favorites. They are averaging 112 points a game and shooting 51.2 percent from the floor over the last five, including 42.9 percent from beyond the three-point line.
Denver had its five-game winning streak (4-1 ATS) snapped in Friday’s 93-90 home loss to the Pistons as a 4½-point favorite. The Nuggets rebounded with Tuesday’s 99-97 home win over the Mavericks, but again failed to cash, this time as a six-point chalk. George Karl’s club is 15-5 SU (12-8 ATS) in front of the home fans this season.
The host is on a 7-0 SU and ATS run in this series, and the winner has scored at least 108 points in each of the last nine contests. Furthermore, the home team is on a 13-3 ATS run in the last 16 meetings, with the favorite on an ongoing 6-0 ATS streak. Denver has cashed each of the last four times it has entertained the Suns inside the Pepsi Center.
Phoenix has been a disaster at the betting window, riding negative ATS waves of 1-4 overall, 3-7 on the road, 6-13 against the Western Conference, 3-8 after a non-cover, 1-5-1 as a ‘dog, 0-4 on Thursdays and 2-6 when playing on one day of rest. The Nuggets are 7-2 ATS in their last nine after getting a day off, but otherwise they sport negative ATS trends of 2-5 against the Western Conference and 1-4 at home against teams with a winning road record.
For the Suns, the over is on runs of 13-6 overall, 6-2 after a day off, 6-1 on the road, 4-1 as a ‘dog and 4-1 against Western Conference teams. Similarly, the Nuggets are on “over” streaks of 8-2 overall, 11-5 at home, 7-2 as a favorite, 6-1 against teams with a winning record and 5-1 on Thursdays. Lastly, these teams have topped the total in six of the last seven meetings against each other.
ATS ADVANTAGE: OVER
Gametimepicks.com
Thursday Research
By Indiancowboy
Portland vs. New Jersey
Portland and Phoenix both come off ugly losses. The Blazers took it up the chin to a Sixers team that is rejuvinated and is playing great basketball right now (winners of 6 ATS games in a row I believe and the Nets were the at the expense of the Celtics who returned to form last night at their place. These two teams have not met this year. Something you should be aware is that Martell Webster returns soon for the Blazers and that will only make this deeper and stronger. I can see this going either way frankly as the Blazers likely lead early but the Nets have been a third quarter team all year long. Note, that Fernandez is questionable ofr Portland while Carter is questionable for NJ.
Phoenix vs. Denver
These two teams have met once earlier this year. It was back in December when Phoenix won 108-101 at home as -5.5 point chalk. Now, Denver looks to get their revenge. Phoenix comes off a nice win over the Hawks (failed to cover however) and have won their last 6 of 7 SU (only hiccup to the Pacers at home). The Suns are obviously dogged in this one by 2 points, but do note that this team has been tenous ATS of late as they are 2-6 ATS over their last 8. Denver has lost back to back covers although they did defeat the Mavs at home SU in their last contest - granted, they were up big and let Dallas come back in that game. Not, that I am overly fond of either team here, but a lean on Denver here to get it done at home as the Suns have been a bit lax on the road this year at 10-6 SU with many ATS losses on the road while Denver is 15-5 at home and has a revenge angle. Regardless, staying away - if you want a public fade, you can take the under here as well, it's your call. J.R. Smith is listed as probable for this game.
Hot Teams
-- Nets are 5-1 vs spread in game following their last six losses. Blazers won three of their last four games.
-- Cavaliers won ten of their last twelve games.
-- Nuggets won eight of their last ten games. Suns won three in a row and six of last seven games.
Cold Teams
-- Bulls are 2-9 vs spread in game following their last eleven wins.
Totals
-- Over is 4-1-1 in last six New Jersey games.
-- Last three Chicago games all went over the total.
-- Eight of last ten Denver games went over the total.
Back-to Back
-- Nets are 7-3 vs spread if they played the night before.
-- Bulls are 4-1 vs spread at home when they played on road the night before.
-- Suns are 3-4 vs spread if they play again the next night.
PORTLAND at NEW JERSEY
PORTLAND: 1-6 ATS after 2 consecutive non-conference games
NEW JERSEY: 6-1 ATS after allowing 110+ points
CLEVELAND at CHICAGO
CLEVELAND: 8-1 ATS after 3 straight DD wins
CHICAGO: 1-9 ATS off a win as a road underdog
PHOENIX at DENVER
PHOENIX: 0-8 ATS after having won 4 of their last 5
DENVER: 47-34 ATS as a favorite