NBA Today
SCOREBOARD
Thursday, Dec. 4
San Antonio at Denver (10:30 p.m. EST). Tim Duncan and the Spurs, losers of two in a row, face the Nuggets, who are 12-3 since acquiring Chauncey Billups in a trade.
STARS
Wednesday
— Rajon Rondo, Celtics, had 16 points, 13 rebounds and a career-high 17 assists for his first career triple-double, leading Boston over Indiana 114-96 for its 10th straight victory.
— Kobe Bryant, Lakers, tormented his hometown team again, scoring 32 points as Los Angeles beat Philadelphia 114-102 to improve to 15-2.
— Brandon Roy, Trail Blazers, scored 12 of his 22 points in the final 8 minutes to help Portland beat Washington 98-92 and extend its winning streak to six games.
— Emeka Okafor, Bobcats, had 25 points and 13 rebounds as Charlotte beat Oklahoma City 103-97 to win consecutive games for the first time this season.
— Chris Paul, Hornets, had 24 points and 15 assists as New Orleans won for the fifth time in six games, 104-91 over Phoenix.
— Dwyane Wade, Heat, scored 23 points and Miami climbed back above .500 by beating short-handed Utah 93-89.
SITTING SUNS
Phoenix played without starters Steve Nash and Shaquille O’Neal in a 104-91 loss in New Orleans. Nash had flu-like symptoms, while O’Neal has been sitting out a game when the Suns play on consecutive nights. He is expected to return when they visit Dallas on Thursday.
SAM SACKED
The Toronto Raptors fired coach Sam Mitchell and replaced him with assistant Jay Triano, one day after a 132-93 loss to Denver dropped them to 8-9. Mitchell, the sixth coach in franchise history, signed a three-year contract in 2007 after he led Toronto to a franchise-record 47 wins and the Atlantic Division title. He went 156-189 in four-plus seasons with the Raptors.
SUPER START
Cleveland improved to 10-0 on its own floor for the first time in franchise history with a 118-82 victory over New York on Wednesday, its 14th win in 15 games overall. The Cavaliers have won six straight and are the only Eastern Conference team unbeaten at home.
SPEAKING
“He was amazing. It was like there was three Rondos. I looked up and it came off the rim and he is grabbing a rebound, then I got back on defense and he beat me back. He was everywhere tonight.”—Kevin Garnett, after teammate Rajon Rondo had 16 points, 13 rebounds and a career-high 17 assists for his first career triple-double in Boston’s 114-96 victory over Indiana.
PHOENIX (11 - 7) at DALLAS (9 - 8)
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.
Head-to-Head Series History
PHOENIX is 4-2 against the spread versus DALLAS over the last 3 seasons
DALLAS is 4-3 straight up against PHOENIX over the last 3 seasons
4 of 7 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
SAN ANTONIO (9 - 8) at DENVER (13 - 6)
Top Trends for this game.
SAN ANTONIO is 21-36 ATS (-18.6 Units) in road games over the last 2 seasons.
DENVER is 12-3 ATS (+8.7 Units) after 3 or more consecutive overs over the last 2 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 135-101 ATS (+23.9 Units) after scoring 85 points or less since 1996.
Head-to-Head Series History
SAN ANTONIO is 7-6 against the spread versus DENVER over the last 3 seasons
SAN ANTONIO is 8-5 straight up against DENVER over the last 3 seasons
11 of 13 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
PHOENIX vs. DALLAS
Phoenix is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Dallas
Phoenix is 3-4-2 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Dallas
Dallas is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games
Dallas is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
SAN ANTONIO vs. DENVER
San Antonio is 17-8 ATS in its last 25 games when playing on the road against Denver
San Antonio is 17-8 SU in its last 25 games when playing on the road against Denver
Denver is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing San Antonio
Denver is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games when playing San Antonio
Hot and Cold Bets - Week 5
By Matt Fargo
The NBA is now in full swing and our eight-month marathon of the pro basketball season is underway. Matt Fargo will be looking into Hot and Cold NBA bets throughout the season and he takes a look at four games that you will want to pay attention to.
NBA Cold Bets This Week
Thursday – San Antonio Spurs at Denver Nuggets
The Spurs money train had a nice run by covering in seven of eight games following a dismal 1-6 ATS stretch to start the season. The value got onto the Spurs side following that bad start as the public was down on them with the record as well as two starters, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, being out with injuries. Ginobili made it back and then Parker three games later but a loss to the Rockets by 19 points stopped the money cashing run. Now healthy once again, San Antonio is not going to be seeing a lot of value in its numbers and this looks like the time to start fading. Denver is showing that its trade with the Pistons is helping both sides as it is now 12-6 on the year (11-6-1 ATS) and is currently in second place in the Western Conference. The Nuggets have already taken out the Spurs once this season in San Antonio and will look to get it done at home against a full Spurs team this time.
Phoenix (11-8, 8-11 ATS) at Dallas (9-8, 8-9 ATS)
The Suns concludes a brief two-game Southwest Division road trip when they visit American Airlines Center for a matchup with the Mavericks.
Playing without point guard Steve Nash and center Shaquille O’Neal, Phoenix tumbled at New Orleans on Wednesday 104-91, falling short as a nine-point underdog. The Suns have now lost three straight games (0-3 ATS), all by double digits. On the bright side, Phoenix is still 7-3 SU on the highway this season, but after starting out 4-1 ATS on the road, it has failed to cover in four of its last five as a visitor.
The surging Mavericks overcame a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit on Tuesday and slipped past the Clippers 100-98, failing to cash as an 11-point home favorite, Dallas has won seven of its last eight (6-2 ATS), including three straight at home (1-2 ATS). However, Rick Carlisle’s team is just 3-4 on its home court so far, going 1-6 ATS.
These rivals have split their last six meetings, with Phoenix going 4-1-1 ATS during this stretch. Last year, Dallas took two of three (1-1-1 ATS), including a 108-105 victory as a three-point favorite in the only meeting at American Airlines Center. Also, the underdog and road team are both 5-2-1 ATS in the last seven series meetings, and the Suns are 5-1-1 ATS in their last seven trips to Dallas.
The Suns are 12-6 ATS in their last 18 games after a non-cover, but otherwise the trends are all negative for Terry Porter’s team, including 3-9 overall, 2-7 against the Western Conference and 2-6-1 against the Southwest Division. Dallas is 4-1 ATS in its last five against the Western Conference, but 7-21-1 ATS in its last 29 games in the Thursday night spotlight.
For the Suns, the under is on runs of 6-2 against the Western Conference and 9-4 in their last 13 on Thursdays, but they’ve topped the total the last five times they’ve played on back-to-back nights. Dallas is on “under” streaks of 5-2 overall, 4-1 against the West and 10-4 when playing on one day of rest. However, the over is 13-6 in the Mavericks’ last 19 against the Pacific Division.
ATS ADVANTAGE: NONE
San Antonio (9-8, 7-9-1 ATS) at Denver (13-6, 12-6-1 ATS)
The red-hot Nuggets gun for their fourth consecutive win and cover when they host the Spurs at the Pepsi Center.
Denver crushed the Raptors 132-93 as a five-point home favorite on Tuesday, shooting an astounding 59.8 percent from the field (13-for-24 from three-point land) and holding Toronto to 36.6 percent (5-for-17 from downtown). Since starting the season 1-3, the Nuggets are on a 12-3 SU run (9-5-1 ATS), including 7-1 at home (5-2-1 ATS).
San Antonio’s shooters went ice cold in the second half of Tuesday’s home game against Detroit, getting outscored 49-32, including 28-14 in the fourth quarter of an 89-77 loss as a five-point favorite. The Spurs have lost consecutive games by double digits after going 7-1 SU and ATS in their previous eight.
The SU winner is 16-1 ATS in San Antonio’s games this year (13-0 in the last 13) and 7-1 ATS in Denver’s last eight contests.
The Spurs have held 12 of their last 13 opponents to 98 points or fewer, but the Nuggets have scored 101 or more in six straight games, averaging 110.5 ppg during this stretch.
Denver went to San Antonio on Nov. 19 and rolled to a 91-81 victory as a one-point road underdog. The Nuggets are 3-1 SU and 4-0 ATS in the last four head-to-head battles, including 2-0 SU and ATS at home. Finally, the favorite has covered in seven of the last nine in this rivalry.
The Spurs are on ATS streaks of 8-3 after a double-digit home loss, 6-2 against the Western Conference, 5-1 when playing on one day of rest and 5-1 after an opponent scores 100 points or more. However, they’re 6-14 ATS in their last 20 on the highway and 4-10 ATS in their last 14 against Northwest Division foes.
Denver is on ATS streaks of 6-2-1 at home, 10-2 against the Southwest Division, 8-2 after scoring 100 points or more, 10-4 on Thursdays and 7-3-1 after one day of rest.
The under is 21-6 in the last 27 Spurs-Nuggets clashes overall and 4-1 in the last five meetings at the Pepsi Center. Also, the under is on runs of 20-9 for Denver against the Southwest Division, 20-6 for the Spurs overall, 4-1 for the Spurs on the road, 15-6 for the Spurs against the Western Conference, 12-5 for the Spurs on Thursdays and 37-18 for the Spurs on one day of rest. Conversely, the Nuggets have topped the total in six straight games overall and five straight games at home.
ATS ADVANTAGE: DENVER
Gametimepicks.com
IC's Thursday Research
by: IndianCowboy
Phoenix vs. Dallas
The line for Phoenix vs. Dallas has not come out yet, in part, because as I write this the Suns vs. Hornets is currently going on. Dallas looked incompetent against the Clippers, but the Clippers are better now with the start of Zach Randolph which is currently making the competitive in the first quarter against Houston right now. I probably won't be making a play on this game either way, but of course, Nash's status is important for this game as will Howard's who did not play against the Clips. But, it does seem Nash will play this game from the overnight status reports andI would think he would want to face his old team as he usually does - but this is a game that if Howard does not play I think Phoenix can win outright as they have revenge from a game stemming from April of last year.
San Antonio vs. Denver
Denver beat San Antonio on the road earlier this year on 11/19 so SA does have revenge from that game, SA comes off a home loss to Detroit, a brutal loss to Houston as this team cannot find any offense right now, probably why they are 9-8, it must stink to be Tim right now, the under is 7-3 of late for SA. BUT, Manu and Tony Parker are back. This team will begin covering once again as of course, the Detroit game was to get their feet wet for coming back. Denver has played 6 straight overs and are rolling.This game is on TNT and note, that Parker and Manu are healthy, and this team will look to get their revenge against a Denver team that is rolling and has 66% of the public's backing. I would not be surprised to see this game dip under the posted total given that San Antonio will likely play their half court set and lock down on D - after all, how easy would it be for Denver to go over the posted total right after they score 132 on Toronto?