Tuesday's Best NBA Bet
Washington Wizards at Portland Trail Blazers (N/A)
After a hard-fought loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Trail Blazers need to be careful not to overlook the Wizards, who still have only one straight up victory on the road this season.
Portland ended up dropping an 84-80 decision to L.A. on Sunday and it doesn’t sound like coach Nate McMillan is content with staying competitive as the club continues on its playoff push.
"Once again, we have control of a game, and we don't execute down the stretch, and (the Lakers) tighten up their defense," McMillan told reporters. "We have a few turnovers and miss a few shots. We had an opportunity. The things we've been doing well, we didn't do them.”
Meanwhile, Washington actually looked pretty good in a 98-92 win over New Jersey as a 2.5-point underdog on Sunday thanks to 26 points from rookie John Wall, but you have to think Portland – which has covered in four straight - comes out looking for blood in this one.
Pick: Trail Blazers
NBA TNT Doubleheader Preview
By David Chan
March Madness may be giving the NBA TNT doubleheader the boot from Thursday to Tuesday, but at least the NCAAs are not completely doing away with NBA action. Two for Tuesdays? Yes, please.
Chicago Bulls at Atlanta Hawks (+4, 180)
The Bulls and Hawks will be squaring off for the third time this season and third time this month when they clash in Philips Arena. They split a pair of recent meetings, with each team prevailing at home. Atlanta—as a 4.5-point underdog—staged a furious rally to win 83-80 on March 2. Chicago—as a 7.5-point favorite—got revenge without any trouble on March 11, blasting the Hawks 94-76.
What was the main difference? MVP candidate Derrick Rose, of course. The All-Star point guard scored just 12 points on dismal 5-of-21 shooting in the Bulls’ loss, but he turned it around and scored a game-high 34 points in the blowout of Atlanta.
Rebounding was also a major factor. Chicago almost always wins the battle of the boards, but it was a close 43 to 37 contest in the first game as the Bulls allowed Al Horford to erupt for 31 points and 16 rebounds. The margin was much worse at the United Center. Chicago humiliated the Hawks 50 to 28 on the glass as Horford managed a mere six points and seven rebounds.
HAWKS GROUNDED
Atlanta is comfortably in the playoffs right now and in line for the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference, but even head coach Larry Drew admits his team is mentally nowhere near postseason mode.
“If there’s anything that needs to be fixed, it’s our mental state,” Drew told the Atlanta Journal Constitution prior to Sunday’s 104-96 home win over Detroit. “It’s 70 games into the season and I know mental fatigue has settled in. We have to push through that.”
In their last 24 games, the Hawks are 8-1 straight up (SU) against teams with losing records and 3-12 SU against opponents with winning marks.
“This is not the first stretch of games where we’ve let games get away from us,” Drew added. “Teams that play that grind-it-out, blue-collar style have been a thorn in our side.”
That’s not a good thing when you are about to face a bruising Chicago Bulls squad.
TRENDING TOPICS
The Bulls are 13-3 ATS in their last 16 against the Eastern Conference and 4-1 ATS in their last five road games.
The Hawks are 1-5 ATS in their last six against teams with winning SU records.
The under is 10-3 in Chicago’s last 13 overall.
Head-to-head, the Hawks are 4-0 ATS in their last four at home against the Bulls. The home team is 5-1 ATS in the last six meetings.
Phoenix Suns at Los Angeles Lakers (-7.5, 199)
The Suns and Lakers are set for a fourth and final encounter of this regular season. Interestingly, the home team dropped all three of the previous contests. Los Angeles won 114-106 on October 29 (covered the 3.5-point spread) and 99-95 on January 5 (the 4-point spread was pushed). Phoenix came out on top 121-116 on November 14 (they got 8.5 points, of which they needed none).
It should be noted, though, that only the most recent meeting at the Staples Center came after the Suns’ blockbuster trade with Orlando.
Phoenix will have to do a better job on the boards than it did in January, as the team got out-rebounded 47 to 31. Jared Dudley scored 21 points to keep the home team competitive, but Kobe Bryant tallied 24, Lamar Odom had a double-double, and Shannon Brown chipped in 13.
BYE-BYE, BYNUM
Lakers’ center Andrew Bynum is suspended two games for a flagrant foul on Michael Beasley in last Friday’s 106-98 win over Minnesota. Bynum sat out Sunday’s 84-80 defeat of Portland and he will miss Tuesday’s contest.
Head coach Phil Jackson, not surprisingly, is not amused. “I thought two games was excessive, but who knows,” Jackson told the Los Angeles Times. “You never know. There's no standard. There's nothing to go by. It's all subjective.”
Kobe did not escape Minnesota unscathed, either, as he was accidentally hit in the face by Martell Webster and had a sore neck and shoulder afterward. Although fine, Kobe was in mediocre form on Sunday, scoring 22 points on 9-for-20 shooting against the Blazers.
For the Suns, meanwhile, Aaron Brooks as suspended for tossing a ball at a ref in Friday’s 108-97 victory over Golden State on Friday, but he was docked just one game and will be back in action on Tuesday.
Brooks’ return and Bynum’s absence are about the only things going for Phoenix, which has won two straight against inferior competition (2-0 ATS) but is just 2-4 in its last six (3-2-1 ATS). The Lakers also have won four in a row (2-2 ATS) and 12 of their last 13 (9-4 ATS).
TRENDING TOPICS
The Suns are 3-0-1 ATS in their last four overall and 4-0-1 ATS in their last five road games.
The Lakers are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 against the Western Conference.
The under is 6-0 in Phoenix’s last six overall and 5-2 in L.A.’s last seven home games.
Head-to-head, the underdog is 4-1-1 ATS in the last six overall and the road team 4-0-1 ATS in the last five overall.
LA Lakers host Suns on Tuesday NBA odds schedule
By: Barry Daniels
The two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, winners in 12 of their last 13 games, continue their seven-game homestand Tuesday by hosting the Phoenix Suns. The two Western Conference foes will be meeting for the fourth time this season, with tip-off at Staples Center scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (PT).
Pete Korner, who disseminates the betting numbers for the majority of Nevada sports books as owner of the Sports Club, has installed the Lakers as 8 ½-point home favorites on his overnight line. The total is set at 202 points.
Ironically, the road team has captured each of the first three meetings this season, with the ‘over’ cashing on two occasions. In fact, the ‘over’ is 6-2 in the last eight series meetings in Los Angeles.
The first matchup (Oct. 29) saw the Lakers register a 114-106 victory as 3½-point road favorites. The combined 220 points catapulted ‘over’ the 207-point closing total.
Two weeks later (Nov. 14), the Suns got their revenge by outlasting the Lakers as 8½-point road underdogs, 121-116. Though oddsmakers set the total 8½ points higher than the first meeting (215½), the combined 237 points still soared ‘over.’
The most recent meeting (Jan. 5) saw the Lakers edge the Suns as four-point road favorites, 99-95. This was the lone game that dipped ‘under’ the total, which closed at 206 ½ points.
Phoenix has played the fewest games in the Western Conference. That’s a good thing considering they are sitting on the outside looking in at all the other playoff teams.
Alvin Gentry’s Suns have now won their last two games after suffering through a four-game losing skid. That includes Sunday’s 108-99 victory against the Los Angeles Clippers at the same venue where they will play Tuesday’s game.
The Suns covered as 1½-point road underdogs, leaving their spread record at a poor 31-34-3 overall. However, they are 18-14-2 ATS away from home, including 4-0-1 in their last five road dates.
The combined 207 points in Sunday’s game barely dipped below the 208-point closing total, which enabled the ‘under’ to cash in the Suns’ last six outings. The ‘under’ is also 35-33 in the club’s first 68 overall contests.
Aaron Brooks should be back in the Phoenix lineup against the Lakers. The guard missed Sunday’s game against the Clippers because he was serving a one-game suspension for throwing the ball at an official after receiving a technical foul.
The Lakers are coming of Sunday’s hard-fought 84-80 victory against Portland. Los Angeles did not cover as six-point home favorites, lowering its overall spread record to 34-35-1. In addition, the Lakers are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 home games, which lowered their overall spread mark at Staples Center to 13-20.
The combined 164 points never threatened the 186 ½-point closing total, enabling the ‘under’ to improve to 43-27 in the Lakers’ first 70 encounters.
Phil Jackson’s troops played Sunday’s game without starting center Andrew Bynum, who was serving the first game of a two-game suspension. Bynum was ejected from last Friday’s game against Minnesota after committing a flagrant foul.
Lamar Odom started in place of Bynum and contributed 16 points and 11 rebounds. Kobe Bryant, who scored what turned out to be the winning basket, is currently mired in a shooting slump. The all-star guard is 27-for-77 in his last four games.
Though the Lakers have not allowed their opponents to score triple-digits in 11 straight games, they have not registered 100 markers on offense in eight of their last 10 contests.
The Lakers continue this seven-game homestand Friday against the Clippers. The Suns begin a three-game homestand of their own with a Wednesday contest against the Toronto Raptors.