NBA Notebook
By Bovada.lv
NBA Week Of Nov. 12 Betting Recap
The Memphis Grizzlies have been one of the big stories of this early NBA season and they provided one of the book's biggest wins and losses of last week in NBA betting.
The top game for the book was Memphis' 105-95 victory over the New York Knicks on Friday, which was the Knicks' first loss of the season. New York had been one of the NBA's top 3-point shooting teams but was 5-for-19 from long range in that one. The Knicks closed as 6-point underdogs and took more than 65 percent of the action. At +200 on the moneyline, New York took more than 56 percent.
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The next night, Memphis played at Charlotte and won 94-87 in the top game for bettors. Memphis closed as a 6.5-point favorite and the game became a boon for players when Grizzlies big man Zach Randolph hit the second of two free throws with 12 seconds left for that seven-point lead. Mike Conley stole a pass by Charlotte's Kemba Walker with seven seconds left to assure that Memphis covered. The Grizzlies took almost 86 percent of the action on the spread and more than 90 percent at -270 on the moneyline.
LeBron James was good for bettors last week as well. In last Monday's win over Houston, LeBron finished well over the 24.5 points total. James had 32 in the second half alone on the way to a season-high 38. Two nights later, LeBron went over 24.5 points again, this time scoring 30 in a 107-100 loss at the L.A. Clippers. Those are the only two games this season in which James has scored at least 30 entering this week. That Clipper game was a great result for the book otherwise as Miami at -1 took nearly 70 percent of the action.
The top player prop results on the week for the book were Spurs point guard Tony Parker under 17.5 points in Saturday's win over Denver (Parker had 14) and Blazers point guard Damian Lillard under 17.5 in Sunday's win against the Bulls. Lillard is the early frontrunner for Rookie of the Year, and the book is highly exposed on him on that prop. The former Weber State star is averaging 19.0 points and 6.1 assists so far. The last NBA player to average at least 19 points and 6 assists through his first 10 career games was Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas, who averaged 21.2 points and 6.9 assists in his first 10 with the Detroit Pistons 31 years ago.
Early-Week Games To Watch
Tuesday's NBA game likely to draw the most action at the book is Brooklyn at the Los Angeles Lakers in what could be the debut of new Lakers head coach Mike D'Antoni on the L.A. bench. He was hoping to debut Sunday but delayed it as he recovers from knee replacement surgery.
D'Antoni has been able to run practices and the Lakers offense already is starting to resemble his up-tempo Suns teams. L.A. has totaled 233 points in winning two straight and can get to .500 with a win over the Nets. Los Angeles is a 6-point favorite at the book. Of course Lakers center Dwight Howard made it clear during his trade demands with the Orlando Magic that he wanted to play in Brooklyn, but the teams could never cut a deal. Then the Lakers stepped in and stole Howard from the Magic in a four-team trade.
The Nets enter Tuesday's game on a five-game winning streak, the best of any Eastern Conference team. However, they have lost eight in a row to the Lakers. It's a light schedule for live betting NBA games at the book this week, with only Wednesday's L.A. Clippers-Oklahoma City matchup on the live schedule. Thunder star Kevin Durant just had the first triple-double of his NBA career, finishing with 25 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in Sunday's 119-109 victory over Golden State. The only team to beat the Thunder since the opening week of the season has been Memphis.
The Clippers, meanwhile, already own victories over NBA heavyweights Memphis, the Lakers, San Antonio and Miami this season. Eight of their 10 games have been at Staples Center, with the lone exceptions a quick trip up the coast to Portland and Monday's game in San Antonio. The Clips have risen to 12/1 to win the NBA title and 13/2 to win the West.