This Week's Best NBA Bets
Covers.com
Each week, we look back on the NBA betting scene and give you the best - and worst - basketball bets, as well as some spots to keep an eye on with the upcoming schedule.
For the week of Dec. 8 to 14.
Hottest ATS - Oklahoma City Thunder (4-0 SU, 4-0 ATS)
The Thunder have won five games in a row going into Sunday's action, covering the spread easily in all five contests, including a 118-94 manhandling of the Eastern Conference leading Indiana Pacers. Kevin Durant has been his typical awesome self during the Thunder's current win streak, scoring 28.8 points and grabbing 8.4 rebounds per game in that span. The Thunder start off the week versus Orlando, then head to Denver, are back home against the spiraling downwards Chicago Bulls, all before a matchup of Western Conference elites in San Antonio.
Coldest ATS - Chicago Bulls (1-3 SU, 0-4 ATS)
Speaking of the devil, here sit the Bulls, who seem to be lost this season without Derrick Rose. Not having Rose in the lineup is nothing new for Chicago, but something is different since their star point guard went down this year. They have won only three of their last 10 games, going 2-8 ATS in that stretch, which includes losses to Utah, Cleveland, Milwaukee and Toronto. They have only averaged 79 points per game in their last five contests. This week the Bulls host Orlando, Houston and Oklahoma City on the road and Cleveland back at home.
Best Over play - Detroit Pistons (1-3 SU, 4-0 O/U)
The Pistons, who were last week's hottest team ATS cooled down a bit last week after matchups with Miami and Minnesota and a tough overtime loss at New Orleans. However, the Pistons hit the Over in every game last week and have gone over the total in eight of the past nine games. The Piston's offense has been improving of late, scoring at least 92 points in their past nine games thanks to a balanced attack. All five starters are averaging at least 13 points per game this season. The Pistons have a tough upcoming week with matchups against Portland, Indiana and Houston.
Best Under play - Boston Celtics (2-2 SU, 1-3 O/U)
The Celtics haven't quite figured out this whole 'tanking' thing yet. That is partly due to the fact that the Atlantic Division is one of the worst divisions in recent memory. The Celtics still lead the division with an 11-14 record, but have been a solid Under play all season thanks to their combination of mediocre offense and good defense. They are now a ranked fifth in points against per game at 95.7 while only scoring 94.8 points per game themselves. Boston has a little three game home stand this week, welcoming Minnesota, Detroit and Washington to town.
Surveying the Schedule:
The San Antonio Spurs are on another winning streak. Their current one is at four games, but they will have a tough road ahead if they want to keep the streak going. They are in the midst of a four game road trip with stops remaining against the high-flying L.A. Clippers, the always tough Phoenix Suns and the electric Golden State Warriors. All this before a showdown of two the West's elite teams when the Oklahoma City Thunder come to town next Saturday night.
NBA Betting Report
Sportspic.com
Looking at how NBA action has panned out for sports bettors our NBA Betting Database tells us the most profitable teams vs the betting line are Blazers cashing 18-of-25 tickets Suns at 15-5-1 and Pacers sporting a 16-7 ATS mark. The least profitable NBA teams at this juncture are Grizzlies at 7-15-1 ATS with Bulls at 7-15 ATS, Bucks a cash draining 8-16 on the campaign.
Overall, favorites have been a losing cause as chalks have recorded a 169-180-5 mark against-the-oddsmaker split between 103-129-3 for home faves, 66-51-2 for roadies laying points. Inside those number, not all favorites can be painted with the same cash draining brush. The most profitable favorite vs the betting line are Pacers posting a 7-4 record on home court, a near perfect 6-1 mark when traveling. Honourable mention goes to Blazers as a favorite treating backers with a 6-4 mark on home court, 5-3 ATS record as road favorite. Some of the least profitable teams laying points are Bulls (3-11), Cavaliers (1-7), Kings (0-7) and Nets (4-8).
On the other side of the equation, Suns lead the underdog group with a profitable 13-3 mark and as expected most gains are made on the road with desert dogs cashing 9-of-11 tickets. The Bobcats (12-5-1), Lakers (11-7-1) are two other dogs with bite. You won't get much bang for the buck (pun intended) backing Milwaukee (8-15) or Grizzlies (2-10) in an underdog roll especially in front of respective home crowds as Bucks are 3-8 in the situation, Grizzlies 0-6 ATS.
The NBA team that is averaging the most points per game are Blazers netting 107.9 points every time they take the floor with Bucks at the bottom of the rung scoring a lowly 89.8 per/contest. Defensively, the Pacers lead the league surrendering a messily 89.5 per/game while Sixers are the dregs in this department allowing opponents a whopping 110.4 points/contest. No surprise Bobcats (7-16-1 O/U), Pacers (9-14 O/U) are good 'Under' plays with Blazers (18-7 O/U), Sixers (16-9 O/U) solid 'Over'
Can These Bad NBA Teams Continue To Be Good Bets?
By Covers.com
When it comes to mining for NBA gold, some of the worst SU teams have provided the strongest value.
As oddsmakers continue to punish the East for being miles behind its West counterpart, the weaker conference actually houses some of the strongest ATS bets through the opening quarter of the season. And one rather well-known Western Conference team has fared well ATS despite opening without its biggest star.
Here are four teams that have been decidedly kinder to bettors than they have to their own fans:
Charlotte Bobcats (10-14 SU, 14-9-1 ATS)
Charlotte has actually been decent - by Bobcats standards, at least - as it looks to turn things around following last season's 21-61 debacle. The Bobcats have shown a keen ability to stay in games this year, which explains why they have one of the conference's best ATS records despite being well below .500. The main reason for Charlotte's success: a stifling defense allowing the third-fewest points in the league (92.5) entering Tuesday's action. Not surprisingly, that has also made the Bobcats one of the best "under" plays of the year (7-16-1 O/U).
Boston Celtics (12-14 SU, 15-11 ATS)
The Atlantic Division-leading Celtics may not be the powerhouse unit of years gone by, but they're using many of the same tactics to thrive. Boston has defended all areas of the court well, but has been particularly stingy beyond the arc, limiting opponents to a league-worst 32.2-percent success rate. The Celtics have struggled on the offensive end, but some of those problems should disappear with the return of injured point guard Rajon Rondo. Unfortunately, the odds will likely be adjusted to reflect that - making Boston a less solid ATS play.
Washington Wizards (10-13 SU, 13-10 ATS)
While Charlotte and Boston have provided ATS value with strong defensive play, the Wizards are in the mix thanks to a surprisingly potent offense. Led by electrifying point guard John Wall, the Wizards are averaging 98.3 points per night - more than five points ahead of last year's mark - and have been one of the deadliest teams from long range, hitting 38.4 percent of their 3-point attempts. That hot shooting has enabled the Wizards to keep pace with favored teams - particularly of late, as they're 3-1 ATS in their last four games as an underdog.
Los Angeles Lakers (11-13 SU, 13-10-1 ATS)
Mike D'Antoni may not earn any Coach of the Year votes at season's end, but his ability to keep the Lakers semi-competitive despite being without injured star Kobe Bryant and fellow aging guard Steve Nash has been impressive. Los Angeles found a way to remain offensively efficient in Bryant's absence - averaging better than 100 points per game - and that has made the Lakers a tough out. Yet, with Bryant back in the fold, the Lakers have actually begun to lose value - going 1-4 ATS - as oddsmakers account for Los Angeles' perceived improvement with him in the lineup.