See what the sportsbooks are offering us tonight, as we provide our top NBA picks.
One
noticeable trend throughout the NBA thus far is the large amount of ‘unders’.
Some are due to teams playing back to backs in this shortened season and others
are due to poor play by just observing a team like the Orlando Magic.
Last
night I hit on one of the ‘unders’ with my NBA picks as I took Chicago and
Washington to go under the total. It was a close one as the shots started falling late, but a win is a win.
Let's
take a look at Tuesday slate of games and see which sports betting options we like.
Denver
(14-6) at Memphis (10-10)
NBA Odds: Denver -1.5, 203
Maybe
the Memphis Grizzlies are missing Zach Randolph a little more than I've given
them credit for, as they've lost 4 consecutive games and didn't give much of an
effort against an aging Spurs team in a 83-73 loss on Monday.
Memphis
has the disadvantage of playing games on back to back nights. Offensively,
their two leading players Rudy Gay and Marc Gasol shot a collective 3 for 18
while Gasol had 7 points and Gay managed just 1 point. This is an opportune
time for a tough Denver Nuggets team to come in here and pick up the
"W".
Denver
had a 6 game winning streak, but a poor 4th quarter put an end to that against
the Clippers in a 109-105 loss on Sunday. Denver has played well on the road, as
they've won 5 consecutive road games while averaging 112.4 points per game in
that span.
Denver
might possibly get back guard Ty Lawson, who's been effective when he's played, and look for Danilo Galinari to have another big game on the road. Along with
embarrassing his former team at MSG, Galinari is averaging 19.6 points per game
on this road winning streak and is putting up career highs in every statistical
category. These are 2 teams currently going in opposite directions.
NBA Pick: Denver -1.5
Atlanta
Hawks (15-6) at Toronto Raptors (7-14)
NBA Odds: Atlanta -5.5, 177.5
The
Hawks enter Air Canada Centre winning 3 of 4 on their 5 game road trip.
Atlanta is coming off of a convincing victory over the New Orleans Hornets,
94-72, in which guard Jeff Teague scored a career high 24 points after
coming off of an injury. Atlanta is 11-1 in games that Teague scores 13 or more
points as opposed to 4-5 when he doesn't.
Along
with Teague, this is an offensively talented team with Joe Johnson, Josh Smith,
and Al Horford (currently injured). The Hawks average 97.5 points, which is
good for the way that teams have been playing this season.
The
Raptors are averaging just 87.5 points this season and are currently without their
leading scorer, Andrea Bargnani, due to a left calf strain. The Raptors had to
find a way to make up for Bargnani's 23.5 points and 6.4 points per game.
Forward
DeMar DeRozan has raised his level of play as the Raptors have surprisingly won
3 out of their last 4 games. In their last game, DeRozan scored 27 points in a
victory over the New Jersey Nets. In their last 4 games, the Raptors have
averaged 97.1 points per game. They're just 2-5 at the Air Canada Centre and
are coming off of a long 5 game road trip.
When it comes to NBA betting, I'm going to stick with the total in
this game. It's quite low at 177.5 and that can possibly be attributed to the
lack of offense provided by the Raptors for the season. Missing Bargnani hasn't
seemed to affect the Raptors level of productivity. The total's too low, take
the over.
NBA Pick: Toronto/Atlanta Over 177.5
Charlotte
(3-18) at L.A. Lakers (12-9)
NBA Odds: Lakers -13
The
Los Angeles Lakers couldn't be more than happy to see the injury-plagued
Charlotte Bobcats and their 8 game losing streak step on to the court of the
Staples Center in Los Angeles. This is the last home game that Los Angeles
will play until Valentine's Day as they embark on a 6 game road trip.
Kobe
Bryant has proven this year that he hasn't lost a beat as the best player and
closer in the NBA. Bryant is averaging 30.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.6
assists this season. he is also coming off of a season high 35 points
against the T-Wolves as Minnesota came back from an 18 point deficit, but failed
to shut the door on the Lakers. Bryant also managed to grab 14 rebounds in the
victory.
I've
said this many times before, Kobe Bryant is the best closer in the game. I
remember watching the Lakers play against the Clippers recently and they were
outplayed the entire game and it looked like the changing of the guards as
Blake Griffin dominated the game. Griffin and Metta World Peace seemed to be in
a wrestling match the entire game. My point is, when it was time to close out
the game and get the victory, Kobe Bryant found a way to do it just as he has
throughout his illustrious career.
The
Charlotte Bobcats are no match for the Lakers in this game. They've lost 8
straight, along with 8 straight road games. Rookie guard Kemba Walker is
coming off of a triple double and you might see him carry over the momentum,
but Walker has been very inconsistent in his rookie season.
Star guards D.J.
Augustin and Gerald Henderson have been injured recently and without both of
them playing, the Bobcats have absolutely no chance against L.A. Henderson might
make his return, but he won't be at full force. This is a team that's averaged 85.4
points during their losing streak. Expect to see a lot of Metta World Peace in
garbage time as the Lakers mop of the floor with the Bobcats.
NBA Pick: Los Angeles Lakers -13
Slight
lean
Due
to the question of the availability of Carmelo Anthony and Baron Davis,
sportsbooks have been apprehensive about listing the NBA odds for the Pistons at Knicks
game. Where you can get it, New York is currently a 8.5 point favorite.
The
Knicks have been a train wreck as it seems that Amare Stoudemire has given up
on the offense due to Anthony's inability to be a team player. However, in this
case, the Pistons are also a major disaster and I can see the Knicks covering
here despite all of the dissention on the team. Even Coach D'antoni has stopped
screaming because he doesn't know how to stop the bleeding. Despite a
disastrous start, New York looks good giving the 8.5 points to Detroit.