The Dallas Mavericks (42-26) head to Barclays Center Wednesday to play the Brooklyn Nets (36-33) at 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN). Below, we look at the Mavericks vs. Nets odds and lines, and make our expert NBA picks, predictions and bets.
Dallas has won seven of its last eight games — 5-2-1 against the spread (ATS) — which includes back-to-back road wins at the Houston Rockets Friday (113-110) and Boston Celtics Sunday (95-92).
Brooklyn won its fourth straight game Tuesday after crushing the Magic 150-108 in Orlando as Nets SG Kyrie Irving scored 60 points on 20-for-31 shooting. However, as per the New York City COVID-vaccine mandate, Kyrie will not be playing in Brooklyn Wednesday.
The Nets beat the Mavs 102-99 in Dallas, covering as 1.5-point road favorites in their first meeting Dec. 7.
Mavericks at Nets odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 11:45 a.m. ET.
- Money line (ML): Mavericks -150 (bet $150 to win $100) | Nets +122 (bet $100 to win $122)
- Against the spread: Mavericks -2.5 (-120) | Nets +2.5 (-105)
- Over/Under (O/U): 221.5 (O: -107 | U: -115)
Mavericks at Nets key injuries
Mavericks
- None
Nets (not yet submitted)
- SG Seth Curry (ankle) questionable
- PG Kyrie Irving (ineligible to play) out
- PG Ben Simmons (reconditioning) out
[tipico]
Mavericks at Nets odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Mavericks 107, Nets 102
Money line
BET MAVERICKS (-150), all the way up to -170 before laying the points with Dallas instead.
Brooklyn ranks 21st in defensive rating and Dallas performs well and is profitable against teams in the bottom-10 of defensive efficiency.
The Mavs are 15-7 SU versus bottom-10 defenses with a plus-10.1 adjusted net rating (ranked seventh) and a plus-3.5 ATS margin (ranked third), according to CleaningTheGlass.com (CTG).
Dallas is sixth in defensive rating and Brooklyn is 8-15 SU versus top-10 defenses with a minus-3.7 adjusted net rating (ranked 15th) and minus-3.1 ATS margin (ranked 22nd), per CTG.
This is a also way better spot for the Mavs who are 12-3 SU as road favorites (plus-9.5 margin of victory) whereas the Nets are 2-5 SU as home underdogs (minus-11.0 margin of victory) and 2-9 SU in the second of a back-to-back (minus-6.5 margin of victory).
The MAVERICKS MONEY LINE (-150) is my favorite wager in this contest.
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Against the spread
I prefer Dallas’s ML but the MAVERICKS -2.5 (-120) is certainly the right side. Dallas is 11-4 ATS on the road versus teams with a winning record and has covered seven straight games versus winning teams.
Furthermore, Brooklyn is 2-5 ATS as home underdogs, 2-8-1 ATS on the second of a back-to-back and 3-13-1 ATS at home versus winning teams.
LEAN MAVERICKS -2.5 (-120) since Dallas’s ML is only 30 cents on the dollar more expensive.
Over/Under
LEAN UNDER 221.5 (-115) because my numbers say this total should be at least 10 points lower.
Both teams have a below-average free-throw attempt rate and a top-10 defensive effective field goal percentage.
There could also be a bunch of one-and-done possessions since Dallas has a low offensive rebounding rate, which helps Brooklyn who struggles closing out possessions on the boards. However, the Nets don’t crash the glass on offense and the Mavs are a fantastic defensive rebounding team.
These teams have a combined 28-37 O/U record when playing teams with a winning record. Since this is a nationally televised, primetime matchup pitting two All-NBA-caliber dudes head-to-head, this game will have more of a playoff atmosphere.
My favorite play in this game is Dallas’s ML, but there’s value in the UNDER 221.5 (-115).
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