Tag: NBA

Charlotte Hornets at Washington Wizards odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Friday’s Charlotte Hornets at Washington Wizards sports betting odds and lines, with NBA betting picks, tips and best bets.

The Washington Wizards (4-8) host the Charlotte Hornets (6-9) Friday at Capital One Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. We analyze the Hornets-Wizards odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.

Hornets at Wizards: Key injuries

Wizards

  • C Ian Mahinmi (Achilles) out

Hornets at Wizards: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated Friday at 1 p.m. ET.

Prediction

Wizards 123, Hornets 114

Moneyline (ML)

The WIZARDS (-278) are a safe choice Friday with both teams largely unaffected by injury and able to use their full lineups. Washington is coming off a 138-132 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday and is 2-3 at home. Charlotte is 3-5 on the road and is coming off consecutive losses to the Toronto Raptors (132-96) and Brooklyn Nets (101-91), both of which were on the road.

Both teams enter off a rest day, further allowing them to use their best players as much as possible. The Hornets’ average point differential of minus-7.9 ranks second-worst in the Eastern Conference. The Wizards are minus-1.4, but they score nearly 15 more points than the Hornets on average.

New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Wizards to win outright returns a profit of $3.60.

Against the Spread (ATS)

Save yourself some money on the required investment and back the WIZARDS (-5.5, -129) with the points. They’ll need to win by six or more for the same $10 bet to fetch a reward of $7.75.

Washington is 8-3 ATS overall and 3-2 on home court. The Hornets are 8-7 overall and 5-3 on the road. The Wizards rank fifth in the NBA with a pace of 105.08 possessions per game while the Hornets are just 23rd at 100.17 average possessions. Washington will be able to pull away late to cover comfortably.

Over/Under (O/U)

The total of 232.5 is the highest on Friday’s slate, but we’re still taking the OVER (-129). The Wizards are the only team in the Association allowing more than 120 points per game (121.1) and only the Milwaukee Bucks are scoring more than Washington’s 119.7 PPG. The Wiz are 7-4-1 against the O/U and top the projections by an average of 12.5 points per game.

Charlotte is 7-8 against the O/U while falling an average of 1.7 points shy of the number, but the Hornets are far from a defensive juggernaut (112.8 PPG allowed) and will need to play up to Washington’s pace.

Want some action in this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Esten’s NBA betting record: 34-38

Follow @EstenMcLaren and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Clippers odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Friday’s Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Clippers sports betting odds and lines, with NBA picks, tips and best bets.

The Houston Rockets (11-4) face the Los Angeles Clippers (10-5) Friday night with tip-off coming just after 10:30 pm ET at Staples Center. We analyze the Rockets-Clippers odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.

Rockets at Clippers: Key injuries

Rockets:

  • C Tyson Chandler (rest) probable

Clippers:

  • SG Landry Shamet (ankle) out

Rockets at Clippers: Odds, lines, picks, and betting tips

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 8:15 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Clippers 120, Rockets 114

Moneyline (ML)

The Rockets are 11-4 on the moneyline while Los Angeles is 10-5. James Harden and Russell Westbrook clash with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard in a star-studded matchup.

Our pick is with the CLIPPERS (-200) but very, very close.

New to sports betting? A $10 wager on Los Angeles returns a profit of $5.00.

Line/Against the Spread (ATS)

Neither team has covered spreads well this year. Los Angeles is 8-7 overall against the spread while Houston is just 7-8. Houston on the road is a slightly worse 3-5 while Los Angeles is 7-3 at home and exceeds projections by 5.3 points per contest.

This makes the choice easy. Back LOS ANGELES (-4.5, -115). The Clippers could come close to or exceed 120 in this tilt and Los Angeles only needs to win by five or more points.

Over/Under (O/U)

The projected total is set at 226.5. It seems like a low number given both teams’ propensity to score. Houston averages a ton of points while Los Angeles can top 120 routinely. It will be dicey but the -115 for the OVER is a manageable number.

Want some action on this game? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips and advice, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Follow @ChrisWasselDFS and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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No, Brandon Ingram isn’t Kevin Durant, but he’s making the Pelicans’ Anthony Davis trade look so good

What a breakout!

Of all the “gonna tell my kids” memes — which are great, keep ’em coming — the one that made me stop in my tracks was all the comparisons made (probably in jest but whatever) by NBA fans between Brandon Ingram and Kevin Durant.

Durant, of course, is a once-in-a-generation player, who will end his career as one of the league’s greatest scorers.

That said, Ingram has broken out in a BIG way for the New Orleans Pelicans, who dealt for him as part of the Anthony Davis trade. He’s leading the Pelicans in scoring (25.6 ppg), is second in rebounds (7.4 rpg), and is dishing at a career-best 4.1 apg. Plus, he’s swatting a shot per game and hitting 45 percent (!) of his 5.5 three-point attempts.

This is obviously the best news ever for the Pels, who were forced to deal The Brow and attempt to get the bet possible value for a disgruntled superstar. And I’d say they got a terrific return: Ingram has become a centerpiece as a stretch scorer. Josh Hart has taken a step forward as a shooter off the bench. Lonzo Ball has missed time with a groin injury, and although his shooting continues to be a problem, he’s not the starter, which masks some of his weaknesses and focuses on his strengths like his defense.

Plus, the Pels ended up trading the first-round pick that was De’Andre Hunter to the Hawks and got the eighth overall selection, which they used to take Jaxson Hayes, who will be a rim protector as he develops.

When’s the last time there’s been a pretty even trade like this one?

But really, it’s all about Ingram. Let’s all remember he’s just turned 22 and is in just his fourth season. The hope is he’ll keep this up when Zion Williamson returns, but even if the rookie takes a little chunk out of his workload, Ingram will still be a vital part of the rebuild in the Big Easy.

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Collin Sexton takes another step towards NBA stardom

The Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Miami Heat with a final score of 100-124 to have a record of 4-10 to start the season. While their record may not be all that great, one player is continuing to grow into what may be the next young star. Former …

The Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Miami Heat with a final score of 100-124 to have a record of 4-10 to start the season.

While their record may not be all that great, one player is continuing to grow into what may be the next young star.

Former Alabama guard Collin Sexton has been putting up solid numbers in the wins and the losses.

In the loss against Miami, Sexton had 19 points and two rebounds.

So far in the 14 games played in the 2019 – 2020 season, Sexton averages 18 points per game, two assists, three rebounds and a field goal percentage of just over 44 percent.

While his name may be hidden due to the Cavaliers’ poor performances or drowned out because of the many young stars all over the league, his talent has not gone unrecognized within the organization.

Cavaliers head coach John Beilein claims that Sexton is developing into something special.

“He’s learning how to play. He’s 20 years old. He’s playing against some really good players every single day. We’re hoping that he grows daily to just be a really good backcourt player,” says Beilein, “I think last year, probably a scorer who could play point guard, but if he can ever get to be able to do both, have the mentality either way, that’s a special player.”

David Zavac, of “Fear The Sword,” argues that Sexton has the “strength and athleticism” to be a difference maker on this Cleveland team.

Zavac argues that with Sexton’s continued growth, he could be a new key play-maker on the team not named Kevin Love or Tristan Thompson.

There is plenty of time left in Sexton’s sophomore season to show signs of strong improvement, and even establish a presence on the national level across the league.

Even if the 2019-2020 season is only a small stepping stone in the right direction to what will hopefully become a long and successful career in the NBA.

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Why we still shouldn’t trust Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 3-point shooting

Giannis isn’t exactly a great three point shooter…yet

To say Giannis Antetokounmpo has never been the NBA’s best shooter is a  massive understatement. Once he picks up the ball and chucks it at the basket like a shot put, that’s a win fore the defense.

They’d rather him do that than have him gliding to the rim and casually dunking all over the defense. That strategy has worked against him relatively speaking — he did win the MVP last season, after all.

But that broken jumper is part of the reason why the Raptors were able to turn the tables on the Bucks midway through their playoff series last year. It was a legit weakness. At least until now, it seems.

That said… I still don’t really trust it.

Giannis is a better, but inconsistent, shooter

Defenses should still give Antetokounmpo all the cushion they need to stop him from getting to the rim. That’s where he’s most dangerous at, obviously.

But even on top of that, his 3-point shot isn’t prolific, by any means. He’s shooting 30 percent on 4.9 attempts per game. For a player of his caliber, that’s more than enough to give defenses pause. But a dive a bit deeper into the numbers says this shooting might not last.

Right now, Antetokounmpo’s three point field goals are coming after three to six dribbles according to NBA.com’s stats database.  He’s shooting 34.1% on those, which is just a dip below league average. That’s a good number and it gets even better. He hits 37.5 percent of his 3-pointers when he takes just one dribble.

Most of his makes from deep are pull-up shots like this one.

Those dribbles on his makes are used to establish his rhythm and make the shot all one smooth-ish motion. It’s still not a great jumper, but it’s good enough.

When he grabs the ball off the catch, he’s still lining the shot up and getting his feet right. When he catches the ball, it’s like he’s still loading up.

His shot has made some progress, but it’s still inconsistent enough that you’ll live with it as a result if you’re the defense. He only shoots 30 percent for a reason.

Defenses should still give him this shot

Here’s where the concern comes in: He’s only hitting 15.4 percent of his spot-up attempts and is only taking 0.9 threes per game without a single dribble. That’s typically the easiest three you can take — especially from the corner. Yet he doesn’t take them and, when he does, he doesn’t hit them.

There’s a theme here. Antetokounmpo isn’t a great stand-still shooter. He’s shot under 30 percent from 3-point range after not taking a single dribble in five of the seven years of his career. The only two he was above 30 percent were his rookie year when he shot 32 percent and the 2017-18 season when he shot 34.5 percent.

He’s got the ball in his hands for most of the game, so he’s largely able to pick and choose what shots from deep he’s going to take. But pull-up 3’s are hard, even when no one is guarding you.

The Bucks, as a team, are shooting 37.9 percent off of one dribble but 30 percent from deep off of three to six dribbles. The more they dribble, the worse the shot quality gets.

Giannis is becoming a threat from deep, but he’s not a great one. So while he’s shooting a bit more, it’s not quite a wrap for the rest of the NBA just yet. If he keeps progressing like this, though? Good luck.

UT News: November 21, 2019

UT News: November 21, 2019

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The Tennessee Volunteers basketball program — both men and women — remain unbeaten after after the guys handily defeated the Alabama State Hornets last night, keeping Vols athletics on its current roll. Coming up this weekend, the football team will get its chance to continue the winning trend when it faces the Missouri Tigers on the road, and the swimming and diving team hosts the Tennessee Invitational over the course of three days beginning today. There is plenty on tap as the week winds down for Vols fans, and the teams are ready.

Vols are practicing at their best

The biggest news on the gridiron has been the Vols’ preparation for what amounts to a must-win game if Tennessee wants to keep its bowl hopes alive. According to head coach Jeremy Pruitt, the boys are putting in the work, and it appears to be paying off.

“The last two days have been our best practices all year here in the season and I like the way we practice. Our guys seem to be gaining some confidence, and I’m talking about confidence in what they’re doing. That comes with age and experience. We’ve got to take it from the practice field and take it to a Saturday.”

Pruitt added that the bye week allowed players who have been banged up a little more time to get back up to speed.

“We got guys that our banged up from the last game, but having a week off we tried to get them ready to play, but at the same time use common sense. There might be a couple of guys that might be a little bit limited, but we should have everybody ready to play.”

This news should be extremely encouraging to Vols fans, as the team appears to be peaking as the season wanes. Hopefully, the fruits of UT’s labors will be reaped on Saturday.

NEXT: Lady Vols golf coach honored with award

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Trail Blazers-Bucks odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Thursday’s Portland Trail Blazers at Milwaukee Bucks betting odds and lines, with NBA matchup analysis, picks and tips.

The Portland Trail Blazers (5-10) visit the Milwaukee Bucks (11-3) Thursday at Fiserv Forum. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET. We analyze the Trail Blazers-Bucks odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.

Trail Blazers at Bucks: Key injuries

Trail Blazers

  • PG Damian Lillard (back) out
  • C Hassan Whiteside (hip) questionable
  • C Zach Collins (shoulder) out
  • C Jusuf Nurkic (leg) out
  • SG Anfernee Simmons (ankle) questionable

Milwaukee

  • SF Khris Middleton (thigh) out

Trail Blazers at Bucks: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 12:30 p.m. ET.

Prediction

Bucks 115, Blazers 100

Moneyline (ML)

The Bucks (-1000) enter as winners of five straight with the Trail Blazers (+625) dropping each of their last two. Milwaukee is 3-1 straight up at home and returns from a successful 3-0 road trip where it won each game by no fewer than eight points. Portland is 4-6 on the road (better than its 1-4 home record) but lost its last two games by a combined 35 points.

The Blazers had Wednesday off while the Bucks were taking care of the Atlanta Hawks (135-127). Even on the second half of a back-to-back, the Bucks won’t lose this game, but we’re not going to touch these odds.

New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Bucks to win outright returns a profit of $1.

Against the Spread (ATS)

The Blazers are 6-8 ATS overall, 5-5 ATS on the road. The Bucks are 7-7 overall and 2-2 at home. They are often favored by large amounts, but they cover by an average of two points. Portland falls an average of 3.5 points shy of the cover.

Milwaukee ranks first in the Eastern Conference and second in the NBA with an average point differential of plus-9.3, winning 119.6-110.3. Portland is outscored by 3.4 points on average with an average score of 115.3-111.9 in favor of the opposition.

Take the host BUCKS (-13.5, -106) with a $10 bet returning a profit of $9.43 should the hosts win by 14 or more.

Over/Under (O/U)

Take the UNDER 226.5 (-106). The over is 9-6 in Blazers games, topping the projection by an average of 1.7 points per game. The Bucks are 7-6-1 in favor of the over, clearing the number by an average of 4.8 points. The injuries for Portland and the back-to-back situation for Milwaukee will temper the scoring.

Want some action in this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Esten’s NBA betting record: 32-34

Follow @EstenMcLaren and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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Pelicans-Suns odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Thursday’s New Orleans Pelicans at Phoenix Suns betting odds and lines, with NBA matchup analysis, picks and tips.

The New Orleans Pelicans (5-9) visit the Phoenix Suns (7-6) Thursday at Talking Stick Resort Arena for a 10:30 p.m. ET start. We analyze the Pelicans-Suns odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.

Pelicans at Suns: Key injuries

Pelicans

  • PF Derrick Favors (back) out
  • SG Josh Hart (knee) out
  • C Jahlil Okafor (ankle) questionable

Suns

  • C Aron Baynes (hip) out
  • PG Ricky Rubio (back) doubtful

Pelicans at Suns: Odds, lines, picks, and betting tips

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 10:40 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Suns 112, Pistons 103

Moneyline (ML)

The -200 line for the SUNS is probably a bit high with Rubio still sidelined, but New Orleans is just 1-5 away from home.

Phoenix is only 5-4 at home but has looked better of late and again gets a New Orleans team more banged up than itself.

New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Bulls to win outright returns a profit of $5.00.

Line/Against the Spread (ATS)

The value play for this game is taking the SUNS with the -5.5 points at +105 odds. A Phoenix cover (win by six or more points) returns a greater profit of $10.50.

Phoenix is 9-4 against the spread (6-3 at home) overall this season and above the cover line by six points per game. New Orleans is just 2-4 on the road and falls an average of two points below projections.

Over/Under (O/U)

The bet would be a lean to the UNDER 234.5 (-115). With several more high-profile injuries, the game flow seems to indicate a lower-scoring affair. These two teams combined can barely muster 230 points per game.

Want some action in this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Chris’ NBA betting record: 48-32

Follow @ChrisWasselDFS and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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The Spurs need to do what they’ve never had to do before — a full tear down

It’s time.

A little history lesson for you all: since the San Antonio Spurs joined the NBA from the ABA in 1976, the franchise has missed the postseason four times.

FOUR TIMES!

That speaks to the absolutely incredible run the Spurs have had over the decades, thanks in part to an incredible succession plan that worked out for them: they basically went from George Gervin to David Robinson to Tim Duncan (plus Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker) to Kawhi Leonard. Gregg Popovich is a legend, obviously, and the front office stability has been the kind of thing other NBA franchises attempt to mimic and fail at.

Remarkable, yes, and it would have kept going, too. But then Leonard demanded a trade out of town, and there was no way the Spurs could get back the kind of return they deserved for him.

And that’s a long-winded way of getting to the point: for what might be the first time in franchise history, the Spurs should tear it all down and rebuild.

San Antonio started off the season 4-1. Since then, they’ve lost nine of their last 10, and on Wednesday night, they lost to the lowly Washington Wizards. They allow 116.2 points per game and have the third-worst defensive rating in the NBA. They shoot threes decently (35.1 percent) … but they barely shoot them (25.5 attempts per contest).

You could say there’s time to recover from that, but as everyone expected, there are six bona fide top-end contenders in the West, and there might be three teams (all surprises in the Suns, Timberwolves and Kings) vying for the final two playoff spots. Heck, maybe the Trail Blazers figure out their woes (I’m not sure they can) and Zion Williamson’s return sparks a bit of a Pelicans run.

My point is: the Spurs would be fighting for a chance to have a first-round exit. Wouldn’t you rather see the franchise reboot and start anew?

The timing is terrific. DeMar DeRozan has a player option for next season before he’s a free agent. LaMarcus Aldridge has one more year on his deal after this season, as do Rudy Gay and Patty Mills. All of them could fetch some good returns from contenders. Sure, DeRozan doesn’t shoot threes, the flaw that’s followed him throughout his entire career, but who doesn’t want a player who can score like he does? Aldridge is as underrated as he’s always been.

Then, the Spurs can concentrate on whatever they get in return and the development of point guard Dejounte Murray, fellow backcourt mate Derrick White and Lonnie Walker, the 18th overall pick in 2018. Bryn Forbes has been a revelation as a shooter, so he’s a keeper as well.

It’s a pretty great position to be in for a team that lost out on having one of the NBA’s players under contract for the future, one who would have attracted other talent to come (a reminder that we just learned from ESPN that Paul George wanted to be dealt to San Antonio while Leonard was still a Spur). The one downside? Maybe Coach Pop doesn’t want to stick around for a rebuild, and that’s understandable after coaching for … 24-plus seasons!!!

But if the Spurs want to get back to consistent year-to-year contention, the time might be now to tear it all down.

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