The Mavericks and Blazers split this season, but the last game was on December 29th. Things are different now, and the Blazers have a game plan, and they're showing off. The Mavericks have lost their last five games, while the Blazers have won five of their last six, and in their last two games, they put an identical beatdown on the Bucks and the Nets, allowing 99 points each. I think Dallas is going to get one tonight. The Blazers have had one night of rest and are having a blast at 37-37, sitting as the ninth seed in the playoff forecast with eight games to go. Blazers are in playoff form right now and win by 15 or more.
The Hawks had their 11-game winning streak broken last night in a 117-95 loss at Houston. The Warriors play the fifth game of a six-game road trip after losing in Detroit last night, 115-101. The Warriors have lost seven of their last eight games. They have a whole roster on the injured list, including Jimmy Butler, Steph Curry, Al Horford, and about 10 more guys. What's going on with Steve Kerr? All his players are hurt? He can't seem to win without Steph Curry. Golden State has gone 6-14 since Steph Curry was injured on January 30th. The Warriors have the 10th seed in the West, while the Hawks are a half-game from taking over the sixth seed in the East. Hawks to cover.
Hornets beat the Magic by 15 or more in the last two games they met this season. The Magic last played two nights ago, losing to Oklahoma City. The night before that, they lost to the Hawks, but they had won seven games prior. The Hornets last played two nights ago, throttling Miami 136-106, ending a streak of five games where they didn't cover. The Hornets are 35-34, sitting as the 10th seed, 3.5 games back from the Magic, who are the 6th seed at 38-30. This will be the Hornets second game of a seven-game home stand, and I like the relaxed home-cooking to set a positive tone for this squad. Hornets to cover.
The Hawks last played the Mavericks on March 10th, winning 124-112 as a 10-point home favorite, which made it seven straight wins for the Hawks at the time. That streak is still alive, and it's up to 10 games straight after they beat the Magic 124-112 as 3.5-point favorites two nights ago in Atlanta. They've covered nine of their last 10 games. This team is now 37-31 on the season, sitting as the 8th seed, one win behind the 5th seed. They are having a blast, and it shows on the stat sheet. Jalen Johnson gets himself another triple-double tonight, and the Hawks cover at Dallas.
The Lakers have won eight of their last nine games, including their last five, but all five were at home. Seven of their last nine have been at home. The Rockets have lost four of their last eight games, losing three of them on the road. The only time they met this season was Christmas Day, and the Rockets won 119-96. But we know so much more about the Lakers now than we did then. They're finding a way to play winning basketball together. Alperen Sengun missed his last game, and the Rockets haven't covered six of their last eight. I think the Lakers will be up for the road test tonight. Lakers to win.
We've got two of the top four under teams in the NBA playing tonight, with the Suns playing at Boston. The Suns come off a loss at Toronto when they were leading with 8:12 to go, and they have gone over the total in their last three games, all on the road. It ended a four-game win streak. The two teams have gone under in their last two meetings, and the Celtics have gone under in seven of their last eight games. They are also the No. 1 under team in the NBA, hitting at 65.7%. The Suns are the No. 4 under team, hitting 58.2% of the time. The under.
The Lakers and Nuggets have split their two games played in Denver, and they play their third and last meeting of the regular season tonight in Los Angeles, with the Nuggets favored by 3. The game figures to be a crucial tiebreaker as both teams have 41 wins on the season, along with the Rockets and Timberwolves. The Nuggets should have Aaron Gordon back tonight, making them almost completely healthy. The Nuggets have won and covered two straight with a blowout over the Rockets and a come-from-behind win at San Antonio. The Lakers are playing their best basketball of the season, winning and covering seven of their last eight games. It should be a close game, but I'm taking the Lakers plus the points.
The Lakers beat the Bulls 129-118 in Chicago on January 6th, covering the -1.5 spread. The Lakers have 40 wins on the season and 35 covers, but most of them are against lousy teams. They can't get over the hump against the good team. They made a nice effort in challenging that statement by beating the Knicks a couple of days ago. They've won and covered three straight, and after a loss to Denver, they won and covered another three straight. So that's six out of seven games they've won and covered, and the Bulls fit the profile of a team that the Lakers win and cover against. Lakers to cover.
The Pistons have an East-leading 45 wins, covering 32 of those games, and being equally good on the road (21-9) as they are at home (23-7). The Nets have only 15 wins on the season, and they're on a 10-game losing streak where they've covered only one game in that span. The Pistons have lost two straight coming into tonight. The Pistons have also won five straight against the Nets, including covering eight straight. The last time they met was on February 1st, and Detroit won 130-77 as 14-point favorites. Detroit covers tonight.
The Nets and Heat have met twice this season, with Miami winning and covering by 11 points or more. They met two nights ago in Miami, where the Heat won 124-94, covering 13 points. It's the same situation tonight. Michael Porter is failing lately as the Nets primary scorer, shooting 0-for-9 from 3-point range on Tuesday night. The team shot 38% from the field. The Nets are now 15-46 and have lost their last nine in a row. Just one game out from having the worst record in the NBA. They're tanking and don't even care who knows. They've only covered one game out of their last nine. Heat to cover.
The Celtics last played on Monday and won their third straight game, while the Hornets won and covered their fifth straight game yesterday. The Hornets are now 31-31, sitting with the 9th seed. Now, they're only two games from the 6th seed. They're moving up fast. Do I trust the Hornets against a team like the Celtics that plays solid defense, holding teams below 100 in nine of their past 13 wins? The Hornets have won 15 of their last 18 games. Only three teams have beaten them since January 22nd. This is their first meeting this year, and the Celtics have won the previous six meetings. I'm buying this Hornets squad on the road with no rest.
The Spurs had an 11-game winning streak going until they faced the Knicks on Sunday at MSG. The Spurs shot only 42% from the field and 26% from 3-point range, while turning the ball over 22 times. It may have been one of the un-Spurs-like moments of the year. The Spurs are second in the West and look like the best team in basketball. They win on the road almost as impressively as their 21-6 home record. This is their first meeting with the 76ers this season after beating them 128-120 last March. Spurs to cover. Spurs start up another winning streak tonight and cover. Let's say the Spurs win by 10 or more.
The Charlotte Hornets have won and covered their last four games, and they have taken over as the NBA's best cover team at 38-23 ATS. The Hornets are almost .500 at 30-31, but they're 10th in the standings, which would be a playoff berth right now. They're moving up fast. They're only three wins from the 76ers, who are currently the sixth seed. Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg is listed as day-to-day, but he hasn't played in 3 weeks. The Hornets won their last four by at least 16 points and have covered their last seven games. The Hornets have something groovin' right now, cover tonight.
The Lakers can't beat the good teams, but they feast on the bad teams. Even though the Suns have a winning record on the season, the current state of the team says they're bad. They’ve lost six of their last eight. Once the best covering team in the NBA, they’ve failed to cover seven times in their last eight games. The Lakers have lost four of their last six, but those were all to good teams on a home stand. The Lakers owe the Suns some payback after losing to them 132-108, without Luke Doncic, on December 23rd. Who knows who's going to play for the Suns tonight, but it's a good bet it's not going to be Devin Booker. Lakers to cover.
The Spurs have won and covered the last four meetings with the Nets. Currently, they have won 10 straight games, but they played last night at Toronto and didn't cover -6. The Spurs look like the best team in the West. They're playing together as a team with everyone clicking. The balls are bouncing their way. And the team they're playing, the Nets, is the complete opposite of the Spurs, sitting 15-42 on the season and losing large in their last five games. The Nets blew a big lead on Sunday at Atlanta, and while they scored 17 points in the fourth quarter, it seemed like they didn't score for the final 6 minutes of the game. A Nets brain freeze moment. Spurs cover.