NBA Handicapping Articles

2026 Boston Celtics Predictions with Best Bets and Odds to Win NBA Championship
by Spencer Toth - 9/17/2026

The Boston Celtics are now three years removed from their 2024 championship and failed to win a playoff series last year for the first time since 2021. Losing Jayson Tatum for the first chunk of the season dimmed their title hopes, but they surpassed expectations and went into the playoffs as a serious threat.

2026 Brooklyn Nets Predictions with Best Bets and Odds to Win NBA Championship
by Spencer Toth - 9/17/2026

The expectations are low in Brooklyn with a 24.5 win total, but there is reason for optimism heading into the new season. They finished dead-last in rebounds last season with the second-lowest net rating being dragged down by their last-place offensive rating. Low efficiency offense coupled with very few second chance points and a bad defense is a recipe for disaster, but the offseason moves have Brooklyn back in the mix.

2026 Atlanta Hawks Predictions with Best Bets and Odds to Win NBA Championship
by Spencer Toth - 9/16/2026

After four straight seasons in the play-in tournament, the Hawks finally finished with a top-six seed in 2025-26 with a 46-36 record. However, they were unable to follow that up with a deep playoff run, as they were bounced by the New York Knicks in the first round. Losing in the first round is never fun, but the Hawks did take two games off New York, who went on to win the NBA championship with a 12-1 record in their other three series.

2026 NBA Teams to Tail or Fade Against the Spread
by Spencer Toth - 9/13/2026

The NBA standings provide insight into which teams are the best and the worst in the league, while the against the spread standings show which teams are better or worse than the public expects. No one is arguing that the Charlotte Hornets are the best team in the league, but they certainly exceeded expectations last year with a league-leading 50-32 record against the spread.

Will New NBA Anti-Tanking Measures Make Betting Big Underdogs More Attractive in 2026?
by Spencer Toth - 9/11/2026

The NBA has had a tanking issue for the last several seasons and has resorted to drastic measures to put an end to intentionally losing heading into the 2026-27 season. It still remains to be seen whether or not this will be the final solution to meaningless late-season basketball, but it is certainly a step in the right direction.

NBA Betting Impact of Kawhi Leonard and LA Clippers Cheating Scandal
by Spencer Toth - 9/3/2026

The NBA has reached a verdict on the Kawhi Leonard and Los Angeles Clippers scandal, and it is bad news for Los Angeles. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer was found to have violated the salary-cap circumvention rules and has been suspended from all basketball activities for one year. The team was also fined $30 million; Leonard himself was fined $700,000, while Lawrence Frank and Gillian Zucker were suspended for six months and one year, respectively.

NBA Teams That Gave Up Everything for a Superstar and Got Nothing Back
by Jeremy Block - 6/15/2026

There is a fine line between a front office that is aggressive in the trade market and a front office that makes its decisions based on pure panic. In the modern NBA, the temptation to skip the painful years of rebuilding by dumping draft assets for an established star is almost impossible to resist.

NBA Playoff Meltdowns That Still Don't Make Sense
by Jeremy Block - 6/12/2026

Every year, NBA teams with massive expectations find a way to completely choke under the playoff bright lights. It happens to the best of them, but the most fascinating disasters involve some of the best rosters that had absolutely no business losing.

NBA Coaches Who Got a Big Contract and a Fast Exit
by Jeremy Block - 6/10/2026

In the modern NBA, head coaching contracts have essentially become high-yield savings accounts with zero penalty for early withdrawal. The job security of a coach is entirely tied to the mood swings of the front office, despite how the team is performing. When the relationship sours, the parting of ways happens at lightning speed, leaving franchises to foot astronomical bills for guys who are suddenly being paid to sit on a beach.

6 NBA Players Who Got Blamed for Teams They Never Should Have Been On
by Jeremy Block - 6/8/2026

We constantly watch elite players take the fall for cheap owners, terrible coaching, and downright incompetent management. These legends spent their absolute primes dragging dysfunctional franchises up the standings, so let’s break down six players who took the fall for teams that never deserved their talents in the first place.

NBA Finals Betting Trends Analysis and Expert Handicapping
by Jeremy Block - 6/5/2026

Game 1 of the NBA Finals is already in the books. And with six games or less left in the basketball season, there is not much time left to make some. If you took an “L” last game, no need for a headache before tip-off—I am back with my final NBA trends to watch for the season.

NBA Finals Series Predictions: New York Knicks vs San Antonio Spurs Best Bets
by Spencer Toth - 6/1/2026

The NBA Finals are days away from getting underway, as the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs prepare to lock horns. The Knicks are searching for their first championship since 1973 as they attempt to snap one of the longest title droughts in professional sports.

NBA Players Who Led Their Team in All Five Major Stats in a Playoff Series
by Jeremy Block - 5/29/2026

Most players show up in the playoffs and do their job. They score their points, grab their boards, maybe dish a few assists, and call it a night. Doing all five things at once, and doing them better than every other player on your team, is a completely different level of basketball.

NBA Coaches Who Built Elite Defenses But Never Won a Ring
by Jeremy Block - 5/28/2026

Building a great defense in the NBA is genuinely hard. It takes the right personnel, the right system, the right buy-in from players who would rather score than lock up the opposing teams’ scorers, and a coaching staff obsessive enough to make all of it work night after night across an 82-game season.

Cleveland Cavaliers vs New York Knicks Playoff Series Predictions and Best Bets
by Spencer Toth - 5/19/2026

After years of playoff disappointments, one of the New York Knicks or Cleveland Cavaliers will go to the NBA Finals. New York hasn’t made the Finals since 1999, while Cleveland is looking for their first Finals appearance since the LeBron James era. Both sides have been sniffing around the top for the last decade, but haven’t been able to turn consistent regular-season success into tangible playoff rewards.

NBA Betting Trends Analysis and Expert Handicapping 5/19/2026
by Jeremy Block - 5/19/2026

Two rounds of NBA playoff basketball are in the books. And with the conference finals now tipping off, the real money is on the table. There's plenty of question marks on which bets to ride and which teams to fade, but all that stops here. I'm back with another edition of betting trends to watch out for.

Los Angeles Lakers vs Oklahoma City Thunder Playoff Series Predictions and Best Bets
by Spencer Toth - 5/5/2026

The Oklahoma City Thunder are looking to become the first team since the 2018 Golden State Warriors to win back-to-back NBA championships, but LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers stand in their way. It has been nearly a decade of parity in the NBA, as the last seven NBA champions have been seven different NBA franchises. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the soon-to-be two-time reigning MVP, and the Thunder are looking to snap that streak. They have incredible -150 odds to win the NBA championship with eight teams still remaining in the playoffs.

Cleveland Cavaliers vs Detroit Pistons Playoff Series Predictions and Best Bets
by Spencer Toth - 5/5/2026

The Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons are both looking to take advantage of a wide-open Eastern Conference as they match up in a mouthwatering second-round playoff series. Both teams needed seven games to take down the Raptors and Magic, respectively, but they both closed things out at home with strong defensive showings.

Minnesota Timberwolves vs San Antonio Spurs Playoff Series Predictions and Best Bets
by Spencer Toth - 5/4/2026

The San Antonio Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves clash in the second round of the Western Conference playoffs, with a spot in the conference finals on the line. Minnesota has reached the Western Conference Finals in back-to-back seasons, and is coming off a big win over the Denver Nuggets in the first round. A perennially underrated squad, Minnesota is strong defensively and matches up nicely against the Spurs.

Philadelphia 76ers vs New York Knicks Playoff Series Predictions and Best Bets
by Spencer Toth - 5/4/2026

The New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers renew one of the NBA's oldest rivalries in their second-round matchup in the Eastern Conference playoffs. This is the 11th time the two franchises have met in the postseason, with Philadelphia holding a 6-4 advantage. However, the Knicks have won each of the last two meetings between the two teams, as the last 76ers postseason series win over the Knicks came more than 50 years ago.