NBA Handicapping Articles

NBA Odds: Saturday, May 10, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/9/2014

I very much expected the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs to win their respective conference semifinal series. But I also thought they each would go at least six games. The way things look right now, the Heat and Spurs could finish off sweeps Monday night, sit back and rest up while awaiting their conference finals opponent. I hope I'm wrong, but any chance the Nets and Blazers have down 2-0 have is winning at home Saturday.

NBA Playoffs Betting: Lessons Learned in 2014
by Trevor Whenham - 5/8/2014

It seemed like that gap between the best and the rest wasn’t as big as in past years. Sure, the Heat had an obvious edge on whoever they played in the first round, but that was really the only series that seemed lopsided before the first round started. That seeming parity certainly turned out to be the case as the first round played out. Incredibly, five of the eight series went all the way to seven games.

NBA Odds: Friday, May 9, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/8/2014

Here's why Western Conference basketball is so much better than in the East right now. Take a look at those lines for both Game 3s on Friday night. Identical for the home teams. Ok, fine. Then look at the totals. A 30-point difference! I'm sorry, but watching games in the 80s-90s simply doesn't compare to those in the 100s-110s. It also wouldn't shock me if the Pacers-Wizards went "under" and Thunder-Clippers went "over."

NBA Odds: Thursday, May 8, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/7/2014

The opening games of the Brooklyn-Miami and Portland-San Antonio series were pretty bland, especially after all the fantastic finishes in Round 1. Neither game was much in doubt, and now both the Heat and Spurs look to hold serve Thursday before the series switch venues. A Miami-San Antonio NBA Finals matchup has already jumped from +180 to +110 on Sportsbook.ag.

Los Angeles Lakers Next Coach Odds and Betting Predictions
by George Monroy - 5/6/2014

The Los Angeles Lakers coaching drama has reared it ugly head yet again after Mike D’Antoni resigned from his position last week once he realized the team would not be picking up the option on the final year of his contract. D’Antoni was scheduled to coach next season, but he walked away from guaranteed money because he did not want to be a lame-duck coach working without any certainly.

NBA Odds: Wednesday, May 7, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/6/2014

Even though both road teams playing Wednesday night in the NBA playoffs, the Wizards and Clippers, won the opening-round games of their conference semifinal series fairly easily, oddsmakers aren't that impressed as they both remain underdogs for Game 2. However, both Washington and Los Angeles, having stolen away home-court advantage, have become series favorites.

NBA Playoffs Betting: Second-Round Series Odds and Predictions
by George Monroy - 5/5/2014

The NBA ended the first round of the 2014 Playoffs with five Game 7s over the weekend and a spectacular Game 6 buzzer-beating 3-point shot that may have turned Portland’s Damian Lillard into a star. The playoffs, so far, have been one of the most entertaining, competitive and downright fun set of games in recent postseason memory, and the beauty of it all is that the second round is still yet to come.

NBA Odds: Tuesday, May 6, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/5/2014

The second round of the NBA playoffs is going to have to be quite something to have a chance of matching what was truly an epic first round. The two NBA title favorites, Miami and San Antonio, open their conference semifinals on Tuesday night. A Heat-Spurs rematch in the NBA Finals is a +180 favorite at Sportsbook.ag, followed by Heat-Thunder (+280) and Heat-Clippers (+450). No other exact matchup is below +1000.

NBA Odds: Saturday, May 3, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/2/2014

It's by far the best day of NBA basketball this season on Saturday with three Game 7s. This has never happened in the NBA on one day. All three home teams Saturday were able to pull out road wins in Game 6 as slight favorites to force a winner-take-all. Here's a look at each matchup.

NBA Odds: Friday, May 2, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/1/2014

As good as these NBA playoffs have been thus far, and it has probably been the greatest first round since the series expanded to seven games, it would only be fitting if all three teams down 3-2 in their series won Friday night to set up an epic Sunday of three Game 7s. Here's a look at each Friday matchup.

Five to Follow MLB Betting: Friday May 2, 2014 Opening Line Report
by Alan Matthews - 5/1/2014

I was high on the Los Angeles Angels winning the AL West this season after Texas and Oakland were hit hard by injuries in the spring. That prediction wasn't looking good for a while, but now the Halos are above .500 for the first time since April 1, 2013, heading into a three-game set Friday at slumping Texas. Here's a look at that and four other interesting matchups on the schedule.

NBA Odds: Thursday, May 1, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/30/2014

We could learn one half of the Western Conference semifinals on Thursday night if the Los Angeles Clippers can beat the Warriors in Golden State and the Memphis Grizzlies beat visiting Oklahoma City. The third-seeded Clippers probably had no illusions of having home-court advantage in the conference semifinals, assuming the Thunder would win, but would have it against the No. 7 Grizzlies.

NBA Playoffs Betting Advice: First Round ATS Trends
by George Monroy - 4/29/2014

The NBA is currently embroiled in a huge and saddening controversy over alleged racist comments made by Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling. What has been lost in all the media attention, however, is that the league is experiencing one of the most competitive, and perhaps best, playoffs in NBA history. The Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers series is so evenly matched that the teams played three overtime games during the first four matchups up the series.

NBA Odds: Wednesday, April 30, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/29/2014

Who could have predicted how interesting this series would be with how dominant San Antonio had been against Dallas entering the postseason? The Spurs looked like they had Game 4 in Dallas under control with a 20-point lead in the second half, but the Mavericks came storming back to tie it.

NBA Betting Stock Up, Stock Down: Taking a Closer look at the First Round
by George Monroy - 4/28/2014

Over the weekend, ESPN correspondents Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Bill Simmons both declared the first round of the NBA playoffs to be best they had ever seen. Even though that statement might be a mouthful, can you really disagree with them? Since the 2014 NBA playoffs begin 10 days ago, fans have been treated to seven overtime games, two eight seeds taking a series leads, a seven seed dominating a two seed, and a five seed stealing both Games 1 and 2 on the road.

NBA Odds: Tuesday, April 29, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/28/2014

It should be quite the scene in Los Angeles on Tuesday night when the Clippers play their first home game since the Donald Sterling story broke. Sterling will not be in attendance, which is probably wise for his safety. Here's a look at all three playoff games Tuesday.

NBA Odds: Saturday, April 26, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/25/2014

What more do the Atlanta Hawks and Memphis Grizzlies have to do? They both have 2-1 series leads over their heavily-favored opponents, and both the Hawks and Grizzlies won at home in Game 3. Yet both are dogs again for Game 4. Here is a look at all four NBA playoff games Saturday.

NBA Odds: Friday, April 25, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/24/2014

While all of Thursday's Game 3s of the first-round NBA playoff series saw the road team favored, the sportsbooks favor the home clubs when the three Friday series shift to the lower-seeded teams' court for the first time. Here's a look at each matchup.

NBA Playoff Betting: Value Long Shots
by Darin Zank - 4/24/2014

One trend has become very apparent since the NBA expanded each round of its playoffs to best-of-seven game affairs; it's awfully tough for lower seeds – underdogs – to win a series, let alone a conference title. Best-of-seven series have greatly reduced the chances of upsets. First-round NBA series used to be best-of-three, then best-of-five, and underdogs had a much better chance of taking two out of three games or three out of five from a better team. But four out of seven? Not so much.

Sports Betting Insights: Betting on Early Trends in the NBA Playoffs
by Dave Schwab - 4/23/2014

We are 13 games into this season’s NBA playoffs, with five of the eight series playing its first two games of an opening round best-of-seven series. The final three series will play Game 2 on Wednesday night. There have already been some stunning straight up upsets, including No. 8 Atlanta’s shocking 101-93 win over No. 1 Indiana as an eight-point road underdog in Game 1 of that Eastern Conference clash this past weekend.