NBA Handicapping Articles

NBA Odds: Wednesday, May 11 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/10/2016

Apparently, Knicks boss Phil Jackson is in no hurry to hire his next full-time coach as he's off vacationing while all these other teams are interviewing (Rockets, Grizzlies, Pacers) or hiring guys (Kings hired former Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger). Bovada has a special prop on the next Knicks coach, and it's not exactly a banner list. Kurt Rambis, who ended the season as the assistant coach and is tight with Jackson, is the -200 favorite.

Free NBA Picks: Toronto Raptors at Miami Heat Game 4 Props Odds and Predictions
by Chris Vasile - 5/9/2016

The real storyline in this series is the two key injuries to both team's starting centers. Jonas Valanciunas has been ruled out for the remainder of the series after rolling his ankle and having to be helped off the court. Just prior to that, Miami center Hassan Whiteside injured his knee when teammate Luol Deng fell on top of him. Whiteside has been ruled out for Game 4 with a knee sprain and his status for the remaining games is to be determined.

NBA Odds and Picks: Friday and Saturday Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/5/2016

What had been rumored for a few days came true on Thursday: the Indiana Pacers declined to renew the contract of head coach Frank Vogel. On the surface, that seems a stupid move by the team, but I guess you have to trust boss Larry Bird. In six seasons as Pacers coach, Vogel had a 250-181 regular-season record and 31-30 playoff record, including losing in Game 7 to Toronto this season.

Free NBA Picks: Miami Heat at Toronto Raptors Game 2 Props Odds and Predictions
by Chris Vasile - 5/5/2016

The Heat were a mere 3.7 seconds away from capturing Game 1 of the best-of-seven series before Kyle Lowry stepped up from half-court and drained a buzzer-beating three-pointer to force overtime. Hey may have tied the game for my hometown Raptors, but he cost me my bets on Miami's team total (under 93.5) and the full-game "under" 192.

NBA Handicapping: Lots of Blowouts in 2016 Playoffs
by Trevor Whenham - 5/5/2016

So far in these fairly exciting NBA Playoffs one theme has emerged consistently - lopsided wins in games that you wouldn't expect there to be one. I'm not talking about games in the 1-8 or 2-7 first-round matchups - no one really expects those to be close in much cases. In seven games so far, though, we have seen blowouts in games that we could reasonably have expected to be competitive:

NBA Odds and Picks: Thursday and Friday Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/4/2016

The Miami Heat situation continues to get more interesting. Now the NBA Players' Association wants to meet with the team over the Chris Bosh issue. Bosh believes he's ready to return from his blood-clot problem and traveled with the team to Toronto for the first two games of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Yet the Heat continue to be very quiet and vague on the whole situation but have made it pretty clear he's not playing this season.

2016 NBA Finals Possible Matchup Odds with Expert Betting Picks
by George Monroy - 5/3/2016

The NBA Playoffs are a bit of a grind beginning in late April and lasting until mid-June. However, now that the second round is finally underway, we can see the light at the end of the championship tunnel. Six of the eight teams left are legitimate threats to make a Finals appearance (sorry Portland and Atlanta), so bettors should start thinking about placing a futures wager on which matchup we might see in June.

Free NBA Picks: Miami Heat at Toronto Raptors Game 1 Props Odds and Predictions
by Chris Vasile - 5/3/2016

This past Sunday, two cities, one with recent playoff success and the other with next to none, got a taste of joy and jubilation after winning a Game 7 on their home court. Albeit it was just the first round, but both Miami and Toronto have plenty of reason to believe that their postseason run can and should continue at the other's expense.

NBA Odds: Tuesday, May 3 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 5/2/2016

Interesting news out of Indiana after the Pacers were eliminated by Toronto over the weekend. Pacers coach Frank Vogel is very highly regarded around the NBA, but his contract expires and there's been no talk with the team about an extension.

NBA Championship Futures Odds with Picks for Best Value Teams
by George Monroy - 5/2/2016

The 2016 NBA Playoffs have been nothing but a rollercoaster of emotions with injuries to Stephen Curry, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, two sweeps, two Game 7s and a lot of trash talk between Kevin Durant and Mark Cuban. Now that the second round is under way, only the upper-echelon teams remain in both conferences. And while Golden State, San Antonio and Cleveland rule the postseason, let's take a closer look at the updated futures odds and figure out which squads have the most value to win a title this June.

NBA Odds: Conference Semifinals Game 1 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/29/2016

Just one NBA game on Saturday this week and I don't write Sunday for Monday -- we all need one day off -- so I'll switch up a bit here in my Opening Line Report and look at the series opener on Saturday between Oklahoma City and San Antonio and Monday's Game 1 between Atlanta and Cleveland. Entering Friday, those are the only two second-round matchups that are locked in; I expect two first-round series on Friday to conclude but think the third, Raptors-Pacers, will go to a Game 7 on Sunday.

NBA Odds: Friday, April 29, 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/28/2016

The Miami Heat are in a tough position. All-Star forward Chris Bosh publicly said on Tuesday that he wants to return from his blood-clot problem (well, technically his wife did). And obviously he makes the Heat that much better, to the point where I believe Miami could challenge Cleveland for the East title. But the Heat have to protect themselves and the NBA because God forbid if we have a Hank Gathers situation with Bosh on the court.

NBA Playoffs Betting Advice: Totals Wagering Trends
by George Monroy - 4/28/2016

The 2016 NBA Playoffs received a bit of intrigue with the recent injuries of regaining MVP Stephen Curry and Los Angeles Clippers stars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. Curry is expected to miss two to three weeks, while Paul will be side lined indefinitely with a broken wrist and Griffin is expected to miss the remainder of the postseason with a quad injury.

NBA Betting Advice: Lessons Learned About Contenders in First Round
by Trevor Whenham - 4/27/2016

The NBA Playoffs have really just begun. Three teams have already advanced to the second round, but there is still a lot to be determined in this first round. It's never too early to evaluate how the top contenders are doing, though - especially when a league is as top-heavy as this one.

NBA Odds: Wednesday, April 27 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/26/2016

I'm not sure I've ever seen a day like Monday in the NBA playoffs where the championship odds shifted around so much. When we learned that Warriors star and lock repeat NBA MVP Steph Curry would miss at least two weeks with a knee sprain, the Warriors were passed at sportsbooks by the San Antonio Spurs as title favorites. But then the Warriors caught a massive break on Monday night: Clippers star Chris Paul broke his hand against Portland and is expected to miss the rest of the playoffs.

NBA Odds: Tuesday, April 26 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/25/2016

I'm guessing that a sportsbook or two will offer a prop on the next coach of the Los Angeles Lakers because they did a couple of years ago before the team hired Byron Scott. He was informed late Sunday night that he wouldn't be brought back. Really no reason to keep him around now that Kobe Bryant is gone -- that was basically a keep Kobe happy hiring.

NBA Betting Advice: How Steph Curry's Knee Impacts the Odds and Upcoming Rounds
by George Monroy - 4/25/2016

Many NBA pundits and bettors went into the 2016 postseason believing the only thing that could derail the Golden State Warriors historical run would be an injury to presumed-MVP Steph Curry or another key player. Unfortunately, four games into the playoffs, Golden State's worst nightmare may have become a reality.

NBA Odds: Saturday, April 23 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/22/2016

Still not much drama in these playoffs yet, but things suddenly got interesting in the Warriors-Rockets matchup. There's little doubt Golden State would have swept Houston had Steph Curry been healthy. But he has now missed the past two games, and the Warriors dropped Game 3 in Houston on Thursday night on a last-second jumper by James Harden (although he clearly committed an offensive foul to get the space).

NBA Odds: Friday, April 22, 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/21/2016

The Minnesota Timberwolves hired former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau as their coach and team president on Wednesday, and now I fully believe this team can get into the playoffs in 2016-17 as a No. 7 or No. 8 seed with all that young talent and another lottery pick on the way. When Thibodeau took over the Bulls for his first NBA head coaching job, he led an immediate 21-win leap in the standings.

NBA Odds: Thursday, April 21 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/20/2016

So what do you do if you are the Golden State Warriors? It's now pretty clear that the Houston Rockets just don't care and aren't going to put up much of a fight in their first-round Western Conference series. So does Warriors coach Steve Kerr allow Steph Curry to play in Game 3 on Thursday as the series shifts to Texas? Or does he give Curry a few more days to heal that ankle/foot. Curry had an MRI on Tuesday and it came back clear. He is currently listed as questionable. The Warriors will not beat the Clippers in the next round without a fully healthy Curry. I probably sit him at least one more game.