NBA Handicapping Articles

NBA Odds: Friday, April 1, 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/31/2016

So Friday is the first day of the final month of the NBA's regular season. And looking at the standings, it's been largely a chalk season thus far. The top four teams in the East are Cleveland, Toronto, Atlanta and Miami. All expected. The only newcomer to the top four from last year's final standings is the Heat; they have taken the place of the ultra-disappointing Chicago Bulls. In the West, you have a top four of Golden State, San Antonio, Oklahoma City and the L.A. Clippers.

NBA Betting and Handicapping: How to Wager on Playoff Teams Down the Stretch
by Trevor Whenham - 3/31/2016

As we sit here in the midst of the NBA regular-season stretch drive there are 18 teams still vying for the 16 spots - though I am being generous by including the Bulls in that group. You can loosely group those 18 teams into four different groups - those likely to still be giving a full effort most of the time, those that could give a full effort at times but aren't likely to do so consistently, those that need to just focus on getting healthy, and those that just don't care about anything until the playoffs roll around.

NBA Odds: Thursday, March 31 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/30/2016

Somewhere, Tom Thibodeau must secretly be enjoying the struggles of his Chicago Bulls. That team never had a winning percentage blow .549 under Thibodeau in his five seasons -- despite rarely having Derrick Rose -- but Thibs was fired this past offseason in part because he rode his players too hard during the season and they were worn down by the playoffs. So the Bulls hired the polar opposite type of guy in Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg, but this season has been a disaster under the laid-back Hoiberg.

NBA Odds: Wednesday, March 30 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/29/2016

If you happen to live in Los Angeles or another NBA city in which the Lakers will visit the rest of the season -- so New Orleans, Houston or Oklahoma City -- then good news if you are planning to see Kobe Bryant play in person before he retires. Bryant has said he plans on playing every game the rest of the way "unless something drastic happens." And that's how it should be. There's no reason at this point for Lakers fans to even attend their home games other than to see Kobe.

NBA Betting Trends: Totals Report for Hot Over and Under Teams
by Aaron Smith - 3/29/2016

The NCAA Tournament has gotten most of the attention in the past two weeks, but the NBA regular season is winding down and there are some important playoff matchups still to be determined. Because there are some teams with nothing to play for and other teams fighting hard for playoff positioning, this is a tricky time for NBA bettors. Pick your spots carefully when betting on the NBA between now and the end of the regular season.

Odds that Golden State Warriors will Beat Bulls Record for Most Regular-Season Wins
by Trevor Whenham - 3/29/2016

We've been talking about it all year, but now we are down to the nitty gritty. The Golden State Warriors have won 66 of their first 73 games. That means that they only need to go 7-2 down the stretch to beat a record that seemed unbeatable and pass the Chicago Bulls' record of 72 wins in a season.

NBA Odds: Tuesday, March 29 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/28/2016

The Los Angeles Clippers now know when they will get Blake Griffin back from his broken hand and quad injury: April 3. Griffin has been cleared medically but first must serve a four-game suspension because he broke that hand while punching out a member of the team's equipment staff outside a Toronto restaurant earlier this season. The Clippers have played well without Griffin, but anyone who says they are better without him doesn't know basketball. Could the Clips perhaps trade him this offseason if they flame out in the playoffs again?

NBA Odds: Saturday, March 26 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/25/2016

Boston visits Phoenix on Saturday night, and that brings me back to the 2015 NBA trade deadline in a deal that altered the directions of the Celtics and Suns franchises. On that deadline day, the Suns traded guard Isaiah Thomas to Boston and Goran Dragic to the Heat while acquiring Brandon Knight from Milwaukee. Big mistake.

NBA Odds: Friday, March 25, 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/24/2016

I remember briefly when Michael Kidd-Gilchrist came back from his shoulder injury surprisingly early and the Hornets were playing well. I wrote that Charlotte might be a solid longer-shot bet to win the Eastern Conference. I jumped off that bandwagon when MKG, a great defender, went down for the season with an injury to that same shoulder. Perhaps I was a bit too hasty.

NBA Odds: Thursday, March 24 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/23/2016

Could the voting for NBA MVP actually be somewhat close? Golden State's Steph Curry is going to win it, but he has been in a minor slump of late and Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook has been a triple-double monster. He had a 15th this season on Tuesday and third in a row, and the way he's going could get to 20 by the end of the season. So that's basically a triple-double 25 percent of the time.

NBA Odds: Wednesday, March 23 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/22/2016

Be very wary of betting the Cleveland Cavaliers the rest of the regular season, especially when playing back-to-back nights as will be the case Wednesday and Thursday. Coach Tyronn Lue has publicly changed his tune on his plans for resting guys. Coming out of the All-Star break, Lue had said that home-court advantage through the Eastern Conference playoffs was the "most important thing." Now he says this: "We definitely want the No. 1 seed if we can get it, but I think we have to rest our guys also. I think health going into the playoffs is more important than the seeding. If we're fortunate enough to get the No. 1 seed, it will be great for us. But if not, then we just got to play through it."

NBA Odds: Tuesday, March 22 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/21/2016

Smart move, I think, of the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday to make the decision to shut down young superstar Anthony Davis for the rest of the season. With the playoffs a pipe dream and Davis needing surgery on his left knee and let shoulder, the Pelicans decided to do it now rather than him play the final 14 games. Davis, who now will miss the Olympics, is one of my favorite players in the NBA, but I'm starting to worry he's too brittle to go down as an all-time great.

NBA Betting Trends: Hot and Cold Teams Against the Point Spread
by Aaron Smith - 3/21/2016

The Saturday night showdown between Golden State and San Antonio didn't disappoint. I think I speak for almost all NBA fans by saying I hope we get to see a series between these two. It would be great for the league as a whole. The Spurs are only three games behind the Warriors for the best record in the NBA, but the Spurs play a much tougher schedule down the stretch.

NBA Odds: Saturday, March 19 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/18/2016

I love the NBA, but if I'm being honest the regular season really doesn't matter much in the grand scheme of things. The most memorable regular-season games I can remember in my lifetime off the top of my head involved individuals: Michael Jordan's first games out of retirement; Kobe Bryant's 81-point night against Toronto; LeBron James' first game as a member of the Heat and then first game back in Cleveland with Miami. Things like that.

NBA Odds: Friday, March 18, 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/17/2016

Most experts have pegged LSU freshman Ben Simmons as the No. 1 overall pick for this summer's NBA Draft, and Simmons already has signed with an agent, so he's leaving LSU. But Simmons didn't take his schoolwork very seriously -- in fact, LSU, perhaps fearing that it would incur some NCAA violations, passed on the NIT when it missed the NCAA Tournament. Will Simmons not being a great student scare NBA teams off? Probably not. But the guy has no jumper.

NBA Odds: Thursday, March 17 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/16/2016

Looking for a breakout-type superstar in the NBA next season like Golden State's Steph Curry was last year? I give you Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo, a true Greek Freak who can basically play every position on the court at 6-foot-11 and with the wingspan with a pterodactyl. I've seen this guy go coast-to-coast in just four dribbles because his steps are so big. Antetokounmpo is still just 21 and he has exploded since Coach Jason Kidd moved him to point guard.

NBA Odds: Wednesday, March 16 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/15/2016

Sometimes players need to invent motivation in the long NBA regular season. And for that reason, I believe that Oklahoma City Thunder star Russell Westbrook could have a really big game Wednesday against Boston. In the teams' first meeting this season, a Boston upset win, Westbrook and Celtics guard Marcus Smart were jawing all night, and Smart actually got the better of the matchup with 26 points.

NBA Betting Trends: Totals Report for Hot Over and Under Teams
by Aaron Smith - 3/14/2016

The playoffs get underway in April. Most teams have about 16 or 17 games left in the regular season. While both Golden State and Cleveland have had the top spot in their conferences locked down the majority of the year, both Toronto and San Antonio are within striking distance for the No. 1 spot. If San Antonio does want to make a push for the top spot in the Western Conference, they will have to win this weekend when they host Golden State. March Madness will be on all weekend, but you won't want to miss that Warriors vs. Spurs game on Saturday night!

NBA Odds: Tuesday, March 15 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/14/2016

How much longer can the Sacramento Kings keep up with this charade? We all know that Coach George Karl and superstar center DeMarcus Cousins can't co-exist. We all know that star players always win out in that scenario. Cousins was suspended for Friday's game against Orlando for conduct detrimental to the team. It was GM Vlade Divac who announced the suspension on Thursday, but over the weekend Cousins said he believes it was Karl who was responsible for it.

NBA Odds: Saturday, March 12 2016 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 3/11/2016

You might want to put down a few dollars on the Miami Heat to win the Eastern Conference, which is currently priced at solid +1200 value at BetOnline. Do I think the Heat as currently constructed can beat the Cleveland Cavaliers? I don't. But if Chris Bosh can return from his blood clot problem, then I could see that because the Cavs look vulnerable. Bosh said Thursday his problem is clearing up and that he's hopeful to return this season, although doctors have yet to clear him.