NBA Handicapping Articles

NBA Handicapping: Orlando Magic Coaching Situation
by Trevor Whenham - 2/11/2015

Unless you are someone like Gregg Popovich — you know, really, really good at what you do — being a head coach in the NBA is a brutal profession. You are hired to be fired, and you have less job security than a mall Santa on Dec. 24. Jacque Vaughn was the latest to learn that hard lesson when he was ditched by the Orlando Magic on Feb. 5 — incidentally just six days before his 40th birthday. The farce of the situation was not that they let him go but the way they did it.

NBA All-Star Weekend: Shopping for the Best Betting Odds
by Dave Schwab - 2/11/2015

The NBA will take a break from its regular-season schedule this weekend for its annual All-Star Game festivities, but that does not mean sports bettors have to take a break as well. This event has grown into a three-day affair over the years with a number of different things to wager on along with the game itself.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Wednesday, February 11 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 2/10/2015

Don't be surprised if you see some unusual results in NBA action on Wednesday. Most teams that are dealing with injured guys likely will rest them to get some extra time off ahead of the All-Star Break, which begins after the one game on the schedule Thursday night. Remember, the break is longer this season as the schedule doesn’t pick back up until Feb. 19. The players wanted a few more days off, and Commissioner Adam Silver obliged, although it has meant a few more back-to-backs overall. Here's a look at Wednesday's busy slate.

2015 NBA MVP Odds and Predictions: Three Sleepers
by Raphael Esparza - 2/10/2015

The NBA All-Star break starts this weekend, and usually I talk about mid-season awards during this time frame. However, this year I’m going to focus on my predictions for three NBA players that have outstanding plus-money odds to win the regular-season MVP award. Anything can happen by the end of the season, but I believe these three players have a great chance of grabbing this prestigious award. I believe this MVP race is wide-open and will come right down to the end of the regular season.

NBA Betting Trends: Hot and Cold Teams Against the Point Spread
by Aaron Smith - 2/10/2015

The NBA All-Star Break is this coming weekend. Be careful putting too much on the Wednesday and Thursday games this week, because there will be a lot of teams ready for the break, and it can be difficult to handicap who the more motivated team will be in those spots. Golden State and Atlanta still have the best records in the league, though the oddsmakers have finally caught up to those two teams by laying some big numbers on them.

Tracking the Wizards: NBA Picks and Handicapping for Washington Basketball
by Dave Schwab - 2/10/2015

In an effort to demonstrate that specialization on a particular team when it comes to betting on the NBA can be a viable betting strategy, I have spent this season exclusively handicapping the Washington Wizards. I have also been releasing free weekly picks for the Wizards with the use of Doc’s Sports Unit Betting System, and while the results have been mixed at best with an overall record of 6-8-1, I am gearing up for a profitable run in the second half of the season.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Tuesday, February 10 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 2/9/2015

Could we see George Karl back on an NBA bench as early as Tuesday night? It's possible as the Sacramento Kings are in talks to hire Karl. The team really never should have fired Mike Malone as it did in mid-December as the Kings have gone just 7-19 under interim coach Tyrone Corbin. Karl 100 percent wants the job, but for some reason Sacramento star DeMarcus Cousins doesn't seem all that thrilled about the possibility as the team's franchise player made some cryptic comments about the potential hiring over the weekend. Karl's 1,131 wins are sixth in NBA history. Here's a look at the Kings' game and the rest of Tuesday's schedule.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Saturday, February 7 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 2/6/2015

The Orlando Magic fired coach Jacque Vaughn on Thursday, making Vaughn the second NBA coach canned this season after Sacramento's Mike Malone (the Kings made a huge mistake). Will there be a third to go during the season? Some of the coaches on the worst teams -- the Knicks' Derek Fisher, 76ers' Brett Brown, Lakers' Byron Scott and Timberwolves' Flip Saunders -- seem safe for various reasons.

NBA Handicapping: Trail Blazers Losing Their Momentum in the West
by Trevor Whenham - 2/6/2015

On Jan. 11 the Portland Trail Blazers won at the Lakers to move their record to 30-8. They were flying high. Since then they have doubled their loss total, dropping eight of 12. Golden State was 29-5 back on the 11th and was in a dogfight with Portland. The Warriors haven’t quit winning, though, and are now seven games ahead of the Blazers. Portland was once in a race to win the West. Now they have to be more worried about holding off the Clippers and Mavs — both just a half game behind — and keep the right to a home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Friday, February 6 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 2/5/2015

You know how when the NBA releases its schedule in the summer that sites like ESPN or SI.com or NBA.com come out with a list of Top 10 games? Those are usually dead on because there are so few surprise teams in the Association. You pretty much know who will be a title contender. Well, I guarantee you that Friday's Golden State at Atlanta matchup wasn't on any Top 10 list, but it's the clear game of the season thus far -- and sadly not on national television.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Thursday, February 5 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 2/4/2015

Before this season began, my NBA Finals predicted matchups was L.A. Clippers against Cleveland Cavaliers. That still may happen, and is priced at +2100 on Sportsbook.ag, but I'm much more confident about the red-hot Cavaliers making it there than the Clippers. It's not that L.A. isn't a good team, but that the West is so tough. The Clips could win 55 games and not even get home-court advantage in a series. Thursday is the final meeting between the teams during the regular season. Here's a look at the four games on the schedule.

NBA Betting: Correlation Between Team Age and ATS Record
by George Monroy - 2/4/2015

The NBA is a sport that is based on age and experience. Young teams simply do not win titles, and those battle-tested squads with multiple playoffs wins and disappointments seem to be the ones that break through every June. The San Antonio Spurs won their fifth title in a 16-year span last season, while the Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers—all playoff-hardened veteran teams—have been the only other squads to win a championship in the last decade.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Wednesday, February 4 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 2/3/2015

Many times after a long winning streak ends, a team will go into a little funk. It's human nature to feel a little deflated and perhaps have your intensity drop for a few games. Thus it might be wise to bet against the Atlanta Hawks for a couple of games as their franchise-record 19-game winning streak ended Monday night. The Hawks' next three games are all against NBA title contenders as well, including Wednesday vs. Washington. Here's a look at that and the rest of Wednesday's schedule.

Tracking the Wizards: NBA Picks and Handicapping for Washington Basketball
by Dave Schwab - 2/3/2015

Washington will try and make up some ground in the Southeast title race this Wednesday night against the first-place Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena. Game time for this division matchup is set for 7:30 p.m. (ET), and the game will be available on NBA League Pass.

NBA Handicapping: Bad Teams with Good ATS Records
by George Monroy - 2/3/2015

Handicapping NBA basketball games can be a bit deceiving. Good teams do not necessarily cover the most spreads, and bad teams do not necessarily cover the least. ATS success is often determined by a group’s reputation amongst the media, bettors and the general public. Squads like the Cleveland Cavaliers, who brought three superstars together during the offseason, will always get the lion’s share of the media attention, which will eventually skew the spreads they receive on a nightly basis.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Tuesday, February 3 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 2/2/2015

The Portland Trail Blazers have to be thrilled to be home. They just finished a four-game road trip winless, although not 0-4. That's because one game was snowed out. The Blazers are one of the toughest teams to beat at home with a 20-5 mark. The only clubs with fewer home losses are Atlanta and Golden State, the two conference leaders. Here's a look at Portland's game vs. Utah and the rest of Tuesday's schedule. Heat-Pistons and Jazz-Blazers are both nationally televised on NBA TV.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Friday, January 30 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 1/29/2015

I have the NBA League Pass, and I'll watch just about any game that's televised. However, a game arrives on Friday night that I'm not sure I would even bother with if it was the only game of the night -- that's not to say it can't be good betting value, however. That would be Minnesota at Philadelphia, teams that have a combined record of 17-74. Believe it or not, this could be important down the line in terms of which team gets the most ping-pong balls in the 2015 draft lottery in May. Here's a look at that matchup and the rest on Friday night.

NBA Odds and Predictions: Thursday, January 29 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 1/28/2015

It's the usual TNT doubleheader on Thursday night, but they look to be two mismatches on paper when Denver visits Memphis and the Chicago is at the L.A. Lakers. If you are big on the NBA All-Star Game, make sure to watch the pre-game show that starts on TNT at 7 p.m. ET. That's when the All-Star reserves will be announced. There are some interesting decisions to be made for sure, perhaps none more than Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant. He has missed more than half the season. So will Western Conference coach Steve Kerr take him? I say yes. Here's a look at every game on Thursday's schedule.

NBA Division Odds: Teams with the Best Betting Value
by George Monroy - 1/28/2015

The NBA All-Star break is roughly two weeks away, and with the season already past its halfway mark now is the perfect time to revisit the each division’s updated futures odds and figure out if there is any value in wagering on or against a team to win its division. All odds come from Sportsbook.ag.

NBA Handicapping: Younger and Older Squads Back-to-Back Analysis
by George Monroy - 1/28/2015

Situational handicapping can be an excellent way to approach your NBA betting on a nightly basis. Most nights picking a winner involves aspects outside of what actually happens on the court—scheduling, travel and a team’s mindset are all things that should come into play when handicapping an NBA squad. Expert bettors love to focus in on teams playing during the second night of a back-to-back in order to take advantage of fatigue problems or even a lack of motivation.