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Big NBA Profits for Scott Spreitzer Harken Back to Epic Season Long Ago

by Scott Spreitzer - 3/29/2022

Scott Spreitzer NBA picks predictions betting Tyler Herro Miami Heat

It has been a terrific season in the NBA, as I have gone 77-49, 62% ATS since late October and am up $10,740 as I write this article on March 28, 2022. I’ll get to some adjustments and changes I made before this season began later in the article.

While I was handicapping a recent NBA card, I had the current HBO series, “Winning Time – The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty,” on in the background. I’m a John C. Reilly fan (portrays Jerry Buss) and have been since I saw him in the movie, “State of Grace,” some 30 years ago, so I immediately started watching closely. Shortly into the series, I saw an actor playing the part of Frank Mariani, the former best friend and business partner of Jerry Buss, and one-time Lakers’ President and CEO. I couldn’t help but smile because I had the opportunity to meet and get to know Mariani in the 1990s.

Mariani and one of my brothers met in the late 1980s thanks to business dealings. My brother introduced me to Frank in the early 1990s. And while he was at the top of the Lakers’ food chain, I would have never known it if my brother hadn’t told me. Frank was and is still one of the most unpretentious people I’ve ever met. He was dressed in sweats and looked like your average Joe off the street -- an accountant with a keen eye for poker, I would have guessed. We became friendly as my brother and Frank continued their business dealings.

It wasn’t long after meeting that Frank began inviting us to boxing cards when he’d visit Las Vegas. The most memorable was the Jorge Paez-Troy Dorsey series. If you’re too young to remember those two battling it out in the squared circle, by all means, look it up – you’ll be glad you did. What a couple of warriors. But there we’d be – close enough to the ring to catch the sweat – and speaking of sweats, Frank was still wearing them.

Eventually, Frank started inviting us to Los Angeles. We spent some time in Frank’s office, located near the Forum. Yes, holding those championship rings while listening to Frank’s experiences was about as cool as it gets.

We attended Lakers games when they played in the Forum in Inglewood. If it was an evening game, my brother and I would make a day out of it. We’d start the day betting horses at Hollywood Park, then after a few races, head to the Forum, which was a five-minute drive from the racetrack.

The most memorable game we attended was a 1996-97 playoff game when the Lakers hosted the Utah Jazz. Frank invited my bro and I to sit at Jerry Buss’ table and break bread with the brass in the Forum Club before tip-off. Unfortunately, Jack Nicholson, my favorite actor, wasn’t in attendance. However, the table, which sat about 14 people, was certainly a who’s who of the Jerry Buss inner circle. I don’t get too excited around the rich and famous. After all, I’d been doing shows in Las Vegas for years with the likes of Smokin’ Joe Frazier, a plethora of well-known boxers, and local Vegas stars like Jerry Tarkanian. But this was certainly next level stuff. Speaking of Tark the Shark, I didn’t know Frank at the time of their alleged meeting at Piero’s as portrayed in episode-3 in the HBO series; it was before I moved to Las Vegas. But Piero’s Italian Cuisine, a long-time mob favorite and one of mine, too, is still a Vegas favorite to this day (if only those walls could talk).

After dinner, we headed to our seats. We were led through a hallway tunnel from the Forum Club to the arena and passed through a portal where the great Jerry West stood. After a quick shaking of hands, my brother and I headed to our seats, three rows from the court. By the way, West stood in that portal the entire game, only leaving during halftime. West watched the game by himself, all business, and looked like he didn’t enjoy a single minute of it – somewhat like he’s been portrayed in the HBO series.

What my brother already knew, but I certainly didn’t mention to Frank or anyone at the Forum Club, was that I was holding a ticket with my biggest bet of the season on the Utah Jazz. The Lakers were a 4.5-point favorite. They were down two games to one in a best-of-seven series, and it was virtual must-win time for Los Angeles. I managed to keep my mouth shut and did my best not to fist-pump the air or cheer out loud for my side as Karl Malone absolutely dominated on the offensive end. Shaq and Elden Campbell were no match for “The Mailman” that night. Malone finished with 42 points, and Bryon Russell, John Stockton and Jeff Hornacek were their normal outstanding selves. Utah won 110-95 and wrapped-up the series the very next game. By the way, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Kobe Bryant was a rookie, taking part in his first ever NBA postseason. He scored nine points off the bench in the loss.

The 1996-97 season was my most successful in the NBA as a bettor/handicapper until this particular season. While my percentage was a little higher that season, and I was all over USA-Network back then, this season has been my most profitable.

Before this season tipped-off, I was a little concerned. I was coming off weak results the previous season, but I’ve kept old notes forever, knowing it helps to see what I did right and what I did wrong. Looking back over the years, I noticed there were two big differences between the 1997 campaign and the 2020-21 season. I was giving too much value to matchups in the latter, and I wasn’t playing enough “spots.”

I decided matchups were going to be about 25% of my handicapping this season and spots would make up the rest. This made even more sense knowing players were going to miss games due to Covid-19, and in many cases, we wouldn’t know about those players until late in the day. I decided there was no way I was going to bet and release four or five NBA games a day, only to get burned by multiple teams having players test positive. One bad day could turn into a disaster. I went the “spots” route and limited myself and my clients to one or two games per day. The rest is history.

I’m knocking on wood as I write this article, but this season has been nothing short of outstanding – my best in 25 years. While Covid-19 issues have subsided for the most part, I still operate and handicap games the same way I’ve done so all season. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. As for Frank? I’m guessing he’s close to 90. I haven’t seen him in quite some time, but every once in a while his picture pops up on social media and shows him grinding it out at poker tournaments.

Note From Management:

Spreitzer has earned his NBA clients +$10,740 in NBA profit (based on a $100 bettor) while hitting at around 62% on the season.  (As of this writing on 3/28/2022). You can see all of those plays here.

Scott has agreed to discount his NBA packages by 25% for a one-day, one-week or one-month package, through Sunday, April 3. Trust me, this is going to be a one-time thing for him to agree to.  In this business, most services will raise their prices in this situation.  While we never raise our prices like that, we also will rarely offer a discount code, so take advantage this one time.  Use the promo code SSMARCHNBA25 at check out, and you can get 25% off any NBA package from him through the end of the month (does not apply to Rest of the Season package).

If you are interested in a custom-built picks package from Spreitzer for several of his sports, feel free to call our office and ask for me personally.  If I’m not available leave your name and number and I will get back to you.  1-866-238-6696. Best of luck – Wade at Doc’s Sports. 

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