NBA action continues on August 3, 2020, with a total of six games on deck for Monday from Orlando.
Two Eastern Conference contenders in the Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat face off in the first game of the day at 1:30 PM and the West’s top team Los Angeles Lakers try to bounce back from a loss to the Toronto Raptors when they take on the Utah Jazz in the nightcap at 9:00 PM. The embattled Memphis Grizzlies and New Orleans Pelicans try to get their first win of the restart against each other at 6:30 PM.
Let’s take a look at Monday’s games and pick our winners:
The Lakers and Jazz look to bounce back from blowout losses on Saturday. Los Angeles lost by 15 points to the defending champions Toronto Raptors while Utah dropped a 94-110 contest to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Lakers are still 5.5 games up on the 2nd place Clippers for the top spot in the West.
Meanwhile, the Jazz are now just one-half game ahead of the OKC Thunder for 4th place in the West. Because of their current standing in the West, the Jazz need this win more than the Lakers do. However, they will be facing a pissed off Lakers team looking to bounce back right away.
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The Lakers are 4-2 SU in their last six games played against the Jazz. They are also 9-2 SU in their last 11 games played after an SU loss. The Jazz are 5-8 SU in their last 13 games against the Western Conference. The Jazz are a gritty team that can give the Lakers trouble here. The Lakers have a much better team but after their effort against Toronto, I can’t trust them 100% right now. The under is 5-0 in the Lakers’ last five games played and the under is also 5-0 in their last five games against an opponent with a winning percentage of over .600. Between the Lakers at -6 and the under 219 which are both priced at -110, I’ll take the totals here.
Prediction: Under 219 -110
The Spurs have been a surprise in their first two games at the bubble. Playing without LaMarcus Aldridge and with their two-decade playoff streak on the line, San Antonio has won its first two games against the Kings and Grizzlies to move to 9th place in the West. DeMar DeRozan and Dejounte Murray have stepped up for Gregg Popovich and they are now just two games off the 8th and final playoff spot in the West.
The Sixers were ambushed by the Indiana Pacers in their bubble tournament opener. Indiana got a career-high 53 points from T.J. Warren to negate the 41-point effort of Joel Embiid. Philadelphia led by as many as 10 points in the final quarter but they could not hold off Warren and the Pacers.
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The Sixers are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games played against the Sixers but are just 4-3 ATS in their last seven games overall. On the other hand, the Spurs are 2-7 ATS in their last nine games played and they are 1-4 ATS in their last five road games played. The over has cashed in 10 out of the Spurs’ last 15 games and in each of the Sixers’ last six games. However, 229 is too high a total despite the Sixers going well over that against the Pacers. I’ll pick the spread over the totals here. The Spurs have played well to begin the restart but the Sixers should bounce back nicely.
Prediction: Sixers -7 (-110)
The Grizzlies suddenly find themselves in trouble. Memphis has dropped their first two assignments in the restart and the Spurs have come within two games off them in the race for the final playoff spot in the West. Ja Morant bounced back from a 7-22 shooting night against the Blazers but the team has made only 25 out of 70 three-pointers in their first two games in Orlando.
Like the Grizzlies, the Pelicans have opened their restart with an 0-2 record. New Orleans struggled for 94 points against the Jazz and they were hammered by a Clippers team that had just lost to the Lakers on re-opening night. Zion Williamson has played only a total of 29 minutes in two games and has scored just a total of 20 in both games. Jrue Holiday and Brandon Ingram combined for only 18 points against the Clippers but the Pelicans need more from them especially if New Orleans keeps Zion on “burst restriction”.
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Both teams have struggled in Orlando so far but when you look at the Pelicans’ troubles, it’s rooted mainly on Zion Williamson’s “burst restriction”. If Gentry keeps Zion’s minutes down, we’ll continue to see the Pels struggle here. Memphis is 4-8 ATS in their last 12 games played and they will be playing back to back games here for the first time since February. Sure, there is no travel involved but New Orleans has one extra day of rest and the Pelicans are also 4-1 ATS in their last five games against the Jazz. I think Zion gets a little more exposure here, just enough to allow the Pelicans to cover the spread.
Prediction: Pelicans -4 (-110)
The Indiana Pacers won their re-opening game behind a 53-point night from T.J. Warren. Indian survived a 41-point effort from Joel Embiid and they also got a 15-point effort from the returning Victor Oladipo. They are without Domantas Sabonis and Malcolm Brogdon due to injury but Nate McMillan has a gritty squad that has players who can step up.
The Wizards are also without two key players in Bradley Beal and Davis Bertans who opted out of the NBA bubble tournament. They are also without All-Star guard John Wall and this team is missing too many points right now. Washington is a longshot to make the playoffs but guys like Rui Hachimura and Thomas Bryant playing hard, this team could produce some surprises.
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The Pacers rank 7th in the league in defensive rating and that should be a problem for a Washington team that is playing without its top two scorers. The Pacers have won four out of their last five meetings against the Wizards. They are 4-1-1 ATS in their last six games played and 4-1 ATS in their last five games against Washington. The Wizards 2-5 SU and 2-5 ATS in their last seven games played. I like the Pacers to win this game of undermanned teams.
Prediction: Pacers -7 (-130)
The Nuggets have lost four out of their last six games and they head to this game after dropping their first assignment in the bubble to the Miami Heat 105-125. Denver has not scored more than 105 points in their last five losses and they are now two games behind the Clippers in the race for the 2nd seed in the West.
The Thunder are on a roll with nine wins in their last 11 games played. OKC blasted Utah in their first game in Orlando and they allowed just 94 points. The Thunder are ranked 10th in the league in scoring defense and that should be a problem for the struggling Denver offense.
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Denver’s recent offensive struggles fit right into the strength of this OKC team. The Thunder allowed the Jazz to score just 94 points in their last game and before that, they held their last three opponents to 107 or fewer points. The Nuggets are 1-5 ATS in their last five games played and are 0-5 ATS in their last five games played on the road. The Thunder are 13-5 ATS in their last 18 games played against the Western Conference, and 13-3 ATS in their last 16 games after winning their previous game by double digits. I like the Thunder top cover the spread here.
Prediction: Thunder -4.5 (-110)
The Toronto Raptors took care of business against LeBron James and his Lakers on Saturday. The win was Toronto’s fifth in a row dating back to before the pause. Kyle Lowry scored 33 points while OG Anunoby had 23 to lead the Raptors. Toronto leads the NBA in scoring defense at 106.3 points per game allowed and they limited the Lakers to only 92 points on Saturday night.
The Heat head to this contest after beating the Nuggets by 25 points in their first bubble assignment. Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler each scored 22 points to lead Miami. The Heat used a 38-22 third quarter to break the game wide open and never looked back. Miami is 15th in the NBA in scoring and they will need to be on top of their offensive game against the league’s best defensive unit.
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The Raptors are 5-0 SU in their last five games played. Toronto is 14-2 SU in their last 16 games played and 4-2 SU in their last six games played against the Heat. Miami is 6-2 SU in their last eight games played, 4-1 SU in their last five games against the East, and 5-1 SU in their last six Monday games. Both these teams opened their restart with big wins. Toronto knocked off the Lakers while the Heat blew out the Nuggets. Jimmy Butler missed Sunday practice and although reports say he is expected to play in this game, I’ll stay away from the Heat here. The Raptors played well enough against the Lakers and I will pick them here.
Prediction: Raptors -2.5 (-110)
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