Free NBA Picks Today for Monday, December 18th, 2023

Our free NBA picks are out for Monday, December 18th 2023! Make sure you check our NBA picks before the action kicks off.

Look below to find our free NBA picks for the best games on today’s schedule!

Detroit Pistons @ Atlanta Hawks – 7:30PM ET

Tony Battalio

The Detroit Pistons currently find themselves on a massive losing streak and there seems to be no end in sight for Detroit as they come into this game on the road in Atlanta on Monday night. They will look to finally break out of this awful slump that they currently find themselves in as they look to get some momentum rolling in the right direction throughout the last two weeks of 2023. They will need to put together a quality game of basketball throughout the entire entirety of the contest, and not give up a late lead once again, like they have so many times throughout this season, or at least remain competitive throughout the game like they failed to do so many times this season. Eventually they will finally get back into the win column at some point and they will be hoping that this game on Monday night against the Atlanta Hawks at the moment that they finally return to the win column with a much needed victory. 

The Atlanta Hawks come into this game looking to further add to the misery of the Detroit Pistons here on Monday night at home. Atlanta is off to a rough start to the regular season and they will look to get things going in the right direction with a much-needed victory here on Monday night in front of their home crowd. This is one of those games that Atlanta cannot afford to lose at home against an absolutely miserable Detroit team as they look to establish themselves as a potential playoff team within the Eastern Conference this season. Atlanta comes into this game five games below the .500 mark through their first 25 games of the regular season and they will look for their 11th victory of the season here on Monday night at home. They will look to bounce back after losing to Cleveland in their previous game and that is exactly what I expect as I look for them to grab the win and cover the spread here on Monday.

Charlotte Hornets @ Toronto Raptors – 7:30PM ET

Tony Battalio

It has been a rough start to the regular season for the Charlotte Hornets and they will look to build up some momentum heading into the end of December with a victory here on Monday night north of the border in Canada. Charlotte came into the season with plenty of expectations, but they have not lived up to those expectations throughout the early part of the year as their superstars have played lackluster basketball throughout the first two months of the regular season. They look to get things going in the right direction with a quality victory here on Monday night against the Toronto Raptors as they look to pick up a momentum boosting win here in this one. Charlotte comes into this game 10 games below .500 through their first 24 games of the regular season and they will look to pick up their eighth victory of the season here on Monday night in Canada. They are coming off of one of the worst performances of the season as they only scored 82 points in a blowout loss to Philadelphia for their fourth consecutive loss in a row. 

The Toronto Raptors will be looking to pick up a solid victory here at home on Monday night over a struggling Charlotte Hornets team as they look to build up as much momentum as possible heading into the new year. Toronto has had a rough start to the season as well as they come into this game with only 10 victories through their first 25 games of the regular season and they will look for their 11th win of the year here on Monday night at home against Charlotte. Toronto is a team that certainly has plenty of potential and they could potentially sneak into a back and playoff spot within the conference as long as they are healthy and consistent throughout the year. They will look to bounce back after being blown out by the Atlanta Hawks and their previous game if they look to get right back into the win column with a solid performance here on Monday night. That is exactly what I expect as I look for the Toronto Raptors to grab the win over the Charlotte Hornets here in this game on Monday at home.

Memphis Grizzlies @ Oklahoma City Thunder – 8PM ET

Tony Battalio

It has been a rough start to the regular season without Ja Morant in the lineup, and they will look to get things going in the right direction with a victory on the road in Oklahoma City here on Monday night. Memphis has been one of the worst teams in the league without their superstar point guard although some players have stepped up for them throughout the early part of the year, they have been unable to replicate the production of Ja Morant. If they continue to play the way they have without him in the lineup by the time he returns from his suspension they will be well out of playoff contention later on in the regular season, and this will arguably be a last year for the Memphis Grizzlies. They will look for a huge momentum boost on the road against Oklahoma City here on Monday night as they like to put themselves in a position to build up as much momentum as possible heading into the end of the calendar year. They come into this game as losers of 18 out of their first 24 games of the season and they will look to get into the win column here on Monday night.

It has been a respectable start of the year for Oklahoma City and they will look to keep the momentum rolling throughout this game on Monday night at home against Memphis. Their rebuilding process has finally paid off for them this season, as they have finally found the perfect combination of grizzled veterans and young players to get the job done throughout the early part of the year. They come into this game as one of the best teams in the league throughout the early part of the season as they come into this one with 16 victories through their first 24 games of the year. They will look to keep them on. I’m rolling throughout this game on Monday night at home as they look for their 17th win of the season against Memphis. They come into this game with a little bit of a minimum after picking up a win over the defending NBA champions in their previous game, and I look for them to grab a second consecutive win here on Monday night at home as well. As I look for Oklahoma City to pick up the victory and cover the spread in the process here in this one.

Washington Wizards @ Sacramento Kings – 10PM ET

Tony Battalio

It has been a dreadful start to the regular season for Washington and they will look to get things going in the right direction throughout this game on Monday night in Sacramento. The addition of Jordan Poole over the offseason has not paid off for Washington throughout the early part of the year, as Kyle Kuzma has still been the better player, despite being written off with the arrival of Poole. Washington has been one of the worst teams in the league this season, and they will look to get things on track with a quality victory in one of the toughest venues in the NBA here on Monday night out in California. Washington comes into this game with 21 losses through their first 25 games of the regular season and they will look to grab their fifth one of the year here on Monday night in Sacramento as they look too desperately start stringing some momentum together throughout the early part of the season. 

Last season, the Sacramento Kings put together a solid campaign, and they broke a two decades long playoff drought. They will look to follow up that playoff appearance with another quality regular season this time around and they will be looking for a victory here on Monday night at home against Washington as well. They have been one of the toughest teams in the league to beat at home over the last year and a half and they will look too further prove that narrative to be true with a quality performance here in this one. Sacramento comes into this game with 15 victories through their first 24 games of the regular season and they will look to pick up their 16th victory of the year here in this game on Monday night at home. That is exactly what I expected of Sacramento as I look for them to pick up the victory here in this game and cover the spread in the process.

New York Knicks @ Los Angeles Lakers – 10:30PM ET

Tony Battalio

It has been a respectable start to the regular season for the New York Knicks and they will look to keep the momentum rolling throughout this game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night. New York surprised everybody with their first round of the Cleveland Cavaliers last season, and they will look to further establish themselves as a contender this season with another quality win here in this game on Monday night in Los Angeles. As long as this New York Knicks team remains healthy and consistent throughout the regular season, they have a legitimate opportunity to be a serious contender heading into the postseason. The New York Knicks come into this game with 14 victories through their first 25 games of the regular season and they will look to pick up their 15th one of the year here on Monday night in Los Angeles. They will look to bounce back in a solid way after losing to the Clippers in their previous game. 

The Los Angeles Lakers are having a solid start to the year despite Anthony Davis, and LeBron James both missing time with injuries throughout the early part of the season. They come into this game four games above the 500 mark with 15 victories through their first 26 games of the regular season and a tournament victory as well that does not count towards their regular season record. However, they are dealing with plenty of injury issues at the moment as both LeBron James and Anthony Davis are listed as gametime decisions, heading into this game on Monday night at home against the New York Knicks. I expect that to be the Los Angeles Lakers undo here in this game on Monday night at home as I look for the New York Knicks to come across the country and continue their road trip and get a victory here in this one on Monday night against the Lakers after losing to the Clippers in their last game. 

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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.