Our free NBA picks are out for Monday, December 20th, 2021! Make sure you check our NBA picks before the action kicks off.
Look below to find our free NBA picks for the best five games on today’s schedule!
Houston Rockets @ Chicago Bulls – 8pm ET
The Houston Rockets are on the road again and on Monday night they travel to Chicago to take on the Bulls. The Rockets have won two of their last four games, which brings their season record to 10-20. The Bulls are playing on back-to-back nights, and last time out they were engaged in a tight tussle with the Lakers, but ultimately the Bulls managed to get the win, which helped break the two game losing streak they were on.
Denis Kirilov
The Houston Rockets have been on fire in December as they enjoyed a 7-game winning streak after suffering 15 straight losses. Their victims include teams like the Chicago Bulls, the Brooklyn Nets, and the Atlanta Hawks. Christian Wood and Eric Gordon led the way for the Rockets as they got the much-needed help from Garrison Mathews and Jae’Sean Tate. The team still occupies 13th place in the West with 10 wins from 30 matches. It will be incredible if they make the Playoffs in the spring after this losing fiasco in the beginning of this campaign. However, they will do everything they can in order to help their cause, but they will surely need Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. to make their return for the Rockets.
The Chicago Bulls enjoyed a narrow 115-110 win over the Lakers in a game that was going back and forth all the time. Even without Zach LaVine, they managed to outclass LeBron James and Russell Westbrook. DeMar DeRozan came in clutch for the Bulls with his 38 points on a 11-24 shooting. The strategy to keep him off the 3-point shots in this game paid off for Billy Donovan who loves seeing them in 2nd place in the East. Chicago is just behind the Brooklyn Nets with 18 wins and 10 losses, but they surely have the capability to improve this percentage. They have been quite decent in their home games this season and I think this trend will continue even after the game against the Rockets. Keeping in mind the Rockets’ recent improvement, I avoid picking the team’s spread for this game. Instead, I will go with the option for “under points” as I believe the Rockets will try to play better defense in order to stop DeMar DeRozan.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Under 222.5 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The Chicago Bulls welcomed back DeMar DeRozan with a big 115-105 win against the Lakers last night. DeRozan scored 38 points and the team continued to excel even with all-star guard Zach LaVine being in COVID protocols. They’ll play for the second straight night against an easier opponent than the Lakers, but one they shouldn’t overlook in the Houston Rockets.
SWEPT THE LAKERS 🧹 pic.twitter.com/c9Fzx9oycP
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) December 20, 2021
The Rockets got a 116-107 win against the Detroit Pistons where seven of their players scored in the double digits. Even though they’re undoubtedly headed for another high draft pick, their young core is showing some promise on offense. They’ll be on the road to face a Chicago team that not only has one of the NBA’s top scorers, but has a gritty defense as well. In the end the Bulls shouldn’t have many issues with a Rockets team that, while showing some major upside, will have a hard time with this Bulls team that is so balanced on both sides of the ball. Even without LaVine they should get enough out of DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic and Lonzo Ball to secure a against the Rockets.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls -9 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
The Chicago Bulls got a week off following a two game losing streak due to Covid protocols, and then managed to get a tight win over the Lakers, behind 38 points from DeMar Derozan. They now come into this one on the second night of a back-to-back, as this time they take on the Houston Rockets.
The Rockets started off extremely slow before running off a huge winning streak, but have since slowed back down once again, even though they did pick up a win over Detroit in their last outing. Even though Houston is finally playing a little better, I don’t like this being a game they manage to find themselves on the right side of, as I think they just struggle to match up with what Chicago can throw at them, even being depleted with Covid issues.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls -9 (-110)
Oklahoma City Thunder @ Memphis Grizzlies – 8pm ET
The Oklahoma City Thunder are on the road for one game before returning home again, and on Monday night they take on the Memphis Grizzlies. The Thunder snapped a three game losing streak last time out, with a win against the Clippers 104-103, which brings their season record to 9-19. The Grizzlies are playing on back-to-back nights, and last time out they lost to the Trail Blazers, 100-105, which snapped a five game winning streak.
Denis Kirilov
The Oklahoma City Thunder will have a tough visit to Memphis on Monday night in the NBA. The Grizzlies suffered a loss at home against the Portland Trail Blazers in their last game which stopped their winning streak at 5 games. However, the performance they displayed without their superstar, Ja Morant, is simply incredible. They have defeated almost each single one of the title contenders this year including the Heat, the Jazz, the Mavs, the Lakers, the 76ers, the Warriors and the Clippers. This team is definitely no joke and people might start considering them as a big favorite to storm in the Playoffs.
The OKC Thunder have been struggling this season as they stay in last place in the Western Conference with a 9-19 record. They have actually managed to outplay the Clippers in their last meeting, 104-103, through a fantastic final play by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He scored 5 points in the last 10 seconds of the game, including a buzzer-beater from beyond the arc with 0.9s remaining on the clock. However, the Thunder have been lacking some luck this year, but they have everything they need to play on a high level. Their roster is 100% healthy unlike those of some other teams. Even with their top players being available, the team finds it hard to produce. This will be a very important rematch for them as they lost their previous meeting with the Grizzlies by the highest margin in NBA history – 73 points. I think we won’t see another dominant win for Memphis as I expect to see a close game that will go down the wire. Hence, I will choose the Thunder’s spread in this one.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Oklahoma City Thunder +8.5 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The last time these two faced off it was one of the most lopsided results in NBA history. The Ja Morant-less Memphis Grizzlies beat a Shai Gilgeous Alexander-less Oklahoma City Thunder 152-79. It was an embarrassing defeat for the Thunder, but with Gilgeous Alexander returning, they should make this one a little more competitive. The Thunder are also coming off a big 104-103 win against the Clippers; their confidence is high and they’re looking for payback. They’ll travel to Memphis for another crack at one of the NBA’s hottest teams in the Grizzlies.
Before Saturday night’s loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, the Grizzlies had won 10 of 11. They’ll look to get back to their winning ways against a Thunder team they smothered on December 2nd. They’ve become one of the five highest scoring teams in basketball and they’ll look to take advantage of the three ball, as Oklahoma City are one of the worst teams at defending shots beyond the arc. I think Memphis will win this one, but I don’t think Oklahoma City will allow them to run all over them like a couple weeks ago. I think the best bet for money on this one is to pick Oklahoma City to cover.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Oklahoma City +8.5 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
The last time these two teams got together, we saw the largest margin of victory in NBA history, as Memphis absolutely obliterated OKC by 73 points. While clearly we won’t see the same margin in this one, I don’t see why anyone would think the winner would change. There’s nothing much about these two teams that has changed over the past few weeks to suggest that Memphis wouldn’t be able to come out and get another win, unless they just completely overlook the Thunder.
It doesn’t hurt that the Grizzlies just saw their five game winning streak snapped yesterday at home against Portland, so they should be hungry to get back out and try to start a new winning streak against a team that has played like one of the worst in the league, and honestly just doesn’t have the talent to match up position by position. Give me Memphis and the points here, but just barely.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Memphis Grizzlies -8.5 (-110)
Charlotte Hornets @ Utah Jazz – 9pm ET
The Charlotte Hornets road trip continues on as the face off against the Utah Jazz on Monday night. The Hornets are playing on back-to-back nights and last time out they were dismantled by the Suns, 106-137. The Jazz are surprisingly on a two game losing streak, thanks to losses against the Spurs and Wizards, which brings their season record to 20-9.
Denis Kirilov
The Charlotte Hornets and the Utah Jazz will take on each other in a very interesting contest on Monday night in the NBA. Both teams are coming into this fixture on a 2-game losing streak, as the Hornets lost on the road, while Utah did it at home. The Jazz suffered losses to the Washington Wizards and the San Antonio Spurs, while Phoenix and Portland took the better of Charlotte. The hosts from Salt Lake City are one of the best teams in the NBA at the moment, sitting in 3rd place in the West with a 20-9 record. The Hornets are not falling much behind as they try to keep the winning ratio above 50%, but they are now even with 16 wins and 16 losses.
Both teams will be able to use their top players for this match as none of them have major Covid-19 issues. The Jazz are huge favorites to win this one, but I think they might find it a bit hard taking into account their most recent performances. They have been quite dominating in December, defeating almost every opponent by around 20 points. I believe that this is a natural outcome from this high-level performance. I think now we will see some tough encounters for the Jazz as they will try to slow the pace a little. So, I will go with the Hornets spread in their visit to Salt Lake City on Monday.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Charlotte Hornets +12 (-110)
Michael Lantz
After looking like one of the best teams in the NBA, and on-par with the likes of the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns, the Utah Jazz have been victims of consecutive losses. They were beaten by a young San Antonio Spurs team and then followed that up with a surprising loss to a struggling Washington Wizards team on Saturday. Utah hopes to get back on the right path as they face a Charlotte Hornets team that’s tied with them atop the league in points per game.
trent ➡️ rudy#PowerfulConnections | @Xfinity pic.twitter.com/Grvy46ORzO
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) December 19, 2021
Even though Charlotte is an offensive juggernaut, who you can depend on for 100 points almost every game, they’re abysmal on defense. They give up over 116 points per game, and are facing an offensive powerhouse in the Utah Jazz on Monday night. But, with the Jazz showing some vulnerability in recent games, this might be the perfect time for the Hornets to take advantage. Still, I think the best bet here is to go with the over. Sure, 234 is a massive total, but if you look at a lot of the Hornets games this season, they’ve gone well over that. Sure, Utah’s defense is good, but they’ve given up 128 and 109 points in the last two games against offensive units that aren’t nearly as talented as Charlotte. I’ll take a chance with this one surpassing that total.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Over 234 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
Despite being on a bit of a surprising two game slide, the Utah Jazz are still one of the best teams in the NBA, and this is a game that all factors just seem to point their way in. Charlotte quite simply can’t play defense, which has been their biggest issue all year long, and I’m not sure why we would expect that to change against a Utah team that is one of the more balanced teams in the league behind guys like Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell, and Joe Ingles.
The one positive side about the Hornets is that they play really well on the offensive side of the ball most of the time, and they’re taking on a Jazz defense that has been lacking in energy as of late. That opens the door for points, points, and more points to be scored, which I think we see. But I do also think Utah comes out to prove a point, so I’m willing to take a risk here and throw a parlay together to see if you can hit with some decent odds.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Same Game Parlay – Utah -12.5 & Over 233.5 (+260)
Sacramento Kings @ Golden State Warriors – 10pm ET
Two Pacific Division rivals go head to head on Monday night, when the Sacramento Kings take on the Golden State Warriors. The Kings are coming off a win yesterday against the Spurs, 121-114, and they have now won two of their last three games. The Warriors had their three game winning streak snapped last time out, thanks to the Trail Blazers, 100-119.
Denis Kirilov
A shorthanded Sacramento Kings’ team will travel to San Francisco on Monday to play the top team in the NBA, the Golden State Warriors. The Kings managed to snatch onto the victory against the San Antonio Spurs in their last game after a fantastic performance from the 3-point line. Buddy Hield and Tyrese Haliburton were most valuable for their team with 29 points and 27 points respectively. Hield made 7 out of 9 shots from beyond the arc, while the latter added 60% shooting from deep range. The whole team went for 56% successful 3-pointers, while Buddy Hield lifted the Kings with 18 points in the last quarter.
The Golden State Warriors are off to a fantastic start this season. They have once again proved that the team is still capable of living up to its potential. Steph Curry has snatched the record from Ray Allen for most 3-pointers made all-time in the NBA and is now focused on getting even more glory at Chase Center. The Warriors will be without his main helpers in the face of Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole. In their first meeting, Golden State took a convincing 119-107 victory. However, I believe this won’t be the case tomorrow although we have a Kings’ roster that is severely damaged. Due to this, I am uncertain of how the game will develop, but I believe we might see a lot of points tomorrow, so I am going with the “over” in this match.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Over 221.5 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The Sacramento Kings have continued to stick around in the playoff hunt this season. Despite some tough times with their coaching staff early on, the team continues to play some exhilarating offense. Unfortunately, the team was hit hard with COVID over the past couple of days and will be without the likes of De’Aaron Fox and Davion Mitchell. Plus, Richaun Holmes will miss the game with an eye injury. This will be a rough game to have those key players gone, as they face the Golden State Warriors on Monday night.
Despite still being the best team in the NBA, the Golden State Warriors have looked a little more mortal in recent games. They lost to the Philadelphia 76ers last weekend, they barely beat the Indiana Pacers, before winning two games then falling to the Toronto Raptors on Saturday. That being said, they were without Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Andrew Wiggins in their loss to the Raptors; they should have the first two back, but today Andrew Wiggins went into COVID protocol. Still the number of players Sacramento has missing outweighs Wiggins absence on the Warriors. Golden State won’t want to take consecutive losses, even if they do have an excuse for dropping the game against Toronto. Golden State with a 15-point cover seems like a lot, but considering the games at home and the Kings have those key losses, I’ll put my trust in the Warriors to get it done.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Golden State Warriors -15 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
Sacramento has quietly played decent basketball as of late, but does that mean that they’re ready for the best team in basketball? The Kings have honestly looked a little better for the past month or so after firing their head coach and bringing a new staff in, but I still think they’re a ways away from being considered a real playoff team in a loaded Western Conference.
Golden State on the other hand, has been the best and arguably most consistent team in the league all year long, and I like that to continue in this one. Steph Curry continues to play like an MVP candidate, Jordan Poole has shown himself to be a threat from the perimeter when needed, and Andrew Wiggins is giving solid minutes, as well. With this Warriors team coming off a loss to Portland this weekend, I look for them to be more focused and prepared, as they get the chance to host an overmatched Sacramento squad. The line in this one is massive though, as it sits at 15, and that’s a number that causes me to be hesitant in terms of margin of victory, so give me Sacramento to be able to come out and cover the number.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Sacramento Kings +15 (-110)
San Antonio Spurs @ Los Angeles Clippers – 10.30pm ET
The final game on Monday’s slate will see the San Antonio Spurs up against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Spurs are coming off a loss in their Sunday night game, going down to the Kings, 114-121. The Clippers are currently on a two game losing streak, with losses to the Jazz and Thunder, which brings their season record to 16-14.
Denis Kirilov
The San Antonio Spurs suffered an unpleasant loss at Golden 1 Center against the Sacramento Kings, 114-121. They lost to a team without a couple of their main players including De’Aaron Fox and Richaun Holmes. The situation within the Spurs’ team is quite unstable as they are 12th in the West with 11 wins and 18 losses. San Antonio dreams about having yet another Parker-Duncan-Ginobili era, but this will take time as the rebuilding has just started a couple of years ago. The team might have to cope with missing the Playoffs for some period, but they surely have the capacity to come back stronger than ever at some point in the future. Until then, their fans will need to understand that they cannot compete with the best.
When talking about the best, the Los Angeles Clippers’ team feels like such a team. However, without their two superstars, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, the team is more on the mediocre side. They still enjoy the likes of Reggie Jackson, Luke Kennerd, and Terrance Mann, but these missing gems have proved to be really important for them. Even with these problems within their roster, the team managed to keep their heads up high and are 5th in the West. Winning 16 out of 30 games is a decent achievement considering that they are playing with a couple of bench players as starters in their matches. They have lost their last two meetings in the NBA against the Utah Jazz and the OKC Thunder and I think it’s time for revenge, so I will trust them to cover their spread.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Los Angeles Clippers -5.5 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The Clippers are coming off a nail biting 103-104 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday night. Even though Oklahoma City is one of the worst teams in the league, the Clippers have had to deal a ton of injuries and COVID issues over the past couple of weeks. It was a tough loss, but one they know they can bounce back from. Still, some things are up in the air for their matchup against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday as Paul George is still questionable to play and Serge Ibaka, while listed as probable, isn’t 100%. They’ll also be without Marcus Morris (COVID) and might be without veteran Nic Batum as well. The Clippers have done a great job at stepping up all season, despite these injuries, but they’ll face a young San Antonio Spurs team that, despite losing to Sacramento last night, recently beat one of the NBA’s best teams in the Utah Jazz.
📊 27 PTS / 7 3PM / 7 REB@LukeKennard5 logged a season-high 27 points. pic.twitter.com/AS76TtXhm5
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) December 19, 2021
San Antonio may be 11-18 on the year, but they’ve taken some of the league’s best teams to the wire. They have some great young talent in potential all-star Dejounte Murray and young up-and-comers Keldon Johnson and Lonnie Walker. Plus, being under the guidance of one of the greatest coaches of all time (Gregg Popovich) definitely helps. Right now with the questionable injuries this one is hard to put a finger on, but I think this Spurs team has a chance, so I’ll at least pick them to cover.
Michael’s NBA Pick: San Antonio Spurs +5.5 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
San Antonio has struggled this year, as the talent level just isn’t where it needs to be for them to actually think of themselves as potential playoff contenders, but even with that they do show up every now and again to remind people that they can still play at a high level just to mess with some teams’ seasons. That wasn’t the case in their last outing though, as they slipped up against a Sacramento team that was missing arguably their two best players. That can’t happen if you want to be viewed as a potential playoff team, but that’s exactly why I say they aren’t there yet.
Now they get another chance against a team that’s again missing their two best players. Kawhi Leonard is still trying to recover from an ACL injury from last year, and Paul George is questionable for this game. That leaves the Clips having to rely on Reggie Jackson and Terance Mann to lead the way, and hopefully get solid production from Luke Kennard, as well. If all three of these guys play well, I think Los Angeles can win a tight one, and that’s exactly what I’m expecting to happen. The Spurs have just been too inconsistent over the past few weeks to have any confidence in trying to determine which team shows up, so I like the Clips in tight fashion.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Los Angeles Clippers (-220)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
