Our free NBA Picks are out for Monday, November 15th, 2021! Make sure you check our NBA Picks before the action kicks off.
Look below to find our free NBA Picks for the five best games on today’s schedule!
Boston Celtics @ Cleveland Cavaliers – 7pm ET
Two nights after facing each other, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics are back at it again. The Cavs won that one 91-89, moving to 9-5 on the season while putting the Celtics back below 0.500, being 6-7. Can the Celtics show something and leave Cleveland with a split or will the Cavaliers continue their hot-streak?
Tim Newton
Boston will be kicking themselves for losing a nail-biter to the Cavs on Monday night. They shot better from the field, better from the line, had more assists and rebounds, however they also had eight more turnovers and that was the difference. Cleveland’s best player is a rookie, and while Evan Mobley has been fantastic through 14 games, a team with Jayson Tatum leading the way plus Marcus Smart and Dennis Schroder controlling the backcourt should not be losing these games.
The issue is, while Tatum had 21 points, he needed 22 shots to get there and had barely any impact outside of that, finishing with no defensive stats and just two assists. Especially with Jaylen Brown out of the lineup, he needs to be much more dominant for Boston, and I am expecting that to happen tonight.
While Cleveland’s story is great and their young, exciting roster is over performing right now, they are over performing and that will eventually return to the norm. The likes of Mobley, Darius Garland and Isaac Okoro, their last three first round draft picks, shouldn’t be enough against an experienced Boston side. I will say that it is disrespectful to Boston as favorites for this clash, given what we have seen so far this season, but I do think they will win this one.
Tim’s NBA Pick: Boston Celtics (-136)
Denis Kirilov
The Boston Celtics and the Cleveland Cavaliers meet up once again after facing off against each other on Saturday in Ohio. After what was an awful first quarter for the Cavs, they managed to pull off a comeback and won the game by 2 points, 91:89. The scoring ability of Cleveland was damaged after Collin Sexton suffered a torn left meniscus against the New York Knicks. After regularly putting up more than 100 points, after this injury they started dropping around 90 points. This news definitely had a negative impact on the team, but only time will show whether this will affect them in the long-run. They will need players like Darius Garland to step up and compensate for the absence of their guard.
The Celtics had a disappointing start to their campaign as they are 6-7 coming into this game. This was mainly due to their poor shooting from the field. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and their teammates found a way to miss from everywhere. At the same time, they entered the 4th quarter against the Wizards with 0-20 from deep range. They will surely need to improve their shooting if they won’t be contenders this year. I think this is a good enough reason to go with “under 199 points” in their second meeting for the season. Without Sexton for the Cavs and without Brown for the Celtics, I think we will watch a more defensive-focused game.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Under 199 (-110)
Rook really did that 😈@evanmobley x #LetEmKnow pic.twitter.com/PW55Ldjl9s
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) November 14, 2021
Michael Lantz
The Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers rematch just two nights after the Cavs pulled off a gritty 91-89 win thanks to Darius Garland’s clutch free throws which capped off a 29-15 run in the fourth-quarter.
The Cleveland Cavs have been one of the NBA’s pleasant surprises so far. With a 9-5 record, this team has had numerous things go in their favor: from Darius Garland stepping up for an injured Collin Sexton, to the veteran presence of Ricky Rubio, to Evan Mobley looking like the early Rookie of the Year favorite, this team continues to find ways to win.
Prior to the Cavs’ loss, the Celtics were winners of four of five—despite Jaylen Brown missing the last couple of games with a hamstring injury. This has allowed players like Robert Williams and Dennis Schroeder to get more touches and step up in his absence. In addition to Brown being out, it should also be worth mentioning the Celtics did not have Al Horford and Josh Richardson in their Saturday night loss. Those two are probable to return Monday and whether they do or not, I expect the C’s to make up for the close loss over the weekend with a win in what should be another close one against an up-and-coming Cavs team.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Boston Celtics (-136)
Noah Dunlap
After one of the more surprising starts to the season for anyone in the NBA, the Cleveland Cavaliers are now in scramble mode after Collin Sexton, the team’s best player, went down with a torn meniscus, and is now out for the foreseeable future. The team was already playing way above it’s talent level, and with Sexton being out, it’s now uncertain as to how the team responds. They did get a win over this same Boston team on Saturday, but it was a tight one where they had to come from behind after a disastrous first quarter.
For Boston, goodness has their season been an absolute catastrophe from the start. Despite being one of the more talented teams in the conference from a roster standpoint, they simply haven’t played like it, and the team’s shooting has been woeful. Jaylen Brown has played well pretty consistently, but the shooting has been iffy at best, and guys like Jayson Tatum and Marcus Smart have been somewhat underwhelming, which plays a large part in the fact that the team is struggling. However, despite these struggles, it’s hard to beat the same team back-to-back, especially when they’re comparable, so I think Boston comes back and gets a close win over Cleveland in this one, returning the favor from Saturday night.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Boston Celtics -2.5 (-110)
Indiana Pacers @ New York Knicks – 7:30pm ET
The New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers are on opposing sides of two-game streaks, with the Knicks losing two straight while the Pacers have won their last two. New York will be looking to not only turn their form around, but also enact some revenge for the 98-111 loss in Indiana two weeks ago.
Tim Newton
The Indiana Pacers look like they may have figured it out right now. They are getting good contributions across the board and playing in such a way that anyone could shine on any given night. New York on the other hand is waiting for someone to shine but they aren’t having much luck.
Kemba Walker looked like he broke out of the retirement home against Charlotte, putting up 17 first quarter points, but he only managed nine points in the last three quarters and New York ended up losing by eight. Between him, RJ Barrett and Evan Fournier, the New York wings couldn’t be any more unreliable, and it is costing them games.
Indiana on the other hand seem to have a healthy blend of Malcolm Brogdon and Domantas Sabonis, with the likes of Justin Holiday, Caris LeVert and Myles Turner all playing their roles perfectly. Turner, for example, has 3+ blocks in seven of his last eight games, and has scored in double figures in all of those as well. They have the perfect blend of star power and supporting play, which is why I am more than happy to take them with the points as underdogs.
Tim’s NBA Pick: Indiana Pacers +3 (-110)
Denis Kirilov
The New York Knicks built a fantastic roster for this year as they have players like Kemba Walker, Derrick Rose, Julius Randle, and RJ Barrett. The team found a way to combine these totally different high-class players and results should start popping up at the end of this year. They are 7-6 so far, sitting in 7th place in the East. The team from the “Big Apple” will certainly fight for a home advantage in the Playoffs, meaning that they will need to finish in the top 4 in the regular season. The Conference became more competitive in recent years and this might not be such an easy achievement to be accomplished.
On the other hand, the Indiana Pacers will have a hard time reaching the Playoffs this year. Although they are coming to Madison Square Garden with two consecutive wins, they are far away from the form that is expected from them. They hold a record of 6 wins and 8 losses and the only light at the end of the tunnel for them can be the two previous games. They defeated the Utah Jazz and the Philadelphia 76ers. However, Philly had COVID-19 issues, while Utah’s performance had been declining sharply in their most recent matches. These results can’t be misleading though, since they also put up great fights against the Nuggets, the Kings, and the Blazers. They also managed to defeat the Knicks in a nice fashion by 13 points on November 4th. However, I think these intense matches will eventually take the better of them and drain their energy. Hence, my pick here goes towards the Knicks.
Denis’ NBA Pick: New York Knicks (-148)
Michael Lantz
When these two teams faced off on November 3rd, the Pacers started the game on a 36-22 tear and didn’t look back. Their 111-98 victory handed the Knicks their first consecutive losses on the season. New York has continued their inconsistent play but are still hanging on with a 7-6 record; they’ll have a chance at redemption against Indiana on Monday night at MSG. The Knicks have drifted away from the hardnose defense that earned them a four-seed in last season’s playoffs. In 2020-21 they allowed the least points per game and were top five in defensive rating. This season they are ranked in the bottom half of the league in both categories. Their loss of identity is disconcerting, and a big part of it has to do with the addition of Evan Fournier and Kemba Walker, who get ample playing time because of their scoring abilities but are defensive liabilities.
The Knicks will get a chance to go back to prove they can still play to their old ways as they face an Indiana team that’s sixth in the NBA in points per game. The Pacers are now breathing down the Knicks neck with a 6-8 record after starting the season 1-6, as they’ve kept teams on their toes with nine legit scoring options. Everyone from all-star Domantas Sabonis to undrafted guard Kelan Martin have shown their ability to score in the double digits. It took the Pacers a couple of weeks, but they’re finally playing some cohesive basketball, which hit a new high last Thursday as they defeated the Utah Jazz by 11 in Salt Lake City. The road won’t be an issue, but the Knicks will be looking for payback after their prior loss to the Pacers and coming off back-to-back defeats against Milwaukee and Charlotte. The most enticing option for me is the over/under which is at 217—only two of the Knicks’ last ten games have gone over that amount. So I’ll go “under” in this one.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Under 217 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
The New York Knicks just continue to do Knick-like things. They started out the year extremely hot, getting everyone’s hopes up, and since then they’ve fallen flat on their face, and have fallen to 7-6 on the year. The good news is that the roster is improved and they should continue to get better as they get more time to help, but for now they often look lost, with Julius Randle seemingly being the one consistent player night in and night out.
The Indiana Pacers are trying to right the ship, following one of the most disappointing starts to the season from anyone in the league, and they come into this one on a two-game winning streak. The problem is that despite this short winning streak, I still have doubts about the Pacers defense, as they’ve shown the ability to be completely nonexistent at times this year. An iffy defense, combined with a tough schedule to start the year that quite possibly has them worn down and now going on the road to MSG, makes me question how much energy Indiana brings to the table in this one, leading to a Knicks win at home.
Noah’s NBA Pick: New York Knicks -3 (-110)
Denver Nuggets @ Dallas Mavericks – 8pm ET
One night after dominating Portland, the Denver Nuggets get on the road to face another playoff team from a year ago, the Dallas Mavericks. A massive 124-95 win looks great for Denver heading into this clash, but the Mavs have won four of their last five games and are looking good behind Luka Doncic.
Tim Newton
This is a tough one as the two sides have already met once this season, with Denver winning 106-75 – a thumping. However, Dallas returns home after two nights off while the Nuggets are backing up after playing last night. In saying that, Denver won in a blow out and none of the Nuggets reached 30 minutes, indicating that they should be fresh for tonight’s game.
Nikola Jokic had as good of a game as you could ask for, finishing with 28 points, nine rebounds, nine assists on 64.7% shooting from the field and 3/3 from deep, all in just 28 minutes. He has been exceptional yet gain this season and the combination of Dwight Powell and Willie Cauley-Stein are going to have fits trying to slow him down.
Dallas on the other hand has been very reliant on Luka Doncic and that may not be the best thing right now. He is very hot and cold, still acting like a brat at times, and if Kristaps Porzingis or Tim Hardaway Jr don’t perform at an above average level, this team falls away very quickly.
That means that the result here could lie in the hands of Aaron Gordon and how good he is defensively. He doesn’t need to score points, he just needs to knuckle down on defense, and I think he can do that here. You want to get Doncic mad, as it takes away from his brilliance, and Gordon, Will Barton and Austin Rivers can help make that happen. I am happier to take the Nuggets with the points as this could go either way, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Denver won.
Tim’s NBA Pick: Denver Nuggets +4 (-110)
Denis Kirilov
The battle of the Balkans in the NBA will take place tomorrow night in Dallas. Luka Doncic versus Nikola Jokic is a duel that every single NBA fan is looking forward to in recent years. Both teams are built around their most valuable players coming from Europe and they will try to make a history for themselves in the vast League. Both Jokic and Doncic recorded a triple-double right ahead of their meet-up. Their start to the season might not have been that great, but with time passing they found their rhythm and now it’s showtime.
The Nuggets hold a record of 9 wins and 4 losses and are in a 5-game winning streak defeating teams like the Heat, the Hawks, and the Blazers. The Mavs aren’t falling back with their 66.7% win-ratio getting 8 wins out of 12 games. However, they have won against more mediocre teams, while at the same time, they lost to some of their direct rivals for the title like the Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat. They also suffered a 31-point loss to the Nuggets earlier this season. I think the Mavs are a bit overrated at the moment and their statistics can be a lot misleading. Therefore, I will trust the Nuggets and give my preferences to them.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Denver Nuggets (+144)
Nikola Jokic leads the @nuggets to their 5th consecutive victory!
Bones Hyland: 18 PTS
Monte Morris: 15 PTS, 3 STL pic.twitter.com/FayT160m4N— John Darkhoney (@johndarkhoney) November 15, 2021
Michael Lantz
The Mavericks sit with a pretty 8-4 record—but I for one am not convinced. Three of those wins have come against a 4-8 Spurs squad, and two more were against New Orleans and Houston—who have a combined three wins. When Dallas faced Denver on October 29th, the Nuggets ravaged them, winning 106-75.
Dallas has had some trouble finding Luka Doncic some dependable help. While players like Jalen Brunson and Tim Hardaway Jr, are solid options that can occasionally go on scoring sprees, neither is quite an all-star talent. In a league where you need at least two stars on a team to succeed, the team had high hopes for Kristaps Porzingis. But, to start off the year Porzingis came across as a bit soft and wasn’t looking like a reliable number two. That’s changed as of late: Porzingis has scored at least 20 points in three of his last four and is looking more and more like the player Mavericks fans would hope he’d be. The Mavs will need him to produce those numbers Monday night if they have any chance of winning.
Meanwhile, the Denver Nuggets continue to face adversity with ease. They started the season without guard Jamal Murray (who continues to recover from injury), and have gotten no help from Michael Porter Jr. (atrocious numbers, now injury). But, they’ve still found a way to be a Western Conference powerhouse, winning five straight. It might help that they have the reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, who is putting up freak numbers at 25 points per game, 14 rebounds per game all while shooting 59% from the field. Even though this recent run of success is impressive, this will be the Nuggets’ third game in four nights, and with the home team Mavericks looking for a big win and a little payback, I’ll give a Dallas team that’s been giving Luka a little more help the edge.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Dallas Mavericks (-172)
Noah Dunlap
This is sure to be an exciting matchup, as we get two MVP candidates going head up against each other, with Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic set to square off. The other intriguing part of this game is that both of these teams have similar stories to tell so far this season. They both started much slower than they would’ve liked, but as the year has progressed they both seem to be settling in comfortably and have both started to play much better basketball. The Nuggets come into this one on a 5-game winning streak, and currently are playing like arguably the best team in the league. Similarly, the Mavs enter this one as winners of four of their last five, and the supporting cast is starting to get Luka a little help along the way. While the comfortable pick for this one would probably be taking Denver, I’m going to lean Dallas, as I think they bring slightly more to the table than a Nuggets team that’s on the second night of a back-to-back.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Dallas Mavericks (-172)
Toronto Raptors @ Portland Trail Blazers – 10pm ET
The Portland Trail Blazers will be looking to dust themselves off and put in a better performance tonight, hosting the Toronto Raptors one night after a demoralizing loss to the Nuggets. On the other side, Toronto will be looking to start their six-game road trip off with a bang, hoping not to fall below 0.500 on the season.
Tim Newton
While the Blazers just suffered a 29 point loss last night, I like them to bounce back and beat the Raptors here. Portland are now 1-7 on the road following the loss, but they return home for this clash, where they are 5-1 on the season. While they have only beaten Houston when travelling, Portland have beaten the likes of the Suns, Grizzlies, Clippers and Lakers at home, winning all four of those games by double figures.
Toronto has their claims as well, coming into this one with a 5-1 record on the road, however the teams they have beaten may not stack up as well as the teams Portland has. They beat a depleted Philly side, a not very good Boston side, an inconsistent Indiana side and an underperforming New York side. That isn’t to say that Toronto hasn’t been good, as they are playing great and certainly exceeding expectations, but there are legitimate excuses or reasons for why their games have gone the way they have.
Ultimately, I think Portland will come out with a point to prove after their poor showing last night and the Moda Center will be rocking, helping the Blazers get over the line.
Tim’s NBA Pick: Portland Trail Blazers (-120)
Denis Kirilov
After suffering a huge defeat against the Denver Nuggets, the Portland Trail Blazers will have to face an uprising team of the Toronto Raptors. Both teams are in the middle of the table in their respective Conference which is not what their fans want to see. The Blazers’ problems are coming mainly off Damian Lillard’s performance in the first month. He couldn’t find his rhythm as he is usually under 50% FG during Portland’s games. However, he will the match tomorrow due to an abdominal strain. On the other hand, the other players on the Blazers’ roster aren’t having their best days on the team as CJ McCollum is nowhere to be found, while Normal Powell is delivering from time to time in order to save the situation for the “Rip City”.
On the other hand, the Raptors had a 5-0 run in the end of October and in the beginning of November, but later on, they had to reconcile with just 1 win out of their next 5 games. They even lost to the Detroit Pistons at home, which was one of the biggest upsets in the NBA on Saturday. Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam will try to reborn the Raptors as a Phoenix and to rise from the ashes they’ve put themselves into with the disappointing performance last season. I think they are a strong favorite to win the upcoming fixture against the Portland Trail Blazers and I would recommend picking them as the final winner.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors (-108)
Michael Lantz
After a disappointing 2020-21 season, the Toronto Raptors were starting to look like a playoff team again posting a 7-6 record; without Pascal Siakim in a majority of those games. Then Saturday night happened: the Raptors lost by six to the Detroit PIstons. If the Raptors are serious about contending they can’t lose games against the team that had the number one pick in the 2021 draft—even if they don’t have Fred VanVleet (who missed the game with an injury). Now at 7-7, the Raptors travel to Portland to take on a Trail Blazers team that’s had plenty of issues themselves.
Portland sits at 6-8 and just lost to the Denver Nuggets Sunday night 124-95. They were missing Damian Lillard, who is battling a lower abdominal injury, but even Dame hasn’t looked like himself this season, posting lows in points per game, shooting percentage, and more. Still he’s a major x-factor and a guy other teams make their primary focus. Sure Portland may have a more balanced scoring attack with him out, but he’s still the heart and soul of this Trailblazers squad. Dame may miss Monday night too, but I expect his teammates to put up a better performance at home. Speaking of better performances, Toronto can not play the same defense they did against the Pistons. In a game that might not have either Lillard or VanVleet, I’m going to go with the Blazers. I like their home court advantage and think they’ll get solid performance from Norman Powel as he faces his former squad.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Portland Trailblazers (-120)
Noah Dunlap
These are two teams that have had very different starts to the season, especially when you compare performance to expectations. The Toronto Raptors started the year as one of the more surprising teams in the NBA, but have since cooled off just a bit, as Fred VanVleet and company can’t seem to get back the rhythm from the first two and a half weeks of the season, including a loss in their last outing to the abysmal Detroit Pistons.
While Toronto started the year surprising many due to positive play, the Portland Trail Blazers started the year on exactly the opposite note. Damian Lillard has been playing atrocious basketball to start the year, primarily due to the fact that he can’t shoot to save his life right now, and CJ McCollum seems to be having many of the same problems. When your two best players, who are both known as shooters, aren’t shooting well at all, it puts pressure on the rest of your roster, which is exactly what we’ve seen from Portland to start the year. To make matters worse, it appears as if Dame is probably out for this one, due to an abdominal strain, which is unfortunate for the Blazers, as even though he isn’t playing well, he is still giving you 15-20 a night consistently. Not having that in the lineup tonight is sure to be problematic, especially for a team that just got blasted last night and is on the second night of a back-to-back. All of that seems to prime us for a Toronto win, so that’s exactly what I’ll take with this one.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors (-108)
Chicago Bulls @ Los Angeles Lakers – 10:30pm ET
The Chicago Bulls will be looking to complete the LA sweep tonight as they return to Staples Center to take on the Los Angeles Lakers. They managed to beat the Clippers 100-90 last night, snapping their seven-game winning streak, while the Lakers beat the Spurs 114-106 inside Staples Center just hours earlier.
Tim Newton
The return of the GOAT, Alex Caruso! While that may steal some eyes early on, don’t let it distract you from the fact that Chicago has been playing some excellent basketball this season, exemplified by the fact that just stopped the Clippers’ seven game winning streak. Where I worry for them here is, Anthony Davis has taken control of the Lakers and Chicago has no depth in their bigs. Tony Bradley started at center last night, with Derrick Jone Jnr his main backup….
If the Lakers can feed Davis the ball, and he doesn’t have a ticky-tack ‘injury’ early on, then he should dominate this game enough for the Lakers to get the win. Add in the fact that Russell Westbrook has embraced his role with LeBron on the sidelines and Talen Horton-Tucker featured for the first time this season, the Lakers are figuring out how to get the job done without The King.
In saying that, they will need to be on top of their game, especially defensively. Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan have been an excellent wing tandem this season, with both averaging 25+ points per game. Given the Lakers started Carmelo Anthony and Horton-Tucker in the forward slots last night, the Bulls main two could look to put up some numbers here.
With this game essentially being a pick ‘em in the odds, I am actually going to side with the Bulls here. They seem better equipped to perform at a high level on the quick back-up and I’ll take them to get two wins in two nights in the Staples Center.
Tim’s NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls (-104)
Denis Kirilov
The Chicago Bulls entered a period when they had to play against some of the best teams in the NBA. It all began with a game against the Utah Jazz that they managed to win and to bring Utah’s first loss for the season. Later on, they had to face the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers in away games before returning back home and dealing with the Brooklyn Nets and the Dallas Mavericks. Then, they began a road trip that started with a loss to the Warriors, followed by a win over the Clippers and another meeting with a team from LA, the Lakers, and their journey will last for two more games after that. This is certainly one of the toughest series of matches that a team can embrace during the season and 5-3 so far. However, I think all these matches are getting the better of them and furthermore, this didn’t give any time for Zach LaVine to recover from his injury in the thumb.
The LA Lakers are a team from a different breed. They gathered almost every single superstar from their opponents and tried to become “Los Galacticos” for the NBA. However, the strategy isn’t paying off for now as they are struggling to pile up victories. They even suffered upsets to teams like the OKC Thunder and the Minnesota Timberwolves. LeBron James hasn’t recovered from his abdominal strain and will miss the game. The only good thing for the Lakers is the fact that Chicago can use their big man in the face of Nikola Vucevic who is out of the team due to COVID-19. However, I lean more towards the Bulls as they are far more consistent than the Lakers this year.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls (-104)
CLOSE EM OUT ZACH.@NBCSChicago | @ZachLaVine pic.twitter.com/fEJOZYsSjG
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) November 15, 2021
Michael Lantz
On Friday night the Lakers were utterly embarrassed against the Minnesota Timberwolves, losing 107-83 and were victims of a 50-13 run at one point in the second half. The Lakers luckily bounced back with a 114-106 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night. Anthony Davis put the team on his back, scoring 34 points and grabbing 15 rebounds, but he also got some help as five other players scored in the double digits including the likes of Malik Monk (16), Wayne Ellington (15), and Talen Horton-Tucker (17). With Lebron James still out for a few more games, the team will need everyone else to step up and play lights out.
This will be essential in a game against the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls have had a couple key players go down as Patrick Williams is lost for the year needing wrist surgery and Nikla Vucevic is out with COVID. Still, they continue to play tough defense thanks in large part to fan-favorite Alex Caruso. They’ve also developed quite the scoring attack courtesy of Demar DeRozen and Zach Lavine. They’ve also loved having a floor general like Lonzo Ball running the point while also playing great two-way basketball. Lonzo faces the team that drafted him Monday night as he and the rest of the Bulls look to make it an L.A. sweep. They had a huge win on Sunday night, beating the Clippers 100-90, and ending Paul George & Co.’s seven-game win streak. I think they will take two in L.A.—I’m not as convinced with the mental toughness of this Lakers team as I am with the Bulls.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls (-104)
Noah Dunlap
Despite putting together their own all-star team of sorts, the experiment doesn’t currently seem to be working for the Los Angeles Lakers, as they continue to struggle to mesh together and deal with the different pieces that they’ve acquired. Anthony Davis is playing well, but he currently is about the only one doing so, as Russell Westbrook continues to struggle, Dwight Howard is virtually nonexistent, Carmelo Anthony has shown flashes, but they’re exceedingly rare, and LeBron continues to sit with an abdominal strain. All of that put together doesn’t seem to bode well for the Lakers, as they welcome in the Chicago Bulls tonight.
The Bulls have been one of the best teams in basketball so far this season, leaning heavily on new additions like Lonzo Ball and DeMar Derozan to get there, and that burden on the duo’s shoulders has been increased over the past week or so, as Zach LaVine continues to deal with a nagging thumb injury. So the question becomes, can a Bulls team on the second night of an LA back-to-back (as they beat the Clippers last night), who’s in the middle of one of the toughest stretches of a schedule you’ll ever see, with arguably their best player banged up, be able to continue the hot run and get yet another win against a team that is talented but struggling currently? I think the answer is yes. With LeBron still being out, I’m just not convinced that the Lakers can put up the points needed to compete with a Bulls squad that is playing extremely well. Outside of AD tonight, I don’t know where LA’s points are coming from, so give Chicago to pull off the LA sweep and go about their business as they look to close out this road trip.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls (-104)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
