We are already 22 games into the season and there is another 10 for your Saturday! Our NBA picks are going strong and we have got the winners of all 10 contests below.
How many teams will move to 2-0? How many teams will get their first wins of the season? We have everything you need to pick some winners below.
Atlanta Hawks @ Memphis Grizzlies – 5PM ET
A battle of two young and exciting point guards kicks off the day with Trae Young and Ja Morant going head to head.
While it is extremely early, and they only played Chicago, it is safe to say that Atlanta’s offseason moves have made them extremely better. 73 first half points put the game out of reach with seven Hawks scoring in double figures, led by Trae Young who finished with 37 points on 83% shooting with six rebounds, seven assists in just 26 minutes.
Ja Morant had a game to remember as well, dropping 44 points on 67% shooting with nine assists, but his one man show wasn’t enough to overcome the Spurs.
We are expecting a similar one here with Atlanta’s offense being too much for Memphis to handle.
NBA Pick – Atlanta Hawks (+100).
Oklahoma City Thunder @ Charlotte Hornets – 7PM ET
Oklahoma City finally take the floor after their opening game against the Rockets was cancelled due to Houston having COVID-19 problems.
Charlotte on the other hand did take the floor and they probably wish that they hadn’t. They let Cleveland take control early and were never able to reclaim it after that. The one bright spot was Terry Rozier dropping 42 points, thanks to 10/16 shooting from deep.
Oklahoma will be coming into this one hungry and Charlotte showed no signs of a team that can win meaningful games.
NBA Pick – Oklahoma City Thunder (+135).
A very Merry Cavsmas for all! 😄 pic.twitter.com/2PIGzZfoNd
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) December 24, 2020
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Detroit Pistons – 7PM ET
A surprising start here for the Cavaliers who notched a win over the Hornets in their first game while Detroit, who had a double figures lead in the first quarter, ended up losing to the Timberwolves.
The Cavaliers jumped Charlotte from the start and never looked back, with seven scoring in double figures, led by Collin Sexton’s 27 points, Darius Garland’s 22, 6 and 6 and Larry Nance Jr’s 13 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, three steals and two blocks.
Detroit couldn’t get much going on offense with Josh Jackson leading the way with 19 points off the bench while Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose could only manage 15 each.
The story in this one is Andre Drummond returning to Detroit for the first time since being traded and we are expecting him to have a big one in a Cavaliers victory.
NBA Pick – Cleveland Cavaliers (+115).
Orlando Magic @ Washington Wizards – 7PM ET
Orlando shocked the Miami Heat in a 113-107 home victory on Wednesday but now travel to Washington in an attempt to overcome Russell Westbrook, Bradley Beal and the Wizards.
Evan Fournier and Aaron Gordon combined for 45 points and seven steals in the win with five Magic players scoring in double figures.
Washington on the other hand come in off the back of a 6-point loss to Philadelphia where Bradley Beal had 31 points and Russell Westbrook had a triple double in his first game for the franchise. Washington looked to have control for most of the game but fell away late. We are expecting a different result here with the Beal/Westbrook backcourt being too much for Orlando to handle.
NBA Pick – Washington Wizards (-131).
Philadelphia 76ers @ New York Knicks – 7:30PM ET
Philadelphia are lucky to be 1-0 after allowing Washington to dictate most of their season opener. They ended up with a 6-point victory at home thanks to 29 points and 14 boards from Joel Embiid and an all around game from Ben Simmons.
They now travel to New York to take on a Knicks side that performed a lot better than the 14-point deficit implies. They had the lead after two quarters but were outscored by 19 in the second half to throw away the lead. RJ Barrett looks to have turned a corner with an efficient 26, 8 and 5 performance while Julius Randle had a near triple double with 17, 9 and 9.
Despite their strong showing, New York won’t be able to handle the combo of Embiid and Simmons, with Philadelphia moving to 2-0 on the season.
NBA Pick – Philadelphia 76ers (-341).
Got ourselves a Nate BjorkWIN 😛
Congratulations on your first of many @NBA victories, Coach! 👏#PacersWin x @jacksdonuts pic.twitter.com/6wtuH89VrD
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) December 24, 2020
Indiana Pacers @ Chicago Bulls – 8PM ET
The Pacers will be looking to make it two on the trot when they take on the Chicago Bulls in the United Center.
Chicago looked just plain awful when they hosted Atlanta on Wednesday, giving up points left, right and center. Zach Lavine had an inefficient 22 points while Lauri Markkanen added 21 points and 9 boards in the 20-points loss.
Indiana on the other hand used a big second half to come away 14-point winners over the Knicks. Domantas Sabonis continued his incredible form from last season with 32 points, 13 bounds and five assists while the backcourt pairing of Malcolm Brogdon and Victor Oladipo combined for 43 points.
Chicago showed nothing to give us any confidence to pick them any time soon, especially against a playoff team in Indiana.
NBA Pick – Indiana Pacers (-180).
Toronto Raptors @ San Antonio Spurs – 8:30PM ET
After a disappointing showing in their home opener, Toronto will be looking to right the ship when they travel to San Antonio to take on DeMar DeRozan and the Spurs.
DeRozan had himself a game on Wednesday, putting up 28, 9 and 9 in a 12 point win over the Grizzlies. He led seven Spurs who scored in double figures and will be looking to get a win over his old side.
There is always plenty of feel in these reunion matches, but Toronto will be desperate for a win. Pascal Siakim had 20, 6 and 6 while Kyle Lowry had a double double in the loss, but they looked slow and, at times, out of sync.
In saying that, Toronto is a class outfit and Nick Nurse is a very good head coach, not to say that Gregg Popovich isn’t, but Toronto will come out harder than ever to avoid a 0-2 start.
NBA Pick – Toronto Raptors (-115).
Minnesota Timberwolves @ Utah Jazz – 9PM ET
Some exciting head to head matchups in this northwest division duel. D’Angelo Russell and Donovan Mitchell both lighting it up from the perimeter while Rudy Gobert goes up against Karl-Anthony Towns inside.
Minnesota started slowly but worked their way into it and ended up running over the top of Detroit. D’Angelo Russell was relegated to the bench to start this one for being late to shootaround, so look for him to be injected back into the starting lineup and come out strong.
Malik Beasley and Karl-Anthony Towns led the way for the Timberwolves, scoring 23 and 22 respectively, with KAT adding 11 boards and seven assists.
Utah came out with a statement win over the Portland Trail Blazers. The Jazz didn’t make any flashy offseason moves like some other teams but got Bojan Bogdanovic back to full health and re-signed Jordan Clarkson to lead the bench. Both added 15 points while Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell dropped 20 each in the big win.
Utah can score from all angles and are a very solid defensive unit and we are backing them in to get their second in a row.
NBA Pick – Utah Jazz (-351).
Rudy Gobert’s 20 PTS (8-10 FGM) and 17 REB help the @utahjazz win in Portland! #KiaTipOff20
Donovan Mitchell: 20 PTS, 4 3PM
Mike Conley: 18 PTS, 4 3PM
CJ McCollum: 23 PTS pic.twitter.com/D1YOvN0VwY— NBA (@NBA) December 24, 2020
Houston Rockets @ Portland Trail Blazers – 10PM ET
*Note: There is currently speculation on whether this game will go ahead, therefore there are no odds available.
Two of the best scorers go head to head when Portland hosts the Rockets, although we really haven’t seen either of them so far this season. Houston’s opening game was postponed due to COVID-19 and there is no knowing how they will look in this one.
Portland on the other hand had an absolute shocker against Utah. Lillard was held scoreless and Portland could only manage 44 points in the first half. He ended with …
There is some spice in this one, as Robert Covington was traded from Houston to the Trail Blazers in the offseason and could prove to be an important piece for Portland in their attempt to slow Harden down in this one.
Due to so much unknown with Houston’s COVID-19 situation, despite their poor performance we are taking Portland to bounce back with a win.
NBA Pick – Portland Trail Blazers (TBA).
Phoenix Suns @ Sacramento Kings – 10PM ET
Two Pacific division rivals go head to head when the new look Phoenix Suns take on the Sacramento Kings in California’s capital. De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield will be looking to overcome Chris Paul and Devin Booker in the backcourt while the top two picks in the 2018 NBA Draft go to battle inside with Marvin Bagley and Deandre Ayton.
Sacramento had a shock overtime victory in Denver on Wednesday and they would like to keep the momentum going. Harrison Barnes, Fox and Hield all scored over 20 points while four others scored in double figures.
Phoenix on the other hand started off great against Dallas, with Booker scoring 11 in the first quarter, but they slowly let Dallas back into the game. The Suns played better down the stretch with clutch buckets at key moments and came away with the four point win.
Chris Paul didn’t have the best statistical game in his first for Phoenix but had a key bucket and steal late to help put them out of reach. Booker led the way with 22 points with the Suns having six different players score in double figures.
Phoenix seems to be the better team and if Ayton doesn’t get into early foul trouble like he did on Wednesday, the Suns could come away big winners.
NBA Pick – Phoenix Suns (-165).
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of PointsBet.
