Our free NBA Picks are out for Thursday, November 11th, 2021! Make sure you check our NBA Picks before the action kicks off.
Look below to find our free NBA Picks for each of the three games on today’s schedule!
Toronto Raptors @ Philadelphia 76ers – 7pm ET
With their ‘Big 3’ all currently sidelined, the Philadelphia 76ers have started this week with back to back losses. They now host a rebuilding Toronto Raptors side that fell 16 points short of Boston last night. Will the bruised and battered Sixers be able to pick up the win or can Toronto bounce back from a poor shooting night last night?
Tim Newton
While the Sixers have been short-handed, they have actually been quite competitive with the Knicks and Bucks, who were both top four teams in the East last season. What is even better for Philly is that Tobias Harris could potentially return to the lineup for this clash. After missing the last six games due to COVID-19 protocols, he is cleared to play tonight, it is just whether his conditioning is there.
The Sixers will be hoping that he can get out there, giving some much needed assistance to Tyrese Maxey, Shake Milton and Forkan Korkmaz, who have been doing the heavy lifting so far this week. Maxey has been the pick of the bench, taking control of the offense and finishing with 31 points against the Bucks, despite being guarded by Jrue Holiday for most of the night.
On the other side of the ball, Toronto will be licking their wounds after only managing 88 points last night. They shot just 24% from deep and had 18 turnovers for the game, wasting the limited opportunities they had. Scottie Barnes continued to impress in his rookie season, finishing with a team-high 21 points, but no one else scored more than 16 points, which is clearly a worrying sign.
Ultimately, this is a pretty even matchup between the depleted Sixers and rebuilding Raptors. However, if Harris is able to return for Philly, at home, that should give them enough of an edge to win this.
Tim’s NBA Pick: Philadelphia 76ers (-126)
Denis Kirilov
The Toronto Raptors will face off the team with the most wins in the East, the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night in the NBA. The hosts from Philly have several issues coming into this game. They will be without Joel Embiid who is out due to COVID-19 measures. Seth Curry will also miss the match as he picked up a foot injury. On top of that, Tobias Harris tested positive for COVID-19 as well and he is still unable to play. Doc Rivers has a lot of missing puzzle pieces and we will see whether he will be able to create a masterpiece of what is available or the Raptors will take advantage of the circumstances.
Toronto started off the season quite well as they hold a record of 6 wins and 5 losses. They also went on a 5-game winning streak beating teams like the Knicks, the Pacers, and the Wizards. However, they haven’t won in three matches already as they most recently lost to the Boston Celtics in an away game with 104:88. The team consists of many young players who are eager to show their skills to the whole NBA community like Scottie Barnes, OG Anunoby, Gary Trent, Precious Achiuwa, and Dalano Banton. Pascal Siakam returned from his shoulder injury and although it will take some time to find his rhythm, his presence is very vital for the team. Having this in mind, I will go with the surprise and pick the Raptors in this matchup.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors (+108)
The swagger that @GeorgesNiang20 is playing with this year legitimately makes my heart happy. It’s pretty awesome seeing a player play in a city like Philly who knows what it takes to get the crowd going… Philly legend in the making 🚐🐐pic.twitter.com/bk6GH4nnyT
— Josh Reynolds (@JoshReynolds24) November 10, 2021
Michael Lantz
I’ve got to give props to the Philadelphia 76ers—their entire team is dropping like dominos, but they refuse to go down without a fight. First the Ben Simmons fiasco, then Tobias Harris and Matisse Thybulle get COVID, followed a few days later by Joel Embiid also picking up the virus, and now Seth Curry is battling a foot injury. Still guys like Tyrese Maxey and Shake Milton are going out and giving the team some offensive firepower and Andre Drummond is pulling down 20+ rebounds like it’s no problem. Harris and Curry are both questionable for this matchup and even if they’re back they won’t be 100%.
With all the Philly injuries, the Toronto Raptors should be the obvious pick in this one—but on Wednesday night they suffered a beatdown to a Jaylen Brown-less Boston Celtics team losing 104-88. Despite the points given up, Toronto’s defense has been one of the best in the NBA this season as they lead the league in steals per game and have given up the fourth least points per game. They also have the fewest turnovers per game in the NBA; unfortunately that trend did not continue against the Celtics, as the Raptors turned it over 18 times leading to the Celtics scoring 26 points off those mistakes. Considering the Raptors average is usually 11 turnovers per game, this was a bit out of character. Philly will be without their best on ball defender in Matisse Thybulle, so I expect the Raptors to correct this going against a depleted Philadelphia squad.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors (+108)
Noah Dunlap
Philadelphia probably could’ve done without the stretch that they’re currently looking at. Joel Embiid, Seth Curry, and Tobias Harris have been out this week, and they’ve watched themselves drop back-to-back games, though they have been competitive against some of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. The good news is that there’s some speculation that Harris could return for this one, which would certainly help out, but is his return enough to carry the Sixers?
Toronto, who has actually been quite the surprise this season, as they’ve been playing better than expected, did just drop an 18-point contest to a Boston team that has been struggling mightily so far this season. Even with the loss to Boston, with Philly being without at least two of their three best players, and potentially all three, I like Toronto to play much better in this one, especially on the offensive side of the ball, and return to the form that we’ve seen them at for much of the season so far. Look for the Raptors to get a close win on the road in this one.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors (+108)
Indiana Pacers @ Utah Jazz – 9pm ET
The Utah Jazz returned home and it brought a turn-of-fortune, snapping their two-game losing streak with a 12-point win over the Hawks. They now host the Indiana Pacers, who are backing up after visiting Denver last night, where they lost a close one to the Nikola Jokic-less Nuggets side.
Tim Newton
Well, if Indiana can’t beat the Nuggets, who are missing not only Nikola Jokic but also Jamal Murray, how do they have any chance of beating the Jazz, in Utah, a night later. The Pacers are just 4-8 through their first 12 games, which is the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference. The most concerning factor, especially for this game, is that they are just 1-6 on the road. Given that Utah are undefeated at home, with an average winning margin of 12.75 points, this should be a walk in the park for the Jazz.
Another key factor for this one is that Indiana ranks 23rd for scoring defense and 25th for three-point defense. Considering the Jazz are averaging the fourth most points per game and have the likes of Mike Conley, Donovan Mitchell, Royce O’Neal and Joe Ingles dropping bombs from deep, this one could get ugly for the Pacers.
I’m keeping this one short and sweet, with the Pacers looking like they have no chance of competing against the Jazz tonight, so Utah should win and cover.
Tim’s NBA Pick: Utah Jazz -9.5 (-110)
Denis Kirilov
The Indiana Pacers will have to face probably the strongest team in the NBA at the moment, the Utah Jazz. The Pacers find themselves on the bottom of the table with just 4 wins out of 12 matches. Domantas Sabonis regularly posts double-doubles, but this has been of almost no help to Indiana. Myles Turner explodes with amazing performances from time to time, but this is still not enough. Chris LeVert has recovered from his injury just to play 5 games and get sidelined again due to pain in his back. The Pacers’ overall position in the table reflects the issues the team faces in the beginning of the season.
The Utah Jazz, on the other hand, had an amazing start with 7 wins and 1 loss, but they eventually lost two consecutive games to the Miami Heat and surprisingly to the Orlando Magic. If the stars align for them, this team can surely win the title. Until then, they will need to get some more playing minutes so that they can improve their condition on the court and understand each other even better. Donovan Mitchell is once again the power machine for the Jazz as he is always ready to take responsibility. Rudy Gobert is doing what he does best – being under the basket and not letting anyone else be his master in the paint. Jordan Clarkson and Bojan Bogdanovic further help their team with clutch 3-pointers, although sometimes things don’t go out as planned. However, if I have to choose between these two teams, I will go almost anytime with the Jazz. They are with a 3-game winning streak in head-to-head matches and I think this will easily increase to 4. Hence, I will empower my pick by choosing the Jazz to cover their spread.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Utah Jazz -9.5 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The Indiana Pacers can be a bit of a wild-card. Yes, they’re only 4-8, but they’ve had some big wins recently against the likes of the New York Knicks and Sacramento Kings. That being said, the 8-3 Utah Jazz will be a more difficult task. The Jazz are in the top ten in both points scored per game and in least points allowed per game. Despite a confusing loss against the Orlando Magic the other night, the Jazz have looked like one of the league’s most dominant teams this year. While the Jazz should be able to walk away with this one in Salt Lake City, there are some interesting statistics to look at. Despite not allowing many opposition points and having a high defensive rating overall, the Jazz actually create the second least amount of turnovers per game.
Indiana on the other hand, has one of the worst transition defenses as they allow the second most point off turnover in basketball. We’ll see if those two stats cancel each other out or if Utah can focus on that and try to pick up their normal low averages. Another glaring team stat that hurts Indiana: they’re one of the five worst teams in allowing second chance points; Utah has a big man named Rudy Gobert who may want to take advantage of that. Indiana is always capable of giving other teams many opportunities; a team like Utah will make sure to make them pay .
Michael’s NBA Pick: Utah Jazz -9.5 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
This one doesn’t involve much of a summary. The Indiana Pacers have been one of the most disappointing stories of the year so far, and that continued last night as they dropped a contest to a Denver Nuggets team that has been somewhat disappointing as well, and was missing Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. The Pacers defense has been atrocious, and while the offense has shown flashes of being able to score at an elite level, these appearances have been few and far between.
And well, Utah is still one of the best regular-season teams in the NBA. With Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, plus the likes of Mike Conley and Joe Ingles hanging around the perimeter, the Pacers don’t stand a chance in this one, on the second night of a back-to-back. Take Utah in a big way, and feel extremely confident about it.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Utah Jazz -9.5 (-110)
Miami Heat @ Los Angeles Clippers – 10:30pm ET
The Miami Heat will look to bounce back from an overtime defeat at the hands of the Lakers last night, going up against the Los Angeles Clippers in the same building tonight. While the Heat suffered a loss, their third in the last four games, the Clippers have won five straight and will be looking to keep that momentum going here.
Tim Newton
While this would usually be a close game, I’m expecting the Clippers to win this one comfortably. Not only did the Heat lose last night, but Jimmy Butler didn’t take part after the first quarter, turning his ankle badly. Given he finished the game in street clothes, you would expect that he won’t take part in tonight’s game, with it being a very long season. That means that Miami will have to rely heavily on Kyle Lowry, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro to compete tonight. Given the first two have been quite inconsistent this season and Herro was a game-time decision for last night’s clash, things aren’t looking good for the Heat.
On the other hand, LA seems to have figured out how to play without Kawhi Leonard in the lineup. Paul George is playing at an MVP level and leading this team to win after win over the last two weeks. He has been getting great help from the likes of Reggie Jackson, Nicolas Batum and Ivica Zubac, all of whom are more than capable of making a difference on any given night.
Ultimately, the Heat are a completely different side with Butler out of the lineup, and they won’t be able to compete with the Clippers in this one.
Tim’s NBA Pick: Los Angeles Clippers -2.5 (-110)
Denis Kirilov
After suffering a defeat against the Lakers in a tight contest, the Miami Heat will have to try their luck against the other team from Los Angeles, the Clippers. The Clippers have been struggling in the beginning of the season and they will desperately need their superstar, Kawhi Leonard. He has proven throughout the years that he is the core element of each team he has even played for. The impact that he has on the game is so big that without him, the team can be totally different and unrecognizable. However, even though he is missing, the Clippers found a way to get to a 5-game winning streak. Paul George and Reggie Jackson started putting up 20+ points per game and things escalated for the Clippers.
On the other hand, the Miami Heat is a team that is looking to make a name for itself. They came close to winning the NBA Championship during the Bubble, but came up short against the LA Lakers. However, I think that they are one of the top title contenders this year and if the team remains healthy, then we might witness Jimmy Butler with a ring at the end of the season. They have had two weak games in the past week which brought up some concerns, but they eventually managed to pull themselves together and defeated the Jazz. I would like to believe that they can stop another winning streak – the one of the LA Clippers. Therefore, I will give my preferences to the Miami Heat and pick them as the final winner of the upcoming fixture at Staples Center.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Miami Heat (+116)
Paul George recorded his 5th straight game with at least 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists on Tuesday.
That ties Blake Griffin (2017-18) for the longest streak in Clippers franchise history. pic.twitter.com/pb2vPtkIPH
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 10, 2021
Michael Lantz
A week ago I would’ve argued that the Miami Heat were the best team in basketball. Jimmy Butler was playing like an MVP, Tyler Herro had flashes of “Bubble Tyler Herro” and Kyle Lowry’s veteran presence was looking like a missing piece to the puzzle. Now Miami has dropped consecutive games and they’ve likely lost Jimmy Butler for a little bit due to a high ankle sprain he gained in last night’s game against the Lakers. All of the sudden Miami has looked vulnerable, and tonight they face another Western Conference team that’s starting to click in the L.A. Clippers.
The Clippers have put together a 6-4 record without Kawhi Leonard. It’s early, but Paul George is proving critics wrong and becoming a leader, as he is playing exceptional on both sides of the ball. He’s also getting plenty of support: from Reggie Jackson stepping up as a number two option, to Nic Batum shooting nearly 60% from three in five November games. The Clippers are continuing that “next man up” mentality that they’ve had since last season’s playoffs.
Tonight, they face the Miami Heat at home, who had a late game go to overtime last night against the Lakers. Luckily for Miami, it’s back-to-back road games in the same building, so they should be able to get some solid rest. Which is needed, because they’ll need some of their shooters to step up in Butler’s absence. When you look at the team stats, both of these teams have performed quite well defensively, sitting in the top ten in least points allowed per game and least opponent field goals made per game. Unfortunately, after Butler left in the first quarter last night, Miami gave up 120 points to the Lakers. Now a Clippers squad coming off a couple days rest gets a chance against a somewhat fatigued/ailing Heat squad—I expect them to take care of business.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Los Angeles Clippers -2.5 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
After coming off an OT loss to the LeBron-less LA Lakers, the Miami Heat will try to beat the other team from LA, in the second game of a back-to-back, this time seemingly without Jimmy Butler, who went out in the first quarter of last night’s game with an ankle injury. While Bam Adebayo came up big for Miami with Butler out of lineup, foul trouble eventually led to him fouling out, which in part helped seal the deal for the Lakers getting the win last night.
For the LA Clippers, they’ve watched Paul George show that he’s worth every dime he’s being paid, as he has stepped up and proven that he can lead a team himself, as they are still without Kawhi Leonard, who is trying to return from a torn-ACL. PG-13 has been playing like a borderline MVP candidate, and he’s gotten solid help from a supporting cast, including Reggie Jackson playing arguably the best basketball of his career.
All signs point to this being a win for the home team, but I’m going to go the opposite way in this one. The NBA is a strange league, where you often see unexplainable results that occur, especially in the regular season. So with that being said, even though they will likely be without Jimmy Buckets in this one, I think Miami finds a way to look like the Heat team that looked like the best team in basketball at the beginning of the year and get a big road win in a game they have no business winning.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Miami Heat (+116)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
