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Free NBA Picks Today for Tuesday, February 9th, 2021

Our free NBA picks started the week by hitting 66% of our bets and we plan on increasing that with tonight's seven games!

Free NBA Picks Today for Tuesday, February 9th, 2021
Picks & Predictions
Tue 9th February 2021

Our FREE NBA picks started the week going 16-8 and we are looking to carry that momentum into tonight’s seven games!

Can the Brooklyn Nets bounce back after two straight losses despite Kevin Durant still being out? Can Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors get their revenge after losing to the San Antonio Spurs last night?

We have all of the answers in our free NBA picks below!

Brooklyn Nets @ Detroit Pistons – 7PM ET

The Detroit Pistons return home after a four game road trip that yielded four straight losses and find another tough test in the form of the Brooklyn Nets. Kevin Durant will be out for this one and the Nets have struggled without him, dropping their last two games. 

They can be forgiven however as their last game saw them play in Philadelphia against a fully healthy and East-leading Sixers team. They were also without Kyrie Irving, who is expected to play in this one, and just couldn’t keep up. James Harden had 26 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds with Landry Shamet having his best game as a Net with 22 points on five made threes. 

The issue that continues to stand out for Brooklyn is their defense, allowing Philly to put up 124. In fact they have given up 120+ in their last six and 10 of their last 11 contests. Luckily they are playing a Detroit side that averages the 24th most points per game and has the 25th best (sixth worst) offensive rating. 

The Pistons ended their road trip on a more positive note, taking the defending champion Lakers to double overtime, but that was their only single figure loss of the trip. Jerami Grant continued his incredible play as their leader 32points and six assists while Josh Jackson continues to thrive off the bench with 28 and eight boards. 

On paper, even without Durant, the Nets should be winning this one easily, but Detroit have proven to be a tricky beat for some of the league’s best teams this season. With that being said, Brooklyn is the play here. Irving and Harden still combine to create one of the best duos in the league and will be too much for Detroit to manage. 

NBA Pick – Brooklyn Nets (-455)
NBA Spread – Detroit Pistons +9 (-110)
Total Points Pick – Over 232.5 (-110)

New York Knicks @ Miami Heat – 7:30PM ET

A rematch of Sunday night’s clash that saw the Miami Heat run away as six point victors. The New York Knicks will be the road team this side and they will be hoping that the newly acquired Derrick Rose will be able to suit up and give them a boost in their attempt of turning the tables. 

Rose will provide some much needed playmaking help, as the team is currently led by power forward Julius Randle in assists. That is also because Randle is playing at an All Star level this season, highlighted by his 26 point, 13 rebound, seven assist performance in the loss. The big issue for the Knicks was that their starting backcourt of Elfrid Payton and R.J. Barrett combined for 10 points on 4/18 shooting and just five assists. 

The Heat continued to tinker with their starting five, inserting Kendrick Nunn who rewarded the coaching staff for their decision with an efficient 16 point, four rebound and three assist night. Bam Adebayo led the team in scoring with 24 points, along with 11 boards and five assists while Jimmy Butler had a typical all around game. 

While Miami won the first leg, we like the Knicks to split the mini-series. Nerlens Noel is expected to return and his defensive presence off the bench has been sorely missed. Barrett and Payton can’t shoot like they did in the first one and we like the Knicks to be able to put up enough points that their defense can win them the game.

NBA Pick – New York Knicks (+232)
NBA Spread – New York Knicks +7 (-110)
Total Points Pick – Over 208 (-110)

Houston Rockets @ New Orleans Pelicans – 7:30PM ET

One night after an embarrassing 94-119 loss in Charlotte, the Houston Rockets have to back it up again tonight against the New Orleans Pelicans. After being down by just three points heading into the last, Houston only managed seven fourth quarter points and have now dropped two straight and three of their last four.

John Wall and Eric Gordon both sat out the first leg of this back to back set and will be playing tonight but the Rockets are likely to be without Victor Oladipo (rest) and will still be without Christian Wood (ankle).

Oladipo led Houston with 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists and Ben McLemore had 15 off the bench but they just weren’t able to keep up late. The seven fourth quarter points tied a franchise record low for points in a quarter, so expect a much better performance out of them tonight. 

However, the Pelicans are firing on all cylinders right now and most recently had a nine point win over the Grizzlies where Zion Williamson had 29 points but Brandon Ingram was the star of the show. Last season’s Most Improved Player had 27 points on 5/8 from deep, 12 rebounds and four blocks in the win. 

New Orleans used a 20-2 run in the last quarter to get themselves back into the game and then gain a lead they never gave up. The Pelicans will be able to bring the momentum from that one into tonight’s clash and have too many offensive weapons for Houston to keep up, especially with their outs. 

NBA Pick – New Orleans Pelicans (-189)
NBA Spread – New Orleans Pelicans -4.5 (-110)
Total Points Pick – Under 218.5 (-110)

Golden State Warriors @ San Antonio Spurs – 8:30PM ET

The second of two meetings in as many nights between these two sides sees the Golden State Warriors try to even the ledger when facing the San Antonio Spurs. The Warriors got out to a nine point lead at quarter time and still held a two point lead at the last break but San Antonio won the last three quarters to run away as five point winners. 

Dejounte Murray was the star for the home side, ending up with 27 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and a massive eight steals. He was a massive driving force behind the Spurs’ ability to force Golden State into 20 turnovers for the game and that was the determining factor with the Spurs ending up with just 10 of their own. 

Steph Curry had another Steph Curry sort of night with 32 points on 10/17 from the field and 6/11 from deep, also adding seven rebounds and six assists but the Warriors only managed 100 total points for the game and that just isn’t enough. 

The Spurs not only forced 10 more turnovers but got 14 more points off the bench and they will need a similar effort again tonight if they want to get back to back wins. Another factor is that this loss dropped the Warriors to just 4-7 on the road the season, struggling mightily away from the Chase Center, but we like Curry and Golden State to bounce back. We don’t think that they will turn the ball over another 20 times and will also shoot better than 35.1% from deep and be able to turn things around in this one. 

NBA Pick – Golden State Warriors (+100)
NBA Spread – Golden State Warriors +1.5 (-110)
Total Points Pick – Under 233 (-110)

Boston Celtics @ Utah Jazz – 10PM ET

This would be the matchup of the night however Jaylen Brown’s injury cloud that is keeping him as just questionable means that this may be more lopsided than once thought. The Boston Celtics looked out of sync on offense without him in Phoenix on Sunday and it keeps getting worse as the Utah Jazz boast the third best defensive rating in the league. 

While six different Celtics scored in double figures, Jayson Tatum had 23 points on 36.4% shooting while Kemba Walker was even worse with just 14 points on 4/20 shooting, also having two assists and three turnovers. 

The Jazz, who have won four straight and 15 of their last 16 games, will be looking to capatilise on Brown’s absence and extend their lead as the league’s best team. Mike Conley missed their last game in Indiana and will miss again tonight but Utah’s two stars stepped up to the plate in a big way. Donovan Mitchell had 27 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists while Rudy Gobert had a monster night with 16, 16 and three blocks. 

Utah has lost just two games at home all season, their most recent being on the 31st of December. They have proven they can win without Conley and another positive from Sunday’’s win was that they made just 13 threes and shot just 31% from deep but their defense won them the game, only allowing 95 points. Boston won’t be able to find their spots and hit their shots against this defense and Utah will get another win under the belt. 

NBA Pick – Utah Jazz (-189)
NBA Spread – Utah Jazz -4.5 (-110)
Total Points Pick – Under 219.5 (-110)

Orlando Magic @ Portland Trail Blazers – 10PM ET

The Orlando Magic are having a terrible run with injuries and Evan Fournier will miss again with a lower back complaint that has already kept him out of 10 games this season. That isn’t a good sign against a Portland Trail Blazers team that has returned home from a six game road trip and has won three of their last five games despite having their own injury worries. 

Both teams are coming off double digit losses, Portland’s being by 11 to the Knicks despite 29 points, nine assists and four steals from Damian Lillard. The Blazers actually jumped to a five point lead after the first but a 20-31 second quarter was the start of the downhill for them, only managing 99 points for the game. 

Scoring shouldn’t be an issue against an Orlando side that just gave up 118 to the Bulls, ranks 19th for opponent’s points scored per game and will be missing three starters from their opening night line up. Nikola Vucevic led the Magic in scoring but had just 17 points as the team could only manage 92 total. 

Both of these sides have been struggling due to their injury woes but Portland is back at home and has been playing better basketball of late. Take the Blazers as home favorites. 

NBA Pick – Portland Trail Blazers (-213)
NBA Spread – Portland Trail Blazers -4.5 (-110)
Total Points Pick – Under 224.5 (-110)

Philadelphia 76ers @ Sacramento Kings – 10PM ET

An intriguing matchup to cap off the night between the Philadelphia 76ers, who lead the East but are just 6-5 on the road, and the Sacramento Kings, who are just ninth in the West but are on a four game winning streak and beat the Clippers last time out.

De’Aaron Fox continued his incredible start to the season with 36 points on 60% shooting with seven assists and four boards while Buddy Hield was a good second fiddle with 22 points and nine rebounds. Sacramento had more turnovers, less rebounds and less free throws than the Clippers but shot better from deep and made more threes in the win. 

The Sixers will be looking to get their second straight win after defeating the shorthanded Nets comfortably on Saturday night. Philly used a 14-0 third quarter run where they got seven consecutive stops, including four forced turnovers, and ended up scoring 43 for the quarter. Seven players scored in double figures, led by early MVP candidate Joel Embiid who had 33 points, nine rebounds and three steals while Tobias Harris continues to make a push to be a first time All Star with 21 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. 

None of the Sixers starting five are on the injury report and they are still undefeated this season when all five play, so Sacramento are up against it in this one. As Philly typically struggles on the road, we are picking this to be a close one but the Sixers simply just win this one. 

NBA Pick – Philadelphia 76ers (-180)
NBA Spread – Sacramento Kings +4.5 (-110)
Total Points Pick – Under 230.5 (-110)

If you need more news, information and predictions, head over to our NBA hub page for all your basketball needs.

*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of Bet365. 

Tim is a keen follower of all American sports, in particular the NBA and NFL. He has followed both sports for over a decade and would happily sit down and watch every game, regardless of who is playing! No matter the sport, whether it be NFL and NBA or even MLB, NHL, UFC and all sports, Tim covers it from every angle, staying in the loop to bring you the most up-to-date information and the best picks and predictions on the market.

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