Our free NBA picks are out for Tuesday, January 11th, 2022! 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!
Phoenix Suns @ Toronto Raptors – 7.30pm ET
The Phoenix Suns kick off a five game road trip on Tuesday night when they take on the Toronto Raptors. The Suns had their three game winning streak snapped last time out, thanks to the Heat, 100-123. The Raptors are coming in hot, as they are currently on a six game winning streak, which takes their season record to 20-17.
Denis Kirilov
The Phoenix Suns will take on the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night in the NBA. The Canadian team has been playing on a very high level recently, netting 6 straight wins. Five of these games were played in Scotiabank Arena, which further cements their legacy at home this season. This fantastic run launched them into the top 10 as they are now 7th with 20 wins and 17 losses. Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet have been putting up big numbers against the likes of the Utah Jazz, the Milwaukee Bucks, and the New York Knicks.
The Phoenix Suns are coming into this fixture following a tough 23-point upset to Miami on Saturday. Even though they were at full strength and the Heat were quite shorthanded, the team from Arizona didn’t manage to stop Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson. This snapped their 3-game winning streak, handing them their first loss for 2022. The Suns are once again in 2nd place after the Warriors took the top spot, following their win over the Cavs on Sunday night. Phoenix will surely try to get their position ahead of everybody else as soon as possible, but they will first have to stop the high-flying Raptors. I think they will be able to do it, hence, my prediction goes in favor of the Suns.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Phoenix Suns (-178)
Michael Lantz
The Phoenix Suns sit at 30-9, which is tied with Golden State for the best record in the NBA, but due to Phoenix holding a 2-1 advantage in head-to-head, the Suns are technically the second-seed in the Western Conference. On Friday they were shocked, as they fell to a Miami Heat team that was without Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo—by 23 points—despite being at full strength. It was an inexcusable defeat and one the Suns will look to put in their past. But this won’t be easy on Tuesday, as they face off against a Toronto Raptors team that’s back to full strength and in the midst of a six-game win streak.
PHX 🛫 TOR ❄️#ValleyProud pic.twitter.com/8UNdf2VAmi
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) January 11, 2022
The Raptors had a rough start to the season, which was plagued by injuries and then almost their entire team being put in COVID protocol. Now that they’ve made it past those hard times (for now), they’re showing what they’re truly capable of doing. Fred VanVleet is playing like an all-star, scoring 30 points or more in five of his last six games. At 20-17, this team is looking to become the playoff threat they were in 2019 (when they won the NBA title) and the following season (when they made the Eastern Conference semifinals). While the Suns still may be the superior team, I like the Raptors to make it a contest in this one.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors +4 (-108)
Noah Dunlap
The Toronto Raptors enter this one on a six game winning streak, and are beginning to look more like the team from early on this season, which was a group that had a lot of people looking at them as a dark horse contender in the Eastern Conference. With them playing as well as they are over the past two weeks, I think you have to at least seriously consider them as a threat in every game they play, regardless of their opponent.
In this one, that opponent is the Phoenix Suns, who happen to be one of the top-2 teams in the NBA this season, even with their loss in their last outing to the Miami Heat. As long as this Phoenix team can stay healthy, with a core of Chris Paul, DeAndre Ayton, and Devin Booker, I think this is a squad that has the potential to be a threat in the Western Conference come May. In this one, I’m actually going to take the Raptors to pull off the upset at home, behind a big day from Fred VanVleet.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors (+150)
Golden State Warriors @ Memphis Grizzlies – 8pm ET
The Golden State Warriors kick off a four game road trip in Memphis when they take on the Grizzlies on Tuesday night. The Warriors have won three of their last five games, including last time out, 96-82, against the Cavaliers, which was the long awaited return of Klay Thompson. The Grizzlies are one of the hottest teams in basketball right now, they are currently on a nine game winning streak, with wins over teams like the Suns, Lakers (twice) and Nets.
Denis Kirilov
After making his return against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Klay Thompson will try to get his first MVP performance for the season. The Warriors are expected to be without Draymond Green and Steph Curry in this game which would mean that more pressure will fall on the shoulders of Klay and Andrew Wiggins. The Warriors struck back taking the top spot in the West with 30 wins and 9 losses. They have been struggling recently as they lost their last two games on the road against the Dallas Mavericks and the New Orleans Pelicans. Now, they will have to go head-to-head with the best performing team for the last couple of weeks, the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies are on a 9-game winning streak, defeating the likes of the Suns, the Nets, the Clippers, and the Lakers. They have been nothing short of incredible this season as they even managed to be a tough contender without Ja Morant and Dillon Brooks. The team has shown its offensive strengths and with Morant back in the roster, they seem unbeatable. With this amazing run, the Grizzlies found a way to almost erase the gap between themselves and the top 3 in the West as they are now just a couple of wins away from removing the Jazz from 3rd place. I think, however, the Grizzlies won’t be able to make their breakthrough into the top 3 as their schedule doesn’t get any easier from now on. In my opinion, they will be able to stop the Warriors and they will come on top in FedExForum for their 10th straight win.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Memphis Grizzlies (+102)
Michael Lantz
With the way the Grizzlies have been playing, this might be the most thrilling NBA matchup we can get right now. The Warriors are currently the best team in the NBA, and with Klay Thompson returning on Sunday after a two-year absence (and scoring 17 points in 20 minutes), the Warriors are only getting better. On Tuesday they’ll get a big test, as they face a young Memphis Grizzlies team that’s undoubtedly on the rise. Memphis has won nine games in a row, just about a month after they won ten games straight. The Warriors are electrifying on both sides of the ball, but they’ll have their hands full at the FedExForum.
Memphis’ win streaks have been impressive as this young team is showing they’re the next great Western Conference franchise. Even more impressive: both streaks have been done without key players. For the first win streak the Grizzlies were without Ja Morant; this time they’ve been without Dillon Brooks. They continue to step up and put the league on notice, and it’s got to be thrilling to see a franchise that’s never played in an NBA FInals have this kind of success. These two have split their seasons series so far—the Grizzlies beat the Warriors in October in overtime, only for the Warriors to return the favor at the end of December. They’re yet to play in Memphis this season, so we’ll see if home-court can play an advantage, but with the Warriors back near full strength thanks to Klay’s return, they seem like the perfect team to end Memphis’ nine game streak.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Golden State Warriors (-120)
Noah Dunlap
The Golden State Warriors have been the best team in the NBA all year long, and now that they have Klay Thompson back in the lineup, I think this is a team that is only going to get better as we work our way down the stretch this season. With Steph playing like the probable MVP (despite a rough few games), and having Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, and now Klay Thompson to help with the scoring, this is a team that is going to be scary by the time the postseason arrives.
For the Memphis Grizzlies, Ja Morant has led this team to a franchise-record nine game winning streak, and many of those are against teams that are going to be playoff teams this season. Even with Dillon Brooks getting injured, and now set to miss 3-5 weeks, they haven’t skipped a beat to this point, as guys like Desmond Bane, De’Anthony Melton, and Jaren Jackson Jr are available to pick up the slack. I mentioned this last week and I’m standing by it. I’m not betting against this young Grizzlies squad until they lose another game, which they haven’t yet, so give me Memphis here to pull off the upset at home.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Memphis Grizzlies (+102)
Minnesota Timberwolves @ New Orleans Pelicans – 8pm ET
The road trip continues on for the Minnesota Timberwolves, as they take on the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night. The Timberwolves are currently on a four game winning streak, and this has helped bring their season record to an even 20-20. The Pelicans’ struggles continue, as they have won just one of their last five games, and last time out they lost to the Raptors, 101-105.
Denis Kirilov
The high-flying Minnesota Timberwolves will pay a visit to one of the worst performing teams in the West, the New Orleans Pelicans. The hosts have won just one of their last five games in the NBA. This single victory might actually compensate for the losses as they managed to defeat the Golden State Warriors in their last match in Smoothie King Center. The team continues to be without Zion Williamson who might have to wait until next season to make his comeback. They will try to do everything they can without Tomas Satoransky and Josh Hart as well. The Pelicans sit in 13th place in the Western Conference, holding a 14-26 record.
The Minnesota Timberwolves will try to extend their winning streak to 5 games. They have defeated the Los Angeles Clippers, the Oklahoma City Thunder (twice), and the Houston Rockets in their last four matches, thus jumping back into 8th place. They are perfectly even with 20 wins and 20 losses this season. The Timberwolves have scored an average of 133 points in their last three games on the road. Their trio, Anthony Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, and D’Angelo Russell is once again storming through the NBA following some COVID-19 issues. KAT actually dropped 40 points against the Rockets on a 15-25 shooting and he continues to be one of the most efficient players from the 3-point line. I think that the Timberwolves won’t let the Pelicans surprise them as they will make it 5 in a row on Tuesday.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Minnesota Timberwolves (-158)
Michael Lantz
The New Orleans Pelicans sit at 14-26 on the season; despite having some great talent in Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valanciunas, and Devonte Graham, they’ve suffered a fair amount of injuries (including to star Zion Williamson) and have just not been able to hold it down as a unit. That being said, they’re never a team you can overlook due to the talent at hand. So when the Minnesota Timberwolves come to town on Tuesday, it truly could be anyone’s game.
All-Star slams @b_ingram13 💪💪
RT this and keep voting to see more of #BrandonIngram in the #NBAAllStar game 🤩 pic.twitter.com/d6j5Hltbox
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) January 10, 2022
While the Minnesota Timberwolves might not be a contending team quite yet, they’ve definitely had a lot of positives when it comes to their future. They currently are making a run at a playoff seed, which is a huge first step for a team that picked number one overall in the 2020 draft. After a couple weeks in December that were plagued by injuries and COVID protocols, Minnesota has won four straight. Now that they have their big three of Karl Anthony-Towns, Anthony Edwards, and D’Angelo Russell, the team is once again thriving. They should be able to grab their fifth straight against an underachieving New Orleans Pelicans team—especially when Minnesota has already won two of three against the Pelicans this year. I’ll pick the T’Wolves to make it three and push themselves above .500, with the playoffs still being a big possibility.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Minnesota Timberwolves (-158)
Noah Dunlap
The Minnesota Timberwolves come into this one sitting at .500 on the year, at 20-20. They’re also on a four game winning streak, which has to have T’Wolves fans excited, but is that excitement justified? I think the answer is yes. They started the year off slow, but then went on an eight-game winning streak to get things going again, and then almost immediately fell right back off and started playing horrendous basketball again. Now, they seem to have found a bit of rhythm, and that almost directly coincides with them getting everyone on the roster back and healthy. When this roster is healthy, with Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards leading the way, they have the potential to make noise, but with the lack of depth they simply can’t afford any injuries if they want to make a postseason run.
For the New Orleans Pelicans, this is quite simply a team that appears to be lost without Zion Williamson in the lineup, and it doesn’t appear that he’s planning on returning anytime soon, as the former number-one pick tries to recover from an injury. They’re managing to barely hang around with guys like Jonas Valanciunas and Brandon Ingram leading the way, but it’s nowhere close to what they had expected when looking at the season during training camp and the preseason. Give me Minnesota to head down to the Big Easy in this one and get a win, pushing their winning streak to five.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Minnesota Timberwolves -3 (-110)
Detroit Pistons @ Chicago Bulls – 8pm ET
The Detroit Pistons have a short one game road trip when they travel to Chicago and take on the Bulls. The Pistons are playing on back-to-back nights, and last time out they got the win over the Jazz, 126-116. The Bulls impressive winning streak finally came to an end in their last game, as they went down to the Mavericks, 99-113.
Denis Kirilov
The Detroit Pistons and the Chicago Bulls will go head-to-head on Tuesday night in the NBA. The two teams are in the two opposite positions in the Eastern Conference this season. The Bulls are surprisingly on top of the East with 26 wins and 11 losses, while the Pistons are second-to-last in 14th place with a 9-30 record. The Bulls had their 9-game winning streak slip through their fingers as they were defeated in the American Airlines Center by the Dallas Mavericks in their last match in the NBA. The team has been fantastic for the past month and a half, suggesting that the duo between DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine might turn out to be quite successful in the end.
The Pistons are coming into this game following a tough and narrow win over the Utah Jazz on Monday. They have used their chances as they managed to make a comeback from 22 points to the final score, 126-116. The Pistons have recorded some great wins in 2022 as they have already defeated the likes of the San Antonio Spurs, the Milwaukee Bucks, and the Orlando Magic. The team lacks a solid leader that can lead them to new heights as Cade Cunningham is still too young to take up this role. I think that the Bulls won’t give the Pistons a chance on Tuesday as Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan will combine for more than 60 points. In my opinion, Chicago should easily cover the spread against the Pistons.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls -14 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The Detroit Pistons pulled off an impressive win last night against the Utah Jazz, beating last year’s Western Conference one seed 126-116. Sure, the Jazz were missing Rudy Gobert and Joe Ingles, but they still should’ve been able to beat a team that has less than 10 wins on the season. Two players the Pistons are relying heavily on to have big futures, played lights out against Utah, as Cade Cunningham and Saddiq Bey scored 29 points apiece. The Pistons might be headed for another high lottery pick in this year’s draft, but they have to feel optimistic after wins like this. Unfortunately, they have to follow up this satisfying victory by playing the Eastern Conference’s top team: the Chicago Bulls.
The Bulls were on a nine-game win streak that spanned from the end of 2021 into early 2022. Unfortunately all good things come to an end, as the Bulls dropped Sunday night’s game to the Dallas Mavericks, 99-113. Sometimes experiencing a loss after a big win streak can be a bit of a relief. It can allow a team to recompose themselves and refocus. I think that’s what happens here with the Bulls, especially when they play one of the NBA’s worst teams on Tuesday. While the Pistons prove they can’t be overlooked, I don’t see them being able to handle the Bulls at United Center. At the same time, 14 is a pretty big cover—I know the Bulls are a one seed and the Pistons are one of the conference’s worst teams, but after a couple of confidence boosting wins, I’ll pick the Pistons to stay within 14 points.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Detroit Pistons +14 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
Don’t be confused by the Detroit Pistons win over the Utah Jazz, they’re still arguably the worst team in basketball. The Jazz are finally dealing with Covid, and it’s proving to be a bit of an obstacle for the team that has been the third best team in basketball virtually all year long. Yes, the Pistons are looking slightly improved from the abysmal lineup, and effort, that they were throwing out earlier in the season, but they still lack the talent to make any type of real push this year, or even next year, in all honesty.
The Chicago Bulls finally saw their nine-game winning streak come to a close in a tight loss on the road to the Dallas Mavericks, but they’re still the best team in the Eastern Conference, behind the core of DeMar Derozan, Zach LaVine, and Lonzo Ball. With this Bulls team playing as well as they are, and taking on one of the worst teams in the league in Detroit, don’t think too much about this one, and feel comfortable with taking Chicago and the spread at home.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls -14 (-110)
Denver Nuggets @ Los Angeles Clippers – 10.30pm ET
The final game on Tuesday night’s slate will see the Denver Nuggets take on the Los Angeles Clippers. The Nuggets have won their past two games in a row, with wins over the Kings and Thunder, which takes their season record to 20-18. The Clippers snapped their three game losing streak last time out, with a win over the Hawks.
Denis Kirilov
The Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Clippers will close out Tuesday’s schedule in the NBA. Both teams are coming into this match in a high mood. The Clippers fought well against the Atlanta Hawks and took a deserved 106-93 win on Sunday. This put an end to their 3-game losing streak in the absence of half of their starting players. The Clippers also snapped a 0-5 run in Crypto.com Arena starter on December 20. They continue to be without Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, and Luke Kennard, but they can at least use Nicolas Batum and Ivica Zubac who made their return a couple of games ago. The Clippers are surprisingly 9th in the West with 20 wins and 21 losses, but a lot of this came as a result of their health issues within the roster.
The Denver Nuggets will once again rely mostly on Nikola Jokic and his versatile abilities. He averages huge numbers this season as he records a triple-double every now and then. He led his team to 6th place in the standings with 20 wins and 18 losses. The Nuggets are coming into this fixture following two wins over the Sacramento Kings on Friday and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday. They are actually doing pretty well so far, keeping in mind the absence of Jamal Murray and Michael Porter. I think that in the absence of the top players in the team from Los Angeles, we will see yet another disappointing result from them in Crypto.com Arena.
Denis’ NBA Pick: Denver Nuggets (-126)
Michael Lantz
The Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers always seem to play fun games: their December 26 matchup ended with a 103-100 Denver victory. These two teams both have a lot of fight in them. Despite an abundance of injuries happening to both franchises over the last year, these teams play with a “next man up” mentality. Denver is coming off back-to-back wins and are thrilled to have Nikola Jokic once again playing at an MVP level. Jokic is averaging nearly 26 points and 14 rebounds per game. He continues to be one of the league’s most dominant players and will hope to continue his hot play against the Clippers.
These @coffeyshop_ puns are giving us deja brew… pic.twitter.com/53xphlf3Yr
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) January 11, 2022
Los Angeles has stuck around the playoff race, despite not having Kawhi Leonard available and rarely having Paul George present. They’ve relied on veterans such as Reggie Jackson, Marcus Morris, and Serge Ibaka to lead them to victory. It was working very well for a while, but lately, the Clippers have shown some wear and tear and had lost three straight before a solid 106-93 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday. They’ll look to ride that momentum into Tuesday night’s game at home. They had seven players score in double digits on Sunday, and even though Denver is much better than the Hawks I expect the Clippers to use their diverse talent to come up on top in what should be another close game.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Los Angeles Clippers (+108)
Noah Dunlap
The Denver Nuggets have been one of the bigger disappointments of the NBA season to this point, as they are almost solely reliant upon the talents of last year’s league MVP Nikola Jokic to determine whether they win or lose games. I understand that they’re dealing with a fair share of injuries, but the supporting cast that Jokic is currently surrounded by has been pretty abysmal for much of the year, which is why it’s astounding that the Joker has managed to lead them to a 20-18 record, and them still holding a spot in the Western Conference playoff picture at this point.
The Los Angeles Clippers come into this one off a win as well, even though they’re in a similar situation in terms of their roster right now. Covid has continued to keep Paul George and Luke Kennard out, while Kawhi Leonard is still trying to return from his torn ACL suffered in last year’s postseason. While the Clips are still managing to stay afloat as the virus works its way through the locker room, I’m just not sure if I like them being able to match up with what Nikola Jokic brings to the floor for Denver. I like Denver to go on the road and get the win, behind what I think is going to end up being a massive night for Jokic.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Denver Nuggets -2 (-110)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
