Another day with more winners than losers and our NBA picks is continuing to roll on in the early stages of the season.
There are a couple of heavy favorites that should be winning, but some intriguing games nonetheless!
Can Milwaukee get the back-to-back sweep in their second leg against Miami? Will the Trail Blazers be able to complete their Los Angeles sweep with a win over the Clippers?
Find out who we have in our NBA picks below!
Memphis Grizzlies @ Boston Celtics – 7:30PM ET
After beating the Indiana Pacers, Boston heads back home to host Memphis on the second leg of their back-to-back.
Jayson Tatum starred for the Celtics with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 3 steals in the five point victory.
Boston had five players score in double figures and now host a Memphis side who will be without their leader, Ja Morant. The second year guard turned his ankle against Brooklyn and leaves a massive hole that the Grizzlies can’t fill.
Look for Dillon Brooks and Kyle Anderson to step up while Morant is out, but it won’t be enough against a Boston side that has Championship aspirations.
NBA Pick – Boston Celtics (-420)
☘️ @jaytatum0 drops a game-high 27 PTS in the @celtics W! pic.twitter.com/ZoXCvuUvU4
— NBA (@NBA) December 30, 2020
Atlanta Hawks @ Brooklyn Nets – 7:30PM ET
A 3-0 Atlanta side travels to Brooklyn to take on the Nets, who are now favorites to win the Eastern Conference Championship.
Brooklyn come into this one off the back of an overtime loss to Memphis, but was without Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant due to rest, as well as Spencer Dinwiddie who has a partial tear in his ACL and will miss the season.
Both Irving and Durant are expected to be back for this one and it will be Atlanta’s toughest test to date. Despite having a 3-0 record, they have only beaten Chicago, Memphis and Detroit.
This will be a high scoring affair with Trae Young being able to light it up just as much as Irving and Durant, so look to see what the total points total is and consider the over, but in terms of the straight up bet, Brooklyn is the play here!
NBA Pick – Brooklyn Nets (-281)
Milwaukee Bucks @ Miami Heat – 7:30PM ET
We have the second night of a head-to-head back-to-back in Miami for these two teams.
Jimmy Butler missed for the Heat with an ankle injury and things only got worse from there for Miami.
Milwaukee led by 20 at quarter time and went on to set an NBA record for most three pointers hit in a game with 29 on way to a 47 point victory.
There is no official word on whether Butlet will be back for the second leg, but Miami will need more than just Tyler Herro making an impact on offense. Herro had 23 points and 7 assists but didn’t get enough help from the other four starters who combined for 16 points.
Milwaukee had seven players in double figures, led by Khris Middleton’s 25 and Jrue Holiday’s 24, but the reason that they will win again tomorrow is Giannis only had 9 points on 3/9 shooting from the field.
If players don’t get rested, which any of Milwaukee’s starters could, the Bucks should be winning this one again.
NBA Pick – Milwaukee Bucks (-260)
Milwauk33333333333333333333333333333 Bucks.
Full highlights from tonight’s record-breaking performance. pic.twitter.com/6Wk1M4XoZP
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) December 30, 2020
Charlotte Hornets @ Dallas Mavericks – 8:30PM ET
Both sides’ last games saw them put in performances we weren’t expecting. The Hornets caused a shock upset over the Brooklyn Nets while Dallas beat the Clippers by 51 points!
Gordon Hayward’s 28 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists led six Charlotte players who scored in double figures and after winning their first game, they are desperate for another.
It won’t be easy against a Dallas side who also notched their first win in impressive fashion. A 36-13 first quarter set the tone for the Mavs, with Luka Doncic ended up with 24 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists in under 26 minutes of game time.
The Mavs get back home and the pairing of Josh Richardson and Dorian Finney-Smith patrolling the wings will make it tough for Hayward and Terry Rozier to get their points.
NBA Pick – Dallas Mavericks (-351)
Los Angeles Lakers @ San Antonio Spurs – 8:30PM ET
The Spurs will be looking to bounce back at home after a three point loss to the Pelicans on Sunday. They host the Lakers who come in off a loss as well, eight points at the hands of Portland.
LeBron James led the way for LA with 29 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists while Dennis Schroder scored 24 points in the loss. That was the Lakers’ second loss of the season and another would put them below .500, which the defending Champs would not want to be doing.
San Antonio had a disappointing game against New Orleans where DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge combined for just 12 points. DeRozan’s previous two were exceptional so we can call this an aberration, however Aldridge has been extremely disappointing through three games.
Coach Gregg Popovich always has schemes to overcome James in their matchups, however after Anthony Davis scored just 13 points on 43% shooting, we expect him to have a big bounce back game in a Lakers road win.
NBA Pick – Los Angeles Lakers (-278)
A walking bucket. @gtrentjr | @biofreeze pic.twitter.com/WRDOgsTmr3
— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) December 29, 2020
Portland Trail Blazers @ Los Angeles Clippers – 10PM ET
This one is going to have a lot of heart and agressision with the antics that have been on display between Damian Lillard, Paul George and Patrick Beverly on the court and on social media over the last few years.
After being embarrassed on Sunday, the Clippers bounced back with a big 23-point victory over the Timberwolves last night. They are now on the quick back up, hosting the Portland Trail Blazers in the marquee national TV matchup.
On Monday night, Portland caused an upset over the Lakers with Lillard having his second straight 30+ point performance while CJ McCollum, Jusuf Nurkic and Enes Kanter all had double-doubles. Gary Trent came off the bench to pour in 28 points with 7 threes and they will need more of that again tonight against the Clippers.
There is no official word if Kawhi Leonard will be back after missing the last two with a cut mouth, but the Clippers would love to have him for this one. While they looked better last night, Minnesota is missing Karl-Anthony Towns and were able to stick with LA for the first quarter and a half. If Portland gets similar opportunities, they will be able to take advantage like they did on Monday.
The trust in George as the leader of the team is still in doubt and Portland have been in a groove over their last two wins. We expect them to get a third and Lillard to have a big game against his two biggest haters.
NBA Pick – Portland Trail Blazers (+136)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of PointsBet.
