Our free NBA picks are out for Wednesday, February 9th, 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!
San Antonio Spurs @ Cleveland Cavaliers – 7pm ET
The San Antonio Spurs kick off a mammoth eight game road trip on Wednesday night when they take on the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Spurs snapped their three game losing streak with a win over the Rockets last time out. The Cavaliers have won three of their last four, and their last two in a row, which takes their season record to 33-21.
Jeffery Thomas
Newly acquired swingman Caris LeVert is expected to make his Cavs debut in this one against the visiting Spurs. He was acquired alongside a 2nd round pick, in exchange for Ricky Rubio, a 1st round pick and a couple 2nds. This move for the 4th place Cavaliers signifies their stance of being all in for a deep playoff run, as he is a missing piece they’ll need on this team. A guy on the wing who can create his own shot and get to the rim was something this team was missing. In addition to that, his ability to run the offense himself at times and facilitate, will help take a load off their first time All-Star point guard Darius Garland. He was averaging just under 19 points a game with 4.4 assists and just under 4 rebounds a game in 39 games with the Pacers. His last game as a Pacer he dropped 42 points on the Bulls. The Spurs snapped a 3 game losing streak their last time out with a 131-106 win over the Houston Rockets last Friday.
They had 5 days off, and during that time it was announced that their point guard, Dejounte Murray, will also be an All-Star for the first time, replacing the injured Kevin Durant. He certainly played like an All-Star in these two teams last matchup on January 14, where he tallied 30 points, 14 rebounds, and 8 assists in a loss to Cleveland. He is averaging just under 20 points a game along with 8.4 rebounds and 9.2 assists on the season. This is the start of a massive road trip for the Spurs who won’t return home until March 3rd against the Sacramento Kings. A big question mark in this one is the status of All-Star Darius Garland who is currently listed questionable for the game on Wednesday. If he can go then this will be an easy win for the Cavs who are true contenders in the East and have their sights set on integrating their new toy into the lineup with a big win. Even if he can’t go though, I’ll still have to side with the home team, who is just better than this rebuilding Spurs team who is a few pieces away from really competing for anything. Give me the Cavs.
Jeffery’s NBA Pick: Cleveland Cavaliers (-260)
Michael Lantz
The Cleveland Cavaliers sent some shockwaves across the NBA on Sunday as they acquired Caris LeVert from the Indiana Pacers, adding a shot creating player who scores nearly 19 points per game to their already impressive roster. While some question LeVert’s ability to fit in with the Cavs flow, it’s undeniably an upgrade for this team trying to stay afloat in a competitive Eastern Conference. LeVert is set to make his debut for the Cavaliers on Wednesday as they face the San Antonio Spurs in search for their fourth win in five games.
“I’m very blessed to be here in a great situation”
Hear more from @CarisLeVert following his first practice in Wine & Gold! #LetEmKnow
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) February 8, 2022
The Spurs received some great news as well: their young guard Dejounte Murray was selected to his first All-Star game after averaging nearly 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 9 assists on the season. Murray also leads the league in steals, averaging 2.1 points per game. He’s on his rise to stardom, and while the Spurs aren’t quite playoff ready yet, it definitely feels like something is rumbling in “The Alamo City.” The Spurs have been known to play spoilers this year, and with Darius Galrand’s status still questionable, they might be able to steal one from the Cavs. Still, with this one being at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, and with the Cavs getting a shot of adrenaline with the LeVert acquisition, I’ll pick them to take this one.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Cleveland Cavaliers (-260)
Noah Dunlap
The Cleveland Cavaliers traded away Ricky Rubio, a first round pick, and two second rounders, for Caris LeVert. It was the first big move of this year’s trade cycle, and shows that this Cavs team, who are already one of the best teams in the East despite facing a crazy number of injury problems, thinks they can win now, and plan on doing everything they can to make that happen. This is scheduled to be LeVert’s debut for Cleveland, and adding a player of his caliber to a team that’s already 33-21, and have won three of their last four, should do nothing but improve this roster, and should move them one step closer to being able to make a deep run in the Easyern Conference playoffs.
San Antonio, on the other hand, has struggled all year, and I don’t see that changing at any point through this season. They simply don’t have a real playmaker that they can go to in times of need, which has proven to be a bit of a problem, as they’ve lost plenty of close games this year. The good news for them is the fact that the guy closest to being that guy for them, Dejounte Murray, has been announced as an All-Star for the first time in his career, which should give the entire team a bit of a boost. In the end, we’re dealing with two teams that should be energetic for this matchup for separate reasons, and in the end, I think Cleveland simply has a better roster, so give me the Cavs at home in a game that I think stays pretty close all the way through.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Cleveland Cavaliers (-260)
Chicago Bulls @ Charlotte Hornets – 7.30pm ET
The Chicago Bulls will travel to Charlotte and take on the Hornets on Wednesday night. The Bulls are currently on a two game losing streak, after losses to the 76ers and Suns. The Hornets have lost five games in a row, which drops their season record down to 28-27.
Jeffery Thomas
The Hornets will once again try to get out of this losing streak which was extended out to 5 games with their 101-116 loss to the Raptors on Monday. A big part of their recent struggles is their shooting from 3 point range, not eclipsing the 33% mark in any of the past 6 games. That includes their 9-40 performance from deep in that Raptors game, where Kelly Oubre shot 0-8 on threes. They will try to get out of their slump without starter Gordon Hayward, who rolled his ankle on Monday. The Bulls still have a slew of injuries, but did get All-Star Zach Lavine back in their 124-127 loss to the Suns on Monday. In his return, he went off for 32 points alongside Demar Derozan’s 38 but in the end it still wasn’t enough to complete the comeback, as they once trailed by 27 points.
Without Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso it has been a struggle defensively and it’s still a ways away from their returns so they have to continue to try and adjust to life without them for now. In the first meeting of these teams, the Bulls won 133-119 back on November 29. Alex Caruso and Lonzo combined for 30 points in that one but the bulk of the offensive load was handled by Lavine and Derozan per usual. The Hornets had no answer for them as they combined for 53 points on 22-38 shooting. A big blow to the Bulls lineup in this one will be the loss of rookie Ayo Dosunmo, who will be out with a concussion joining Lonzo and Caruso on the injury report. He was contributing in the absence of them and now there’s a huge hole in the backcourt and will cause the Bulls to give more ball handling duties to Derozan. I’m actually going to go out on a limb and say this is the game that Charlotte gets their first win in 6 games against a short-handed Bulls team that has also been losing as of late. The Hornets will ride their home crowd to a much needed victory on Wednesday night.
Jeffery’s NBA Pick: Charlotte Hornets (-106)
Michael Lantz
The Chicago Bulls have been hit with hard consecutive losses, as they fell to the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday 108-119 and then followed that up with a 124-127 loss to the NBA’s best team, the Phoenix Suns. That being said, in the loss to the Suns the Bulls outscored them 41-25 in the fourth. They’ll try to carry over that fourth quarter play to their Wednesday matchup against one of the NBA’s best offenses in the Charlotte Hornets. The Hornets sit in the ninth in the Eastern Conference as they’re currently hanging onto a play-in game spot. They’ve had a high flying offense, led by now All-Star LaMelo Ball.
Unfortunately, the team has hit a bit of a rut recently, as they’re in the midst of a five-game losing streak. In that span, the team’s offense has hit a dip as well, as they’ve only averaged 97 points per game over those last five games. They’ll hope to get a jolt of energy against a Bulls team that’s without some of its best defensive pieces right now. This one should be a shootout as the Bulls have the electric play of DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine to provide them with plenty of scoring. But, I’m more inclined to go with Charlotte in this one, as they’ve pulled off some surprise wins at home and should be able to snap their current skid.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Charlotte Hornets (-106)
Noah Dunlap
In this matchup, we get two teams that have lost a combined seven games in a row, and don’t seem like they’re all that interested in winning as of late. The Chicago Bulls are still the two seed in the East, despite the brief losing streak, as they’re able to rely on guys like DeMar Derozan and Zach LaVine to lead the way even when things seem somewhat troublesome in the Windy City.
The Charlotte Hornets seem to have more pressing issues, however, as they’ve dropped five straight, and the offense that has been great for most of the year, has stumbled during that span, averaging less than 100 points per game. They have one of the best young point guards in the NBA in LaMelo Ball, but even he hasn’t been able to help the offense as of late. With a defense that has been awful all year long, if the offense doesn’t get things together soon, this is a team that is going to end up watching its playoff chances vanish right before their eyes. For this matchup, I just like Chicago to be able to outscore a struggling Charlotte offense, so I’m taking the Bulls to go on the road and end their brief two-game losing streak and get back on the right track.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Chicago Bulls (-110)
Toronto Raptors @ Oklahoma City Thunder – 8pm ET
The Toronto Raptors are in the middle of their three game road trip when they hit the road and take on the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Raptors winning streak continues, and it now stands at six games in a row, after beating the Hornets, 116-101, last time out. The Thunder are currently on a two game losing streak, after going down to the Kings and Warriors.
Jeffery Thomas
Pascal Siakam may be the biggest All-Star game snub this year. He’s averaging 21.5 points, 5.2 assists, and 8.7 rebounds on the season and is a big reason for the Raptor’s current six game winning streak. His ball handling duties have increased and he says that keeps him in a rhythm and involved in the offense. Now he gets an opponent he’s had a lot of success against in OKC, a team he is shooting over 62% against in his career. The Thunder come in losers of 14 of 18 and will still be without two key contributors in Mike Muscala and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in this one. Both are out for significant time with ankle injuries.
Their last game out was a 98-110 loss to the Warriors on the road on Monday. The Thunder are second to last place in the Western Conference with a 17-36 record. This is a revenge game for the Raptors who dropped the opening matchup to the Thunder 110-109 in Toronto. Pascal Siakam went 10-15 from the floor for 23 points and 11 rebounds in that one as the Raptors blew a 13-point second half lead. I don’t expect that result again in this one with how well the Raptors are playing right now and how short-handed the Thunder are. Give the Raptors and the spread.
Jeffery’s NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors -9.5 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The Raptors are finally all healthy and starting to come together as a team. They’ve won six games in a row, have an All-Star in Fred VanVleet and are getting incredible performances from Pascal Siakam and Gary Trent Jr. This team is becoming quite fun to watch while they work their way up the Eastern Conference standings. On Thursday they face the Oklahoma City Thunder, who’ve stayed resilient without their leading scorer Shai Gilgeous Alexander. Even with Gilgeous-Alexander sidelined with an ankle injury, the Thunder have refused to completely fall apart.
Serious Skills ✔️
Watch @joshgiddey in the Skills Challenge on #NBAAllStar Saturday night! ⭐ pic.twitter.com/zTMZXujrGE
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 9, 2022
They’ve dropped two straight, but prior to that they won three straight games and were getting some solid play from their young core that includes Lu Dort and Josh Giddey. With so many draft picks in coming drafts, the Thunder are already showing some promise for what’s to come. Unfortunately on Wednesday, they play one of, if not the, hottest team in basketball in Toronto. While OKC has shown they can put up a fight against top teams, the Raptors are fully clicking right now and will be a bit too much for OKC to handle.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors -9.5 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
The Toronto Raptors are beginning to look more and more like a team to pay attention to in the Eastern Conference. They started the year hot, but eventually started dealing with injuries, COVID, and just rough play all the way around for a pretty lengthy stretch. However, now that their roster is virtually back to being fully healthy, they’ve taken a huge leap in the Eastern Conference standings, as they’ve now won six straight, and eight of their last ten. This has pushed them to 29-23 on the year, which is good for the sixth seed in the East right now.
The Oklahoma City Thunder come into this one as one of the worst teams in basketball. They’ve lost two straight, and 14 of their last 18, and now, to make matters worse, they’re without their best player in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. When it comes to a team with limited talent in the first place, being without their best player, and now taking on one of the hottest teams in the league, all signs point to their being only one safe bet here, and it’s on the Toronto Raptors.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors -9.5 (-110)
Golden State Warriors @ Utah Jazz – 10pm ET
The Golden State Warriors wrap up their quick two game road trip on Wednesday night when they travel to Utah and take on the Jazz. The Warriors continue to build on their winning streak, which now stands at nine games in a row. The Jazz are currently on a three game winning streak, after they experienced five losses in a row, and this takes their season record to 33-21.
Jeffery Thomas
The Jazz have found a groove of late, winning 3 straight games but will now get a tough test when they host the Warriors on Wednesday night. Donovan Mitchell’s return to the lineup has sparked the winning ways and he showed his worth to the team in their thrilling 113-104 victory over the Knicks in their last game. He went for 32 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, and 4 steals and sparked a late 11-1 run to push them over the top. For the Warriors, it was a 110-98 win over the Thunder in their last game. That win extended their winning streak out to nine games, as Klay Thompson led them in scoring with 21 points.
He’s 12 games into his return from a two and a half year absence and is slowly ramping up game by game. He hit back to back threes to stave off Thunder rally at the end of the game and his splash brother Steph Curry nearly had a triple double, finishing with 18 points, 10 assists and 9 rebounds. The Warriors have taken the first two meetings of these teams this season, both last month. The first meeting was a 123-116 victory on New Years and the second a 94-92 victory on January 23. This one will be without Rudy Gobert for the Jazz and will have the addition of Klay for the Warriors, and I think that will keep the winning ways for the Warriors going even on the road. Give me the Warriors and the spread.
Jeffery’s NBA Pick: Golden State Warriors +3 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The Warriors are clicking right now, winning nine straight games, with no signs of slowing down. After a couple unsteady games after Draymond Green went down with an injury, the team has regrouped; plus adding Klay Thompson back to the lineup has helped quite a bit. But, it hasn’t just been Steph Curry and Thompson, this team has been able to excel this season because of performances from the likes of Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, and Damion Lee. On Wednesday they have a potential playoff matchup against the Utah Jazz, who are starting to come back to life after injuries derailed them for a couple of weeks.
The Jazz looked lost while Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell were sidelined toward the end of January; things didn’t get better when Joe Ingles went down for the year. But, Mitchell returned last week, and the team is getting back in the groove, winning three straight games. Wednesday’s matchup will be a true test, as they face a Golden State Warriors team that when healthy, is arguably the league’s best team. While the Jazz have plenty of scoring talent, Gobert will be missed to hold down the middle. A full strength Jazz team struggled with the Warriors a little over a month ago, I can’t see a Gobert-less one getting the job done, even in Salt Lake City.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Golden State Warriors +3 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
After an absolutely abysmal stretch of basketball from the Utah Jazz, they’ve now run off three straight wins, after a stretch that saw them lose five straight, and 11 of 13. Part of that horrible stretch was the fact that they were without Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, and with Joe Ingles tearing his ACL and missing the rest of the season, they were certainly reeling, but I’m not sure anyone expected things to get quite as bad as they did for this Jazz team. Now, they’re still without Gobert, but they do at least have Mitchell back in the lineup, which does a lot to explain while they seem to slowly be finding that groove once again.
The question is whether that matters in this one, as they take on the team that is arguably the second best team in the league. The Golden State Warriors come into this one as the two-seed in the West, and with a lineup that is absolutely stacked, it’s not hard to see why. A lot of people think this is a Warriors team that is basically just the Steph Curry show, but now, with Klay Thompson back, he adds another shooter to the mix, as well as them having Andrew Wiggins, the emergence of Jordan Poole as a threat, and Draymond Green still playing at a reasonably high level. If Gobert were playing in this one for Utah, I think this one could be extremely tight, but I just don’t like a Gobert-less Jazz team to have enough to hang around with what Golden State can throw at them. Give me the Warriors to go on the road and take care of business with relative ease.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Golden State Warriors (+124)
Minnesota Timberwolves @ Sacramento Kings – 10pm ET
The Minnesota Timberwolves and the Sacramento Kings play each other in back-to-back games, and this Wednesday night clash is the first leg. The Timberwolves are currently on a four game winning streak, after defeating the likes of the Jazz, Nuggets and Pistons (twice). The Kings have won two of their last three games, and this takes their season record to 20-35.
Jeffery Thomas
These two teams are playing a mini back to back series, as the Tuesday result was a 134-114 victory for Minnesota. The Kings played that game after cleaning house and trading away Tyrese Haliburton, and Buddy Hield to the Indiana Pacers for Domantas Sabonis. That left them empty-handed for the Tuesday game, where they faltered down the stretch, being outscored by 14 in the second half. Karl Anthony-Towns led the way for Minnesota with 25 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists.
The Wednesday game will likely go the exact same way as Tuesday as the Timberwolves are just the much better team. They are 10 games better record-wise, and are in the hunt for a playoff spot, while the Kings are just trying to figure out things for the future. Minnesota also won the Tuesday game by 20, and put up 134, with their #1 pick from last year, Anthony Edwards, shooting 2-12 and only scoring 5 points. Expect a huge bounce back game for him and a similar result on the scoreboard, as the Timberwolves win and cover easily.
Jeffery’s NBA Pick: Minnesota Timberwolves -9 (-110)
Michael Lantz
The Sacramento Kings led the headlines yesterday—but maybe for the wrong reasons. The team obtained two-time All-Star Domantas Sabonis from the Indiana Pacers. The cost? Tyrese Haliburton, a player many thought they’d build around for years to come. Sabonis is only 25 and has already been a proven impact player, but trading away a player some see as having the potential to be a top guard in the league seems like a bit of a risk. In addition to Haliburton, the Kings traded Buddy Hield, who is a strong scorer, but also someone most have predicted the Kings would trade since last season. It’s unclear whether this new-look Kings roster will be ready for their Wednesday game against the Timberwolves, but expect to hear much more about that trade surrounding the game.
🍽 EVERYONE EATS 🍽
KAT – 25 pts. / 9 reb. / 3 ast.
Malik – 21 pts. / 2 reb.
DLo – 14 pts. / 7 ast.
Naz – 12 pts. / 4 reb. / 1 stl.
JMac – 11 pts. / 5 reb. / 11 ast.
TP – 11 pts. / 2 reb. / 2 ast. / 4 stl. pic.twitter.com/R11WyRzLXI— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) February 9, 2022
Meanwhile on the other side of the court, the Minnesota Timberwolves have become one of the league’s best young teams. They’ve won four games in a row, all by double digits as their exciting young core of Karl Anthony-Towns, Anthony Edwards, and D’Angelo Russell all continue to evolve together. Even with Russel, missing the last couple of games, the team has had other players step up including Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, and Jarred Vanderbilt. They’re starting to come together as an entire squad, as they’re proving they’re more than just a “Big Three” team. With the Kings roster being in a bit of shambles due to trades, I expect the Timberwolves to keep it going to five straight, and to sweeten the pot, make it another double digit win over this Kings team.
Michael’s NBA Pick: Minnesota Timberwolves -9 (-110)
Noah Dunlap
Does anyone know what the Sacramento Kings are doing anymore? Yes, they’ve won two of three, but they still aren’t very good, as they sit at 20-35 on the season, and now they’ve gone out and traded the guy that was arguably their best young prospect in Tyrese Haliburton, and the guy who is currently their third best scorer in Buddy Hield, for Domantas Sabonis, who is a young, emerging star, but not a guy that I necessarily see fitting into what the Kings have seemed to be trying to do lately. Now they take on the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second of what is back-to-back games between these two, with Minnesota running away and winning the first meeting with ease.
The Timberwolves come into this one as a team that’s extremely difficult to predict, as they’ve shown at times this year to be a team that can compete with anyone, but also a team that at times can completely disappear. They’re sitting at only 28-25, but have won four in a row, all by double-digits, led by one of the best trios in basketball, in Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards, and D’Angelo Russell. In this one, I think these are just two teams that are trending in two different directions, especially with the move made by the Sacramento Kings yesterday, so give me Minnesota in this one to go on the road and pick up the win, pushing their streak to five.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Minnesota Timberwolves (-405)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
