After a stellar Christmas Day slate, the NBA gets back into full swing. There are nine games on the schedule with plenty of intrigue. With so much action on tap, let's take a look at some of the matchups for Friday best bets.
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Friday’s Best NBA Picks & Predictions
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Charlotte Hornets at Orlando Magic
After a thrilling run through the NBA Cup play, the Magic jumped right into a West Coast road trip that ended less than stellar. Orlando split the four games straight up but managed to go just 1-3 ATS. On Friday, the Magic will be back in Orlando and plenty rested after getting two days off to spend the holiday at home. Their gift will be a matchup with one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference, the Charlotte Hornets.
Charlotte has been really bad defensively. Their DRtg ranks 27th and they're in the bottom five of league in eFG% defense and creating turnovers. Teams are getting to run their offense on the Hornets and finishing at a high rate. Orlando isn't a great shooting team but in their matchup in October, they shot 51.7% from the field and 42.1% from deep with very few turnovers.
The Magic have won and covered in each game these two division rivals have played dating back to the beginning of the 2024-25 season. They have Charlotte's number and, with their own defensive prowess, should make things difficult for Charlotte to keep pace. Orlando will have the upper hand at home in a well rested spot to cover the spread on Friday night.
Pick: Magic -6 (-110)
Detroit Pistons at Utah Jazz
In typical Jazz fashion, this year's outfit has some insane home and away splits. Away from Salt Lake City, the Jazz are easily one of, if not, the worst offensive team in the league. They shoot an incredibly poor 43.7% from the field and 32.1% from deep, leading to just 110.7 PPG. However, when they get home the shooting improves mightily. Those numbers go up over league averages to 47.0% and 36.7%, respectively. Because of this, it is no surprise that Utah sits 12-5 ATS at home on the season.
Detroit will be playing their third game of a five game West Coast road trip. With the final two games of the road swing in Los Angeles, it cannot be ignored that the focus may not completely be there. This is a young team that just spent the holiday on the road with four nights in Los Angeles coming up. Although Detroit has been an impressive 17-13 ATS to start the year, they've gone only 4-6 in a recent run despite an 8-2 SU record.
These two teams met in Detroit back in November with the Pistons covering a -9.5 point spread, 114-103. Utah shot poorly from the field on the road as they've done all season, and despite a strong fourth quarter, could not overcome a 14-point third quarter. With another large spread on Friday and a strong let down spot for Detroit, I'm targeting the underdog on the spread.
Pick: Jazz +9.5 (-114)
Los Angeles Clippers at Portland Trail Blazers
Could it be that the Clippers are finally starting to turn a corner here in late December? The answer very well may be yes, at least on the defensive side of the ball. Los Angeles has won back-to-back games and will be looking for a season-high third straight win Friday night in Portland. They've managed to trounce the Lakers and the Rockets, both top 10 ORtg teams in the NBA, and win straight up as underdogs.
The defensive work in those two contests was impressive. They held the Lakers, one of the best shooting teams in the league, to 38.6% from the floor and a season low 88 points. They followed that up with a game against the Rockets where Houston shot 10% below their season average on 3PA. They're starting to show signs of the team that was second in DRtg last year.
Portland is struggling through some of their own injuries. Jerami Grant and Jrue Holiday are expected to be out and Robert Williams is a game time decision. They just got through two grueling games with physical Detroit and Orlando defenses. Los Angeles will be a third straight game against a physical defense and I don't think they have the firepower to withstand it.
Pick: Clippers -1.5 (-112)
