After a heavy Thursday slate to come out of the All Star break, the NBA rolls on again Friday with another full lineup of games. Nine games are scheduled with plenty of matchups to whet even the most casual NBA fan's appetite. 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)
Cleveland Cavaliers at Charlotte Hornets
What happens when two of the hottest teams in the league meet up? Well, we're about to find out on Friday night when the Cavaliers travel to Charlotte to take on the Hornets. The Cavaliers have won 11 of 12 and gone 9-3 ATS in those games. Charlotte is coming off of just their second loss in the last 12 with a 9-3 ATS record themselves.
Charlotte is no stranger to back-to-backs this year. This will be the twelfth back-to-back that the Hornets have played this season. They've consistently been undervalued in these spots and it looks like they'll be undervalued here as well. The Hornets have been a top five team in the East over the last few weeks. Their offense has improved significantly despite still turning the ball over at a top two rate in the Association.
The last time these two met was right before the Hornets' run. Cleveland won by seven in a game where the Hornets shot an abysmal 33.7% from the floor and 17% from deep. Expect the Hornets to have some more success on Friday and keep this one close enough to notch another ATS win on their record.
Pick: Hornets +5 (-110)
Dallas Mavericks at Minnesota Timberwolves
Anthony Edwards capped off his All Star weekend with an All Star Game MVP. For a guy that is starting to rack up the accolades, it'll be interesting to see how he leads the Timberwolves coming out of the break. Their first crack at it will come against the Mavericks. Dallas is in free fall after dumping Anthony Davis and D'Angelo Russell at the trade deadline. Headed into the break they were losers of nine straight including a 2-7 ATS record and five straight ATS losses.
Minnesota is a strong opponent with a top six record in the Western Conference. However, despite a 34-22 SU record, they only boast a 25-31 ATS mark including 19-26 as favorites. However, they've had success against Dallas this year. Minnesota won and covered in both matchups but I'm more interested in the fact that they held the Mavericks to just 96 and 105 in the two contests.
The Dallas offense has struggled this year. They have one of the worst ORtg in the league. They shoot poorly, are ranked 23rd in eFG%,, and rebound even worse when they miss, with a 28th ranked OReb rate. Minnesota's defense ranks in the top eight of both of those categories. This should be another game where Dallas has trouble figuring out the Timberwolves' defense. With games going 19-10 to the Under in Minnesota this season, it makes the Under in this game a must play.
Pick: Under 237.5 Total Points (-110)
Los Angeles Clippers at Los Angeles Lakers
The battle of Los Angeles will take place just a week after hosting the NBA All Star festivities. It'll be fourth contest of the season with the Clippers winning two of the first three games of the season. The stars will once again take center stage in this one. If you love well coached tactical basketball, then this is the matchup for you.
The Clippers play at one of the slowest paces in the league on both the defensive and offensive end. They're also a team that lives at the free throw line with a top five free throw rate in the league. Unfortunately for them, the Lakers don't foul. Their defensive free throw rate is top six, just behind of the Clippers. If the defensive styles of not fouling negate a major source of offense for both teams then they'll have to find other ways to score.
Even with decent shooting on both sides of the court in these matchups, the scores haven't been going over the total. These teams have average 84.7 FGA in the three games which is a mark that would be third lowest in the league for an entire season, ahead of only the Lakers and Clippers. Even with getting more shots up than average and decent shooting they still cannot eclipse the total lines. I don't see that changing here and will be playing the Under.
Pick: Under 224.5 Total Points (-110)
