NBA Odds, Picks & Predictions: Wednesday (3/18)
Tonight, the Boston Celtics will look to take care of business against the short-handed Golden State Warriors. But are the Warriors being undervalued in this matchup? Speaking of short-handed, the Minnesota Timberwolves will be without Anthony Edwards tonight. Can they still put up plenty of points against the Utah Jazz and the league's worst scoring defense? And what should we expect from the Los Angeles Lakers in their second consecutive game against the Houston Rockets?
Here are the best bets for Wednesday, March 18th.
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Odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook.
Golden State Warriors vs. Boston Celtics
The Celtics are only allowing 107.1 points per game, but this feels like way too low a number considering how the Warriors have played of late. The Warriors are averaging 115.3 points per game, and they've scored fewer than 102 points just once in their last seven games.
While the Celtics can shut down just about anyone, holding five of their last nine opponents to 100 or fewer points, this is just too low, even for an offense that ranks in the bottom half of the league in scoring. Plus, when these two teams met in mid-February, the Warriors scored 110 points.
And while the Warriors will struggle more than usual without Steph Curry tonight, Curry also didn't play in that first meeting. The Warriors still managed to clear this number by 8.5 despite shooting just 45% from the field.
Pick: Golden State Warriors Over 101.5 Points (-105)
Utah Jazz vs. Minnesota Timberwolves
Anthony Edwards is going to miss this game, but I still like the Timberwolves to hit this Over. Edwards didn't play last night, but his team still managed 116 points against the Suns' sixth-ranked scoring defense.
The Jazz enter this game allowing a league-worst 124.9 points per game. They have given up at least 124 in two of their last three games, and they already gave up 137 to the Timberwolves earlier this season.
That said, the Timberwolves have scored 122 or fewer against the Jazz twice this season. However, both of those games were also played in Utah. The Jazz are allowing over 122 points per game on the road this season. Although Edwards is out, the Timberwolves still have six players averaging in double figures.
Pick: Minnesota Timberwolves Over 123.5 Points (-108)
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets
The Lakers are red-hot right now, while the Rockets aren't. Led by Luka Doncic, the Lakers have won six consecutive games and nine of their last 10. During that span, eight of their wins have been by at least eight points.
These two teams met on Monday, and the Lakers managed to pull off the 100-92 win in Houston. The Rockets held a 10-point lead in the third quarter, but the fourth quarter was all Lakers, as they pulled away in the final three minutes.
While it's a tall order to win back-to-back games in Houston, a place where the Rockets are 23-9 this season, I just don't like what I've seen from the Rockets of late. They've alternated wins and losses over their last 10 games, and while they're due for a win tonight based on that trend, only one of their last four wins was against a team with a winning record. Take the hotter team getting the points. Even if they don't win, two of the Lakers' last three losses were by three or fewer.
Pick: Los Angeles Lakers +2.5 (-112)
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Phil Wood is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Phil, check out his archive and follow him @Phil_Wood_Jr.