With All-Star break coming up, teams in the NBA will be looking to get a few more wins to boost their record going into the break. Today we take a look at a few of the key matchups and offer our NBA betting tips for Thursday, February 9th, including the ESPN Australia double header featuring the Clippers at Knicks followed by the Warriors hosting the Bulls. We went 1-1-1 on our Tuesday tips, taking our season tally to 41-34-1. Like the NBA teams, we’ll be hoping we can add at least a few more wins today as we preview some of the clashes in Thursday’s massive 12 game slate.
NBA Betting Tips - Thursday, February 9th
Los Angeles Clippers at New York Knicks (12pm AEDT)
The Clippers travel to New York Thursday on the back of a three game losing streak in which they’ve faced some tough opponents in the Warriors, Celtics and Raptors. They’ll be looking to get on the board in this road trip as they face the much easier New York Knicks before rounding out the trip at Charlotte and Utah before the All-Star break. The losing streak has seen them fall to 5th in the Western Conference standings, getting Blake Griffin back from injury has helped their cause, but with Chris Paul out until at least early March, they could find themselves falling further down the standings.
It’ss be a good opportunity for the Clips to bounce back against the Knicks who have been in an almighty struggle of late. They are coming off back to back home losses against the Cavs and Lakers and the road doesn’t get any easier with the Clippers, Spurs, Thunder and Cavs making up four of their next five games. While they currently have a clean bill of health, theirs too much off court controversy surrounding the Knicks at the moment to give them any chance against the Clips here. It seems every day there is a new Carmelo Anthony trade rumour, and it can’t be good if their best player doesn’t know where his future lies at the club.
We are getting some decent odds for the Clippers, and I like the Knicks to make it three home loses in a row here.
TIP: Los Angeles Clippers to win - $1.86 at Sportsbet
Chicago Bulls at Golden State Warriors (2.30pm AEDT)
With a OT loss to the Kings a few days ago and a loss to Miami back in January, many people thought the Warriors wheels might be coming loose. The fact of the matter is, they have still won 12 of their last 14 games, and are a ridiculous 43-8 on the season. Sure, by last years standards they are a bit off the pace, but they are still far and away the best team in the competition this season. They host a Bulls side on Thursday that despite all the off court issues they’ve had to deal with lately, are still playing alright, winning three of their last four games. None of their oppoenents have been of the Warriors caliber, however, and they may have to play this game without star shooting guard Jimmy Butler.
Butler missed the Bulls last tilt with a injured heel and is listed as questionable to suit up against the Warriors. It’s hard to predict a winner or a margin with Butler listed as questionable. His scoring and his defence on Kevin Durant will play a big role if he does play. One thing the Bulls have been able to do even without Butler is score the ball at a decent clip. They’ve scored over 112 in all of their last four games, and we know that the Warriors are the most efficient scoring team in NBA history.
Without knowing Butler’s status for the game, we still feel comfortable that a fast-pace means this one should go over the total points line
TIP: Total Points OVER 219.5- $1.91 at CrownBet
Miami Heat at Milwaukee Bucks (12pm AEDT)
Maybe the most underrated run of the season so far is the current Miami Heat. After losing 10 of 11 back in December-January, they’ve bounced back hard and are currently on an 11 game win streak, the longest current streak in the NBA. They come up against the Bucks who are well and truly on the other end of the scale. With only 2 wins in their last 12 games, besides the Nets, the Bucks have the worst run over that period of time.
It all makes for an interesting game in the betting markets. For all the stats mentioned above, Miami still come into this game as underdogs, which is a bit beyond me. They’ve proved over the season that even with injuries, they are quite capable of just plugging the next man in and getting W’s. While Milwaukee have a completely clean bill of health, I still expect the Heat to get the away win here against the Bucks, who are only .500 at home on the season so far.
TIP: Miami Heat to win - $2.35 at William Hill
