We had our first tough day of the season on Thursday with a couple of unlucky results making it a frustrating day for punters. We’re still well up on the season and are expecting a big bounce back on Saturday. Check out our best plays from the eight-game slate of NBA below and good luck if following!
NBA Betting Tips: Saturday, 16th of January
Dallas Mavericks at Milwaukee Bucks
11:30am AEDT, TD Garden
Dallas have hit their straps with wins in each of their last four games. Another positive for the Mavericks is the return of Kristaps Porzingis who logged 21 minutes against the Hornets on Thursday. The Mavs come into this game at 6-4 through their first 10 games.
Milwaukee have also hit their straps after a slow(ish) start to the season where they lost three of their first five games. The Bucks have since won six of their past seven and currently occupy the third seed in the East with an 8-4 record.
The Mavs seem to match up really well against the Bucks, which led to a 2-0 series sweep last season. Like his team, Luka Doncic is firing on all cylinders at the moment and with history on their side, we expect the Mavs to have a good chance to win this one. Take them to cover the spread for a bit of extra security.
Doncic is back to his stat-stuffing best and that was evident last game with a line of 34/13/9. His three-point shot is finally starting to fall, so he’d be full of confidence at the moment and we expect that to equate to another huge night.
Prop: Doncic O48.5 PRA ($1.84)
Dallas Mavericks +6.5
$1.90
Atlanta Hawks at Utah Jazz
1pm AEDT, Vivint Smart Home Arena
Atlanta, like most young teams, have had an inconsistent start to the season with five wins and five losses. They put an end to a four-game losing streak when they defeated the undermanned 76ers last time out, which was exactly what they needed to get back on track.
Utah started the season slowly at 4-4 but have come on strong in their past three games, winning all of them by double figures. Perhaps their best performance of the season so far was their 117-87 demolition job of the Cavaliers last time out, which was the second game in a row where they’ve kept their opposition under 90.
These clubs split the two-game season series 1-1 last season. Both games were decided by five points or less, which is impressive from the Hawks considering how bad they were. They’ve improved a bit this season, but we don’t see them getting the job done against Utah on current form. They haven’t beaten anyone of note yet excepts Brooklyn who were plagued with injuries. We have the Jazz cruising to a comfortably home win in this one.
While we expect the Jazz to get the chocolates, we still fancy DeAndre Hunter to cover his Points + Rebounds + Assists (PRA) line. He’s had 23+ PRA in each of his last six games and the bookies are still yet to adjust.
Prop: Hunter O22.5 PRA ($1.87)
New Orleans Pelicans at Los Angeles Lakers
2pm AEDT, Staples Center
New Orleans started the season well with four wins from six games but have since gone on to lose each of their last four. Their defence just hasn’t been good enough and they’ve conceded 110+ points in each of their past five games as a result.
Los Angeles have shown no sign of a title hangover as they currently boast the best record in the league at 10-3. They’ve won four on the spin and eight of their past nine, most of which have been comfortable margins.
The Lakers swept the four-game season series against the Pelicans last season and we aren’t expecting much to change this campaign. The Pelicans also have a couple of injuries to key players at the moment, so we’re expecting one way traffic for the Lakers here.
LeBron James doesn’t break a sweat if he doesn’t need to and we expect this to be one of those games. Expect him to be less aggressive and in pass-first mode, which should see him clear his assists line.
Prop: James O7.5 Assists ($1.86)
Los Angeles Lakers -8.5
$1.90
