Another mammoth slate of games on Saturday, with 12 matches set to go ahead. The early season continues to throw up some surprises, with teams like the Miami Heat, Brooklyn Nets, Golden State Warriors and both LA teams currently outside the playoff positions in their conferences. Are these teams sandbagging, or are there genuine concerns amongst some of the best squads in the NBA?
Our NBA bets at Before You Bet have been on fire to start the season, let’s try and keep it rolling with a preview of three of the biggest matchups on Saturday.
2022-23 NBA Betting Tips: Saturday 5th November
New York Knicks at Philadelphia 76ers
Wells Fargo Center, 10:00am AEDT
The Knicks started the season positively, narrowly going down in overtime to Memphis, before reeling off 3-straight wins over the Pistons, Magic and Hornets. That positivity has been sucked out of the team over their past 3 games, with losses to the Bucks, Cavaliers and Hawks. The Knicks appear to be a team that beats the bottom feeder teams and loses to playoff teams.
Meanwhile, the 76ers have had a slow start to this season, and with the loss of James Harden, will be hoping their superstar Joel Embiid can turn the corner. Embiid’s numbers are down across the board from last season; however, he isn’t immune from slow starts to seasons and I believe he will once again be in the MVP discussion come the end of the year. Look for Embiid and Maxey to be too strong for the Knicks at home and get the job done.
My one concern is Embiid will miss out on playing. The big man is listed as questionable with the flu; however, you’d have to think he will be back on the team now they are back home. That said, if you want to wait to hear news on Embiid, I understand, however I believe when he is confirmed as playing this number will shoot up a couple of points. Trying to get ahead of the news with this one.
Philadelphia 76ers (-3)
$1.91 (2 Units)
Golden State Warriors at New Orleans Pelicans
Smoothie King Center, 11:30am AEDT
What’s going on with the Warriors? The reining NBA Champions are currently 3-6 and sit in 12th place in the Western Conference. Now, they must deal with the second leg of a back-to-back on the road, as they head to the Big Easy to take on the Pelicans (4-3).
The Pelicans return home after a 1-2 west coast road trip and are still without one of their top options on offense Brandon Ingram. They have been getting solid contributions from CJ McCollum and Zion Williamson, and they will be hoping for this to continue, with an interesting schedule coming up against other fringe playoff contenders.
This handicap is a pure fade of the Warriors, which is always scary, however they are currently 0-5 on the road and backing up from a tight loss to the Magic yesterday. Road teams in the second game of a back-to-back are notoriously poor, and I don’t see the Warriors being any different. Look for them to address whatever their concerns are when they get home, and just try and get out of New Orleans without any injuries.
New Orleans Pelicans (-4)
$1.88 (2 Units)
Utah Jazz at Los Angeles Lakers
Staples Center, 1:30pm AEDT
The Lakers are back! Well, maybe the Lakers are back. After starting the season 0-5, they have reeled off two straight home wins on the back of increased production from Russell Westbrook, and solid contributions from their two top men, Lebron James and Anthony Davis.
The interesting note on the Lakers is their defence, which has quietly become top 3 in the league per efficiency. Unfortunately for the Lakers, this season has started at a cracking pace, meaning they need to start scoring, or risk falling further behind the other teams.
Today, the Lakers get a team who were supposed to be tanking this season, in the Utah Jazz. It appears the players didn’t get the memo, as the Jazz have put together a solid first month of the season, going 6-3, which is good enough for 3rd in the West. And whilst the Jazz have been decent offensively, they are also getting it done on the defensive side of the ball, ranking 10th in defensive efficiency and 15th for points against.
Given the way the early season has started with overs, I’m loathed to bet this, however both these teams are solid defensively, and I don’t trust the Lakers scoring enough points with their lack of 3-point shooting. I make this total 223.5, and if you’re giving me 227.5, I have to take the under.
Under 227.5 Points
$1.88 (2 Units)
