There are nine games in the NBA on Thursday, with the talk around the league centring in on the NBA trade deadline. With several teams looking to make a late move, team lists are extremely important to keep an eye on. The highlight of today’s slate is the massive Eastern Conference clash between the Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics, but we will be looking elsewhere for value today.
Check out our NBA betting tips for Thursday 9th February below, and make sure to check our daily content at Before You Bet!
2022-23 NBA Betting Tips: Thursday 9th February
San Antonio Spurs at Toronto Raptors
Scotiabank Arena, 11:30am AEDT
The fade of the Spurs continues today, as the Raptors host the worst team in the NBA. We wrote last week that the Spurs had been getting hammered night in, night out, and that form line has continued, with a 12-point home loss to the Spurs, followed up by a 24-point road loss to the Bulls.
The Raptors return home after a 7-game road span, which saw them go 4-3. Whilst they should be commended, it’s still up in the air as to which way the Raptors season will go. Several of their stars have been the subject of trade rumours, and there’s a distinct possibility that a number of players will be missing for this game.
Despite that, I still like the Raptors to cover this spread. No matter who plays in this game, the Raptors’ players will know where they stand by tip off, as anyone that’s suited up will in all likelihood be staying with the Raptors for the remainder of this season. Given this, I won’t question their desire to perform, and with the way the Spurs have played of late, I have to side with the Raptors at home.
Toronto Raptors (-10.5)
$1.91 (1 Unit)
Sacramento Kings at Houston Rockets
Toyota Center, 12:00pm AEDT
We get a nice frame of reference here, with these two teams playing in Houston two days ago. The Kings closed 7-point favourites in that game, with the total closing at 239. Fast forward two days, and the Kings now sit as 8-point favourites, with the total sitting at 241, after the Kings won 140-120 on Tuesday.
Neither team appeared too concerned with defence in this one, and once the Kings got out to a lead (65-48 HT), the score really went up quickly, with 147 second half points. Under bettors would have been a little disappointed, given the relatively low (113) point output in the first half. This fact makes me consider a contrarian under in this one, but I’m too scared to take it on.
Instead, I’ll trust the Kings to go back-to-back, against another team that looks to be in tank mode. The Rockets have lost 18 of their past 21 games, and have their sights set on getting the number 1 overall pick. Whilst they’ve shown competitiveness at times during most games, they eventually get worn down and lose comfortably. With a Kings team desperate to keep winning for their playoff seeding, I can’t see a different result than a Kings blowout win here.
Sacramento Kings (-7.5)
$1.92 (2 Units)
Golden State Warriors at Portland Trail Blazers
Moda Center, 2:00pm AEDT
Despite the loss of Steph Curry, the Warriors still looked decent in their last start win over the Thunder (141-114). They were led by Klay Thompson, who scored 42 points on 12/16 shooting from deep, whilst Jordan Poole had 21 points and 12 assists. Whilst I don’t expect anywhere near the same production from Thompson in this game, I still like the Warriors to score.
Looking at the games this year the Warriors have played without Curry, they have still averaged 114.8 points per game. Today, they come up against a Blazers defence that ranks 29th in the league for defensive efficiency, so I can’t find a reason why the Warriors won’t put up at least 115 points in this game.
So we look at the Blazers. The Blazers have averaged 122 points over their past 13 games, and against a Warriors defence that has leaked the 6th most points in the NBA over the past month and a half, a high scoring match is on the cards.
This total is high, and we definitely need the Warriors to get involved offensively in this one, but if it’s relatively close down the stretch, I see this going over without a sweat.
Over 234 points
$1.90 (1 Unit)
