‘Twas a disappointing showing, going 1-2 last night. I watched my Bucks bet slip out from my hands when they were up by 8 with 8 minutes to go only to basically never score again. The damn Italian Stallion aka Danilo Gallinari, got the better of me, smh. Later in the night, it appeared that LeBron’s apology was enough to power the Lakers to a much-needed win over a good team, crushing my Jazz bet. Thankfully the Suns knew how to take care of business and saved me from a winless night.
Tonight’s Picks
After a heavy sports-filled weekend, we’ve got only two games tonight. That makes selecting my bets a little easier. After an unsuccessful night on the favorites, I have to return to the underdogs. As Yank and I laid out during the NFL Regular Season, it’s easy to bet on the favorites. Everyone believes the better team will win and are therefore more likely to cover the spread, but spreads are designed to be a 50-50 proposition, so the underdog covering is more likely than it seems at first glance. I personally have to fight the urge to bet the favorites for that reason. Tonight is no exception. For both of these games, my immediate hunch was to go with the favorites. Instead, I let each matchup simmer for a while and ultimately decided the underdog was the play.
Pick #1: $2.00 on the New York Knicks+3 (vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves) -110 and $1.00 on the Knicks Money Line+140
As I laid out above, my immediate reaction was to go TWolves here. The Wolves have been playing a lot better than they have the last few seasons and are starting to get some attention (read: every story about them having the best 5-man lineup in basketball). And yet, the Knicks have virtually the same record as the Wolves. They’re coming off of a loss last night, which will hopefully aid their motivation and mentality to get a win. The Knicks have been hot and cold all year, so I’m taking my chances on them as a home underdog and hoping it’s a hot night.
Pick #2: $2.00 on the Detroit Pistons+15.5 (@ the Golden State Warriors) -110
Once again, I’d like to go Warriors here, but I feel like I have to pick the Pistons to cover. For one, what reason do the Warriors have to beat the Pistons by 16? Can they? Absolutely. Will they? That’s where I’m skeptical. They’re at the end of a road trip and in a bit of a slump. Maybe they’ll be recharged coming home and that’s definitely the biggest concern, but ultimately they’re just waiting for Draymond to get healthy and helping Klay find his rhythm. Teams have absolutely blown out the Pistons, so this could be over in no time, but they’ve also shown fight and this feels like a game where the Warriors could care less. I think the Pistons push them in this one that is ultimately a comfortable but not an enormous victory for the Warriors.
Pick #3: $1.00 on the NBA Tuesday Points Parlay Boost: Julius Randle, Karl-Anthony Towns, & Klay Thompson Each Over 19.5 Points+600
Given the lack of games tonight, I wanted to grab a fun points parlay. Randle and Klay are the worries in this one. Randle has not played up to the standard he set last season and Klay hasn’t gotten going yet. Nevertheless, I think a matchup against the Pistons could be a nice opportunity for Klay to flash old Klay and for Randle, I just need him to an extra shot or two. He’s averaging about 19 ppg this season, so if an extra three falls or gets to the line a few more times tonight, it should be in play.
One Last Line 