NBA Anyone?
Tonight in the NBA we have two great matchups to watch for as both games tonight could be a sneak preview for playoff mathcups to come. In the early game the Orlando Magic (-5) welcome the Cleveland Cavaliers to town and in the nightcap, the San Antonio Spurs travel to Pheonix (-1.5) to take on the Suns.
The early game features two of the NBA brightest young superstars in LeBron James and Dwight Howard. James leads the team with the best record at the NBA at the moment while Dwight Howard has the Magic hot on their heels. Both players are coming off of great indivdual and team efforts in their last outing. James had his 20th career triple double and helped point guard Mo Williams score a career high 43 points in a win over Sacramento. Howard was one of eight Orlando players that scored in double figures in a blowout win over Indiana. His size and strength inside has allowed Orlando to have the most effective perimeter shooting attack in the league. Rashard Lewis leads the NBA in 3-pointers made and Jameer Nelson, Mickael Pietrus and Hedo Turkoglu also contribute from the perimeter. But they will all be challenged tonight by Cleveland’s top ranked defense. Orlando has won 6 of the last 8 against the Cavaliers and they definitely have a great shot tonight. This game could go either way but I think Orlando wins a close one. Cleveland covers the five point spread but falls short in the end, 102-99.
The late game features two of the greatest big men to ever play the game in Shaquille O’neal and Tim Duncan. Shaq is only 5 points away from Hakeem Olajuwon for 7th place on the all-time scoring list while Duncan has been one of the most consistent scorers and rebounders in history. Their teams will square off tonight in Pheonix where the Spurs won on Christmas Day on a buzzer-beating jumper by Roger Mason. Tonight’s game should be just as close due to the fact that these teams know each other so well. The Spurs have eliminated the Suns 3 of the last 4 years from the playoffs but tonight I think Shaqovic’s new found stroke from the line will push the Sun’s over the top. Spurs coach Greg Popovich was the inventor of the hack-a-Shaq strategy and we should see some of it tonight. Shaq is shoooting a career best 62.8 percent from the line this year and made 9 0f 10 on Monday night. I like the Suns to win this one 98-91 and begin to make a playoff push.Â
Good luck young bucks, the Dragon going back into his cave until tomorrow afternoon.
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