Free NBA Picks – Tuesday, November 3
A winning night is a winning night, and that’s what I had with Monday’s NBA picks. I was certainly a little surprised by Utah’s 17-point home loss to Houston, but the Clippers came through with a win over Minnesota, and the Kings and Grizzlies hit the over in an overtime showdown, so I came out a solid 2-1.
There are nine games on tap today, and with picks for five of them, I’m fully expecting a second straight winning night.
As with last night, if you don’t want to read through all of the analysis, here are the picks below if you want the good stuff straight away.
NBA PICKS RECORD
Yesterday (Mon., Nov. 2): 2-1
Season-to-date: 2-1
TODAY’S NBA PICKS
WASHINGTON WIZARDS +11 ½ at Cleveland Cavaliers
Los Angeles Lakers/Oklahoma City Thunder UNDER 193
DALLAS MAVERICKS -6 vs. Utah Jazz
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS +7 vs. Boston Celtics
MIAMI HEAT SU vs. Phoenix Suns
Cleveland Cavaliers (2-2) vs. Washington Wizards (2-1)
The Cavaliers have gotten back on track after opening the season with consecutive losses, posting double-digit wins over Minnesota and Charlotte, so perhaps this one is an ambitious pick.
But Washington played well against Cleveland last season, going 2-2 and very nearly pulling off a third win against the Cavs, and their only meeting against that could be considered a rout was Cleveland’s 98-86 win near the end of the season.
I’ve got LeBron and the Cavs taking the win, but I’m rolling with Gilbert Arenas and the Wizards to cover tonight.
Oklahoma City Thunder (2-1) vs. Los Angeles Lakers (2-1)
The Thunder were one of the league’s bottom teams defensively last season, as opponents averaged 103 points per game. That’s an area that’s seen improvement thus far, as each of Oklahoma City’s opponents thus far has been held under 90 points.
Of course, Sacramento, Detroit, and Portland don’t have Kobe, but Kevin Martin, Ben Gordon, and Brandon Roy do know a thing or two about scoring, so being able to hold those three to a combined 18 of 56 shooting (32.1%) is nothing short of impressive.
I certainly expect Kobe to get his share, and I also expect Kevin Durant to shoot much better than the 3 for 21 that he shot against Portland on Sunday. But I also expect OKC’s trend of keeping the scoring down and for this one to hit on the under.
Dallas Mavericks (2-1) vs. Utah Jazz (1-2)
The Jazz burned me last night for picking them, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they burn me for picking against them today, but I’m doing it anyway because it makes as much as much sense as yesterday’s pick did (at the time, at least).
As I’ve mentioned before (including in last night’s picks), the Jazz on the road are a much different team on the road than they are at home (last night’s loss to the Rockets was quite the aberration).
The Mavericks beat Utah by seven and 29 last season, and I don’t see this one it going too well for the Jazz tonight in Dallas. Take the Mavericks with the points.
Bonus Pick #1: Philadelphia +7 vs. Boston – The Celtics are looking every bit like the team to beat in the East with their blistering start to the season, but they could run into a test in Philly. Boston needed late baskets to win by one and two points in Philly last season, and though the Sixers went down by 14 at another East contender in Orlando (in their season opener), I like their chances to keep this one relatively close.
Bonus Pick #2: Miami SU over Phoenix – The runnin’ and gunnin’ Suns are leading the league in scoring, but those efforts came against the Clippers, Warriors, and Timberwolves. The Heat are allowing only 87.7 points per game so far, and hey, they also have Dwayne Wade, who could well go for 40+ tonight against the defense-is-optional Suns. In this battle of 3-0 teams, I’m rolling with the home team.
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