Portland Blazers (-170)
The Portland Blazers are in an elite position tonight against the Orlando Magic. Portland is a team that seemingly gets no respect in the NBA, even though they rank seventh in the league with a 6.1 net offensive and defensive rating. Overall, they rank ninth in the NBA in offensive rating and 13th in defensive rating. They get a matchup against the Orlando Magic, who rank 26th in the NBA with a -7.0 net offensive and defensive rating. Furthermore, they rank in the bottom-five of the NBA in offensive rating this season. The Blazers have already picked up big wins against the Los Angeles Lakers and San Antonio Spurs, while losing by only one point to the Washington Wizards. The Magic also have two impressive wins over the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics, but they have also lost to the Charlotte Hornets and Philadelphia 76ers. My biggest concern in this game is Portland traveling East, but I still feel they are the significantly better team between these two. This line is a bit off, and we’re going to be taking advantage of that tonight.
Bet 2 units on the Portland -4 spread to win 1.8 units (-110)
Portland Blazers (-170)
I’m simply doubling down on a safer Portland bet on a smaller slate.
Bet 3 units on the Portland ML to win 1.8 units (-170)
Detroit Pistons (-350)
The Detroit Pistons are another team that generally doesn’t get the respect they deserve, but their line looks correct tonight. They’re playing arguably the worst team in the NBA in the Cleveland Cavaliers, who feature a net offensive and defensive rating of -14.4. Cleveland currently ranks 26th in the NBA in offensive rating and 29th in defensive rating. Detroit, who has struggled defensively this season, ranks sixth in the NBA in offensive rating, making up for their defensive struggles. They have won three extremely close games this season, as they have won their three games by a total of six points. It’s a bit worrisome that Detroit hasn’t been able to pull away from teams this season, but they have the perfect team – talented bigs – to blow out Cleveland tonight.
Bet 3 units on the Detroit -8.5 spread to win 2.7 units (-110)
Parlay Bet
Parlay 2 units on Detroit ML, Portland ML, Boston/Oklahoma City UNDER 217.5 to win 5.8 units (+287)
