Brandon Lang
Friday ...
10 Dime - Indiana Pacers - Just looking inside the betting numbers it's easy to see why we're playing Indiana. The Pacers are on ATS runs of 5-1 versus the Eastern Conference, 4-1 off an ATS cover, 7-2 as a road pup, 8-3 on the road and 6-2 overall. So while they’re on the verge being eliminated from the playoffs, they still have a shot of making it thanks to some red-hot shooting (50 percent from the field in each of their last five games), while they've won six of eight. The Pacers come in off a stellar defensive effort, having held the Raptors to just 38.4 percent shooting on Wednesday. The well-balanced effort will carry over to tonight, as we play the Pacers to get it done over Atlanta.
10 Dime - Memphis Grizzlies - The Suns are out of the playoffs after the Mavericks took care of business the other night, so I don't see them having much momentum tonight in Memphis. Phoenix's defense has been downright awful of late, allowing opponents to average 118.5 points in its previous eight outings, and since the Grizzlies are looking to get past the 22-win plateau for the first time in three seasons, I think they're in the perfect spot to win very easily. Memphis rolls into this one on ATS runs of 4-1 against the Western Conference, 4-0 versus the Pacific Division, 19-7 as an underdog, 6-2 when playing on one days rest and 6-0 overall. On the flipside, Phoenix is on ATS slides of 2-6 as a road chalk, 2-7 when visiting teams that lose at home and 1-4 off an ATS cover. Take Memphis here, as the Grizzlies finally win No. 23.
10 Dime - L.A. Lakers - I know both teams are dying for a win, Portland to get out of the fourth slot in the West, and the Lakers to keep their run toward home-court advantage alive. So when you have a situation like this, and the line is just about a pick'em, you have to side with the better basketball team - and tonight that's the Lakers, who come in after knocking off the Western Conference's No. 2 seed, Denver, which went into LA on an eight-game win streak. The Lakers are now within one-half game of the Cavaliers, but still hold the tiebreaker over the Cavaliers for the NBA’s best overall record and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs if the two finish the season with identical records. Winning is more important to the better team tonight, and I'll side with the Lakers.
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Friday ...
10 Dime - Indiana Pacers - Just looking inside the betting numbers it's easy to see why we're playing Indiana. The Pacers are on ATS runs of 5-1 versus the Eastern Conference, 4-1 off an ATS cover, 7-2 as a road pup, 8-3 on the road and 6-2 overall. So while they’re on the verge being eliminated from the playoffs, they still have a shot of making it thanks to some red-hot shooting (50 percent from the field in each of their last five games), while they've won six of eight. The Pacers come in off a stellar defensive effort, having held the Raptors to just 38.4 percent shooting on Wednesday. The well-balanced effort will carry over to tonight, as we play the Pacers to get it done over Atlanta.
10 Dime - Memphis Grizzlies - The Suns are out of the playoffs after the Mavericks took care of business the other night, so I don't see them having much momentum tonight in Memphis. Phoenix's defense has been downright awful of late, allowing opponents to average 118.5 points in its previous eight outings, and since the Grizzlies are looking to get past the 22-win plateau for the first time in three seasons, I think they're in the perfect spot to win very easily. Memphis rolls into this one on ATS runs of 4-1 against the Western Conference, 4-0 versus the Pacific Division, 19-7 as an underdog, 6-2 when playing on one days rest and 6-0 overall. On the flipside, Phoenix is on ATS slides of 2-6 as a road chalk, 2-7 when visiting teams that lose at home and 1-4 off an ATS cover. Take Memphis here, as the Grizzlies finally win No. 23.
10 Dime - L.A. Lakers - I know both teams are dying for a win, Portland to get out of the fourth slot in the West, and the Lakers to keep their run toward home-court advantage alive. So when you have a situation like this, and the line is just about a pick'em, you have to side with the better basketball team - and tonight that's the Lakers, who come in after knocking off the Western Conference's No. 2 seed, Denver, which went into LA on an eight-game win streak. The Lakers are now within one-half game of the Cavaliers, but still hold the tiebreaker over the Cavaliers for the NBA’s best overall record and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs if the two finish the season with identical records. Winning is more important to the better team tonight, and I'll side with the Lakers.
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