After finishing 2-2 on our single-game bets and cashing in on our parlay last Friday, we had a positive payday and this week, we’ll be looking to either replicate those results or improve on them.
Friday night’s schedule will include eight games and will have tipoff times ranging from 7pm (ET) to 10:30pm (ET). Some of the league’s best and most entertaining franchises will be on display, including the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks and more. See the full schedule below:
Most teams have only played either four or five games and what is a bit shocking is the fact that with the San Antonio Spurs losing against the Los Angeles Clippers last night, there is now just one unbeaten team remaining in the league. The Philadelphia 76ers are off to a 4-0 start with wins coming against the Celtics, Pistons, Hawks and Timberwolves. Despite the Spurs coming off a loss no longer being undefeated, they are one of the team’s I like to win on Friday against the dismantled Golden State Warriors.
San Antonio Spurs vs. Golden State Warriors
Could things get any worse for the Golden State Warriors? First, they lost Klay Thompson to a torn-ACL for not only the remainder of the 2018-2019 postseason, but most likely the the entire 2019-2020 season as well. Next was the achilles injury and eventual departure of their star player, Kevin Durant, who chose to leave Golden State in favor of the Brooklyn Nets. Now, they will be without their franchise player and one of the best players in the league, Stephen Curry, who broke hurt his hand on Wednesday night against the Phoenix Suns. While it was clear they were no longer a major threat to contend for the title, nobody expected them to be a potential lottery team, but with them starting the season 1-3 and not having Curry for 1-2 months, that’s the way it’s looking as of late.
San Antonio as always, has been a very fundamental and efficient team and it’s no surprise they are continuing that streak to begin the 2019-2020 campaign. It’s been just four games but the Spurs’ offense has been strong right out of the gates. The Greg Popovich-led team currently ranks third in the NBA in terms of field goals made (44.3) and sixth overall in points per game (119).
This San Antonio offense is on a collision course with one of the NBA’s worst defensive teams, the Golden State Warriors. Allowing just over 126 points per game on the defensive side of the ball, this wounded Warriors team currently ranks third-worst in that category and second-worst in terms of field goals allowed (46.5), trailing only the Houston Rockets (47.5). Expect the Warriors to struggle not only defensively, but without their leading scorer, offensively as well.
New York Knicks vs. Boston Celtics
In 2018, the Boston Celtics ranked eighth overall in points allowed on defense (108 per game) and in 2019, they are currently sitting in seventh in the league in that same category. What’s impressive about this statistic though, is that they’ve had one of the hardest schedules to start the season, having matched up against some of the league’s premier franchises including the 76ers, Raptors and have an impressive win on their resume against the Milwaukee Bucks in which they recovered from a 19 point deficit.
Boston’s offense hasn’t exactly been electrifying to start the season, ranking right around the middle of the NBA (16th) with a point-per-game average of 109.8. Despite the average offense however, the Celtics will carry a point differential of +6.5 into their game on Friday night, which ranks them among the league’s best, seventh to be exact. Their defense is what’s providing them the best opportunity to win games and with a favorable matchup against the New York Knicks, the Celtics shouldn’t have much problem limiting their mediocre offense.
While the Celtics have one of the top point differentials in the league, the Knicks, on the other hand, have one of the worst. With a differential of -8.2 points per game, New York ranks fifth-to-last and it can be directly attributed to their offense, which ranks 28th (third-worst) in the NBA. To sum it up, it’ll be a matchup between one of the league’s worst offensive teams versus one of the best defensive teams. It’s not rocket science, the Celtics should have the advantage in just about every aspect of this game.
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Dallas Mavericks
It’s a five-way tie for second place in the Western Conference and it just so happens that two of those teams are the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks, who will be matching up against one another on Friday night. Dallas, having traded for Kristaps Porzingis back in February, now has another star player to pair alongside with their franchise player, Luka Doncic. The Mavericks have been playing better basketball than some might have expected and with their offense averaging 114.8 points per game, they currently rank inside the top-10, sitting in 8th overall.
The Lakers, having a totally revamped roster this season, seem to be experiencing mild growing pains on the offensive side of the ball in this early part of the season. While their offense hasn’t been playing poorly, they haven’t exactly been great either. The Lakers average 109.3 points per game on a nightly basis but with the addition of some of the league’s most elite defenders in the NBA, their defense is suddenly seeming like a powerhouse. After adding quality perimeter defenders such as Danny Green and Avery Bradley and interior defenders and established shot-blockers in the forms of Anthony Davis and Dwight Howard, the Lakers have solidified themself as one of the NBA’s stingiest defenses.
The Mavericks, while being a strong offensive team, rank in the middle of the NBA in terms of defensive efficiency (14th) and while they currently rank ninth in the league in points differential (+4.0), the Lakers, their Friday night opponent, rank first (+11.7). I anticipate this Los Angeles defense – for the most part- shutting down this young Mavericks team and escaping Dallas with a close win on the road.
Celtics and Spurs (ML) Two-Leg Parlay
As always, we are taking the two teams we feel most confident about on Friday and putting them into a two-leg parlay. As of now, if you select both of their money lines, you will have a parlay at around -175. I know the odds aren’t extremely enticing but it seems like a lock to me and don’t forget, we hit on our two-team parlay last Friday night. Good luck!
