BASKETBALL NBA ARTICLES

The second round series between the Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets figures to be a barnburner right from the opening tip of Game 1 on Saturday night with these teams combining for an average of 240.3 points per game in their three regular season standoffs. To little surprise, online sportsbooks hit the series opener with a 240-point O/U and installed the homebased Nets 4-point favorites to get out to the 1-0 series lead. Milwaukee took two of the three regular season tussles both SU and ATS, ... 

The Los Angeles Lakers now find themselves on the verge of being bounced from the playoffs after the Phoenix Suns took the wood to them in Game 5 to reclaim the series lead and set this win or go home bout up against the defending champs. LA’s effort was nothing if not embarrassing. Anthony Davis didn’t score a single point sitting on the sidelines, but still ended up scoring just as many points as Kenneth Caldwell-Pope and Dennis Schroder. Phoenix took full advantage of the big man’s absence to... 

The first round matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers is now a best of three after both teams went into the opposing arena and came out victorious through the first four games. Tyronn Lue’s squad was nothing if not dominant after falling into a 0-2 hole. Instead of feeling sorry for themselves and packing it in, Kawhi Leonard and company did nothing but flex their muscles en route to becoming the first team in NBA history to lose the first two games of a playoff series at... 

If you were waiting to hit the Los Angeles Lakers at a more attractive offering on the series lines against the Phoenix Suns, that ship has sailed. Many of the talking heads on syndicated sports shows and the interwebs were of the belief the defending champs would fall into a 0-2 hole after the way they looked in the play-in game against Golden State and Game 1 of this series. But an entirely different team hit the hardwood for Game 2 and the end result saw LeBron James and his mates tie the ser... 

I hate being the bearer of bad news, but the Los Angeles Clippers are a cursed franchise. Seriously, something needs to be done to get the bad juju surrounding the club since its inception back in 1970 as the Buffalo Braves. Maybe it should just move back to San Diego where it moved to in 1978 before bolting for Tinseltown in 1984. With just two division titles to its credit and no conference titles or championships, it’s likely going to remain that way after dropping the first two games of its ... 

The Milwaukee Bucks find themselves two wins away from avenging the playoff defeat to the Miami Heat from a year ago after holding serve back home in the Fiserv Forum the first two games of the series. The opener was a hotly contested battle that was decided in overtime. The second go-round was an all-out romp that saw the Bucks explode out of the gates and never look back en route to logging the decisive 132-98 win and cover as 5-point favorites per the closing NBA odds. Even so, online sportsb... 

Linemakers expected a hotly contested series between the Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks heading into Game 1. And true to form, it took a running floater from Trae Young at the near-gun to allow for Atlanta to snag the 1-0 series lead in a game that saw both teams hold multiple possession leads. Every time a team went on a run, the other answered. Unfortunately for Julius Randle and company, they simply ran out of time. Facing a 1-0 deficit and home court advantage now in control of the Hawks,... 

For the first time since the 2012-13 NBA betting season, the New York Knicks are back in the Playoffs after putting forth one of the more memorable campaigns the Big Apple has witnessed in quite some time. Same goes for the Atlanta Hawks who as a franchise last got a taste of postseason basketball back in 2016. Though both squads have loads of playoff inexperience littered up and down their respective rosters, there’s still plenty of star power lacing ‘em up in what online sportsbooks expect to be a competitive series. Though the Knicks swept the season rivalry and own home court advantage throughout, the Hawks enter Game 1 the -123 favorite to take the series down. That’s quite surprising considering Julius Randle and company won all three regular season meetings and covered the closing NBA odds each time. However, they did so as underdogs each time but Game 1 currently has them listed as the short chalk. Something about that stinks to high hell, and it’s one of the main reasons why I’ll be riding Trae Young and his mates in the series opener. ... 

The Milwaukee Bucks are no longer considered the odds on favorite to represent the East in the NBA Finals. Not with the “The Big Three” making waves in Brooklyn and each of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving all healthy entering the second season. That however could prove to be just the boost Giannis Antetokounmpo and the No. 3 seed Bucks will need to give them that extra jolt when needed most. Their first round opponent comes in the form of the reigning Eastern Conference champs in a M... 

What an interesting time it is for the NBA and the league’s new form of NBA playoff betting. Taking a page from the collegiate ranks, there is now a play-in round to determine the final two seeds of each respective conference. On top of that, the race to the title looks to be as wide open as ever with online sportsbooks ponying up six teams will shorter than 10-1 returns on the futures odds. Feel good stories like the New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors would pay off very handsomely if the... 

If the regular season wasn’t long enough, NBA bettors still got three games to sink their teeth into before the traditional 16-team, best-of-seven series structure goes into effect over the weekend. With the Portland Trail Blazers destroying the disinterested Denver Nuggets on Sunday night, the play-in field was set. In the East, the No. 7 seed Boston Celtics will square off against the No. 8 Washington Wizards, while the defending Champion Los Angeles Lakers will run with the Golden State Warri... 

The Los Angeles Lakers will partake in the NBA betting playoffs once it’s all said and done. What seed they earn is the only thing left to be determined at online sportsbooks. With three games remaining on the regular season docket – including Sunday’s season finale against the New Orleans Pelicans – the defending champs would likely need to win out and have either the Portland Trail Blazers or Dallas Mavericks fall flat on their faces to have any shot of avoiding the play-in round. That likely ... 

It’s going to be extremely tough for the Los Angeles Clippers to get up for Friday night’s visit to the Toyota Center with its playoff placement all but determined with only three games remaining on the regular season docket. It would take nothing short of a miracle for it to unseat the Phoenix Suns as the Pacific Division winner. It’s more or less cemented in as the No. 3 seed in the West provided it doesn’t allow the Denver Nuggets to usurp their seed over their final three games. With that, i... 

With a three game lead atop the standings, it looks like the Philadelphia 76ers will enter the playoffs as the Eastern Conference’s No. 1 overall seed. That is unless a major catastrophe plays out through Sunday and the Brooklyn Nets somehow find a way to leapfrog their way into the top spot. With successive home games set to go against the Orlando Magic, the odds of that occurring at online sportsbooks are very long. But before that goes down, the Sixers will hit the road for the final time in the regular season on Thursday night when they venture into South Beach to square off against a Miami Heat team looking to hold onto the No. 6 seed if not surpass Atlanta in the standings and swipe the No. 5 along with the Southeast Division title. Though the Heat have already lost the season rivalry to the 76ers, they’re likely to be installed decided favorites to win this game at online sportsbooks with all the injuries Philly is currently dealing with. ... 

Northwest Division bragging rights now belong to the Utah Jazz for the first time since 2016-17 after Quin Snyder’s troops disposed of the Denver Nuggets heading into last weekend. There is however work to be done with the top overall seed not yet determined heading into the final week of the NBA betting season. Utah owns a slim lead over the Phoenix Suns for the No. 1 seed, and tonight’s matchup will be the final one to take place on the Vivint Arena hardwood in the regular season. That should ... 

The Boston Celtics haven’t been kind to NBA bettors over the course of the regular season, and now they’re starting to piss their loyal fan base off by losing their stranglehold on a guaranteed spot in the playoffs. As it stands, the C’s are the current owners of the No. 7 seed in the East which means they’d have to partake in a play-in game if the season ended today. With only seven games remaining on the docket until the postseason begins at online sportsbooks, Boston is running out of bullets... 

The Utah Jazz’s magic number to win the Northwest Division for the first time since the 2016-17 season shrunk last time out after logging the 110-99 win and cover against the San Antonio Spurs. Should it see it all the way through, it would be the Denver Nuggets two season win streak of holding divisional bragging rights that would go up in smoke. Mike Malone’s squad will get its final crack of the regular season to potentially keep its streak intact when the division rivals square off for the t... 

The Los Angeles Lakers did it! The reigning champs managed to remain in the Western Conference playoff picture with their two superstars out of the mix for the better part of the last 2+ months. Hooray! Unfortunately, LA now finds itself on the precipice of being forced to play its way into the second season with it grasping onto the No. 5/6 overall seed with the Portland Trail Blazers breathing right down their necks. You know darn well the Los Angeles Clippers would love nothing more than to r... 

The Dallas Mavericks are lucky they won’t have to run up against the Sacramento Kings come the playoffs. If they did, the current Southwest Division leaders would be toast! Luckily for Luka Doncic and his mates, they won’t have to run up against Big Sac again this season. Unfortunately for them, they’ll have to test their might against the Eastern Conference heavyweight Brooklyn Nets who are set to pay a visit to the Lone Star State for the first leg of TNT’s Thursday night doubleheader; a game ... 

Regardless of who takes the floor, the Brooklyn Nets continue to look like the cream of the Eastern Conference crop. Whether it’s been James Harden and Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant and Kyrie, or just Kyrie or Harden by themselves, the Nets have found a way to get the job done more times than not. Because of it, the team currently sits perched atop the conference standings with a 42-20 SU record heading into Thursday’s joust with the Indiana Pacers. The Milwaukee Bucks have however been rounding into form in winning six of their last nine matchups, and they’re one of the few teams in the East that could still conceivably catch Brooklyn in the standings to steal home court advantage in the second season. With that, much will be on the line when the teams collide at online sportsbooks in the first of two crucial matchups set to tip-off Sunday afternoon. The Nets logged a thrilling 125-123 outright win and cover as 4-point home dogs when they hosted Milwaukee at the end of January in a game Kyrie didn’t suit up for. The triumph moved the Nets to 3-1 SU and ATS in the last four meetings with the over cashing in three times. ... 

With around 10 games remaining on the regular season docket, the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers are looking to solidify their stances within the Western Conference playoff picture. LA currently holds a comfy two-game lead over Denver for the No. 3 seed in the West, but they could just as easily propel themselves into the No. 2 seed should they take care of business against the Suns in Phoenix on Wednesday night. The Nuggs got two games set to go against the Pelicans and Raptors before this third and final throw down with the Clippers. With much more to gain by winning this matchup at online sportsbooks, look for the Clippers to go all-out in hopes of defending its court to better its overall playoff positioning; even with Kawhi Leonard riding the pine and Paul George possibly working on a gimpy ankle. But will that be enough? ... 

Provided both the Los Angeles Clippers and Phoenix Suns take care of business on Monday night, the second leg of ESPN’s Hump Day twin bill will decide first place in the Pacific Division and earn the winner of the game the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference Playoffs. With the regular season schedule coming to a close, much will be on the line when these conference rivals square off for the third and final time at online sportsbooks. LA has dominated the recent rivalry taking two of the first two tilts to move to 8-2 SU and 7-3 ATS over the last 10 meetings. But if there was ever a time Devin Booker and his mates were to put an end to the Clippers dominance, it would be in this matchup with Kawhi Leonard not expected to see the floor. LA does however check in 2-3 SU and 3-2 ATS the five times linemakers installed them road underdogs to date, and they defeated the Suns by an average of 7.5 points per game when at full strength. ... 

The Dallas Mavericks have got work to do if they expect to fend off the Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors in hopes of attaining one of the last playoff spots in the Western Conference. Rick Carlisle’s crew has been playing with fire of late in dropping five of seven and managing just one point spread cover at online sportsbooks during that stretch. And to think, this level of play occurred immediately after overtaking the Grizz atop the Southwest Division standings by rattling off five... 

Though the Boston Celtics just dropped a head scratching 102-96 decision to the Chicago Bulls at home, Brad Stevens’s squad continues to be one of the hottest commodities in the league for NBA bettors. The outright defeat as 4.5-point favs saw them fall for just the second time in the last 10 games. In the process, the C’s have catapulted themselves up the Eastern Conference pecking order to grab hold of the No. 5 seed. They’ll look to get back in the good graces of those backing them at online ... 

If the Milwaukee Bucks are to make up any ground on the Philadelphia 76ers in hopes of overtaking the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, Mike Budenholzer’s squad is going to need to sweep this upcoming two-game set. Their initial crack to do as such will occur in the first leg of TNT’s Thursday night doubleheader when the teams collide for the first time since squaring off in the middle of March. Giannis Antetokounmpo and his mates logged the 109-105 win and non-cover in overtime as 6-point r...