With injuries to LeBron and Stoudemire, Carmelo finds himself isolated on his own media-saturated island. He’s stepping up to face the Pacers, Milwaukee, and the Orlando Magic all on his own. This brave Melo has been averaging 25 points over his last five games, and honestly, after those two stellar performances lately, he’s already blown past that margin like a pro in Tokyo. Against the Magic—our usual target—he dropped exactly 25 points, though I suspect his minutes were limited, which likely kept him from hitting the higher numbers he was aiming for. Now, look, Howard might be a defensive giant, but he won't have much impact on Carmelo. Melo is primarily a jump shooter first and foremost; the drives to the rim are just secondary moves. His main obstacle will be Hedo, who had his best defensive outing back on July 17, 1999, when his little nephew asked him to play ball in the driveway (17 rebounds, 3 blocks, etc.).
I am hoping Orlando stays on track so Carmelo is forced to log heavy minutes.
Additionally, my take is that Chicago takes down Boston tonight. As I mentioned previously, Boston had a grueling matchup against the Spurs, and frankly, their biggest weakness against the Bulls is rebounding. The Bulls are going to give everything they have to avoid dropping their third straight; there shouldn't be any lack of energy or grit. Henderson is solid—just enough to handle a game that stays close without ever truly being tight.
Good luck to everyone tonight. My advice? Don't touch the Orlando game. Betting on them is nothing more than a roll of the dice. 👋
Paul Pierce—the man they call "The Truth"—is facing an uphill battle tonight. He’s expected to find his rhythm while dealing with the constant, suffocating pressure of being guarded by someone like Giannis Antetokounmpo right in his face. If we look at the recent stretch, Pierce hasn't exactly been finding his groove. His scoring output over the last three games has been underwhelming, specifically putting up 13, 9, and 14 points against the Chicago Bulls. On top of that, he had a brutal outing against the San Antonio Spurs where he managed only 16 points on shooting percentages that dipped below 50%. He also logged 35 minutes in that game, which, for a veteran of his age, is a heavy load that could definitely lead to fatigue tonight.
So, when you weigh it all up, we're looking at an elite defender shadowing him, a historical slump in production, poor current form, and the looming factor of physical exhaustion. It all points toward this pick hitting.🙂.
Duncan finishes with 11 points tonight. I suppose we should thank the refs for refusing to blow the whistle on any fouls.👍
Timmy’s been stuck on the bench since the start of the game, sitting there with absolutely nothing to show for it. Honestly, Bargnani, I love you, you Italian legend.
According to several reports popping up on Twitter, Wade is officially a game-time decision. He’s currently undergoing treatment. I honestly assumed it was just fatigue, but it looks like he’s dealing with an actual injury. I really want to see him out there, but if he isn't playing at a full hundred percent, there simply isn't any logical reason to put him in.
graniteotter6 said:They’ve refreshed the spread and total lines. Fortunately, nothing too drastic was added; the margins and handicaps seem well-calibrated, so I won't be touching them. Aside from NOLA under 95.5—I have a feeling about this one. No explanation provided.🤷 Perhaps because of those overly hyped favorites, I'll take the Golden State Warriors at +12.5. These guys tend to push much larger teams right until the final buzzer. The Lakers shouldn't lose by more than 9 points either (if they even lose). Trying to prove yourself on your own home court is the ultimate test. It’s going to be a toss-up, or maybe even a Lakers win.
The players look sluggish, while this Gortat guy is in incredible form and Utah has nobody to guard him. Therefore, the under should have been played.😁 I took him as a favorite at 17.5 earlier this afternoon. Interestingly, Chris Paul hasn't appeared in any sportsbook offerings all day. Perhaps even the universe knows he's an under, yet he'll likely surprise us all with a 21-point performance.
There was some sort of situation involving Paul and the Lakers, specifically with Jimmy Kimmel, that "famous" late-night host.
Essentially, Kimmel was poking and prodding him until Paul snapped, claiming both the Lakers and Jimmy were going to get wrecked, and so it happened.
We could take a more serious approach here and set Duncan's line at under 15.5 points.
He’ll be guarded by Garnett, who remains one of the premier defenders in the league, and I am certain he will make things difficult enough for Timmy to keep him under that 15-point mark. Given how much effort Duncan put in last night, there is an added layer of motivation behind this pick.
The Clippers ought to come out on top against the Lakers today.🤷
We really need to see what the situation is with Wade. If he isn't going to be suited up against OKC tonight, then taking those 2.20 odds is definitely worth the gamble.
graniteotter6 said:Haha, I just wanted Arthur Hill2 to come out on top. It wasn't even about the money for me. I took the handicap for a tiny bit of pocket change, so honestly, I feel pretty good about it right now. 👍 Thanks for looking out for me.
The game is practically decided, even though there are still 14 minutes left on the clock😢. Carlos Boozer started out strong, but he just isn't getting many looks at the rim later on. Wes is currently hitting his over.
Carlos Boozer is going to need a much more aggressive third quarter. He’s playing well today, but Tom Thibodeau has this tendency to go with Eric Gibson in the final frame.
I expect Russell Westbrook to tack on another 7 points.
graniteotter6, I know you’re just like me—a massive fan of high-arching shots and racking up foul counts—so let me point this out to you:
Carlos Boozer played 5 games against Oklahoma City/Chicago. (Head-to-head matchups against Ibaka)
FG% = 61% 3.4 assists per game 10 rebounds per game 23.6 points per game.
Additionally, I am expecting Russell Westbrook to hit a heavy over tonight. Gordon Watson is having major defensive struggles because his ankles are still only at about 50% capacity; latency is practically a foreign concept to him.
Oklahoma City Thunder (With the Chicago Bulls playing without Derrick Rose, the Thunder aren't like the Miami Heat who struggle to assert dominance in games like this—remember their recent matchups against the Los Angeles Lakers and then against the Miami Heat just a few days prior; the Thunder are easily the second-best team in the league) Miami Heat (A rested Miami Heat should handle an aging Boston Celtics squad with ease; Gordon Allen is questionable, Matt Pietrus is definitely out, and if nothing else, LeBron should be able to provide excellent coverage against Andrea Bargnani)
Yeah, a solid pick. The Cleveland Cavaliers really got hammered yesterday. They need to show up tonight with a lot more energy if they want to execute that smooth, fluid style of play we expect from them.
