Second Round NBA Playoff action resumes Monday night with Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals as the Philadelphia 76ers (1) take on the Miami Heat (4). Coverage begins from FTX Arena in Miami at 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT.
Lines
Moneyline: Miami -350
Spread: Miami -7.5
Total: 208.5
Miami and Philadelphia split a four-game set 2-2 SU this year. However, Miami has not faced the Sixers since they acquired PG James Harden, who averaged 19 points and 10.1 assists per game in the first-round series against the Toronto Raptors.
Round two gets underway for Miami and Philadelphia tonight, so let’s start out the series with a winning bet. Join us as we dive into our Eastern Conference semifinals Sixers vs. Heat Betting Prediction for Game #1.
Philadelphia 76ers
The Sixers come into the Heat series after a convincing 132-97 victory over Toronto in game 6, but that victory cost them center Joel Embiid.
The All-Star and MVP candidate is dealing with many injuries, including a torn ligament in his right thumb, a concussion, and an orbital fracture from when Toronto’s Pascal Siakam elbowed him late in Game 6. Embiid is expected to return for Game 3 in this series. The Sixers went 6-8 SU without Embiid during the regular season.
Veteran DeAndre Jordan will likely replace Embiid at the center. Jordan averaged a career-low 13 minutes per game this season and will be tasked more minutes for at least the first two series games. In addition, guards Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris, Danny Green, and former NBA MVP James Harden will all be called upon to fill in the scoring gap left by the loss of Embiid.
The Sixers finished the season ranked 8th in scoring at 113.7 PPG; defensively, Philly allowed 110.5 PPG, good for 12th in the league.
Miami Heat
The Heat dispatched the scrappy Atlanta Hawks in their first round matchup. Miami outscored the Hawks 109.4 PPG on average to Atlanta’s 97.4 PPG to secure the series win in 5 games.
Forward Jimmy Butler (knee), who missed Game 5 of the Heat’s first-round series win against the Atlanta Hawks, practiced Saturday and will likely return to face the Sixers in Game 1. Butler impressed against Atlanta, averaging over 30 points per game in helping his team advance. Sharpshooter Tyler Herro (non-COVID illness) averaged a lowly 12 PPG on 39% shooting from the field against Atlanta and will need to play better against the Sixers, is expected back for the series opener. PG Kyle Lowry (hamstring) has already been ruled out for Game 1.
Forward Max Strus should see a minutes increase in this series. Strus was promoted into the starting lineup late in the season and immediately contributed, averaging over 16 PPG as a starter. He was Miami’s second-leading scorer behind Butler in the Atlanta series, averaging over 14 points per game.
The Heat finished the season ranked 11th in scoring at 113.4 PPG; defensively, Miami allowed 108.2 PPG, good for 4th in the league.
Pick
The Miami Heat are 9-3 ATS in their last 12 games. I expect that trend to continue against a Sixers team that will be without Joel Embid on the road. I’ll gladly take Miami Heat (1H) -4.5 and full game -7.5
*** Both of these teams play at a plodding pace, 26th and 28th in the league, respectively. Therefore, I got strong lean on the UNDERS throughout the series (especially in games 1 & 2 without Embid)
The NFL season will be coming to an end soon and the LSU Tigers just capped off the NCAAF season as National Champions but the NBA is still alive and well. Here at FHW.com we now turn our attention to giving you, our loyal readers, three of our DFS guru Tommy Baker’s daily picks. Now, onto the good stuff.
Harden is the most expensive player on the DraftKings main slate tonight. The price tag is totally justified as Russell Westbrook will be resting on the front end of the Rockets back to back. The last game Westbrook sat out was January 8th against the Atlanta Hawks, where Harden finished with 81 DKFP (41 PTS, 10 AST, 10 REB). He now gets a great matchup with a Memphis Grizzlies team that ranks 28th against opposing guards, 21st in Defensive Efficiency and 4th in Pace. Vegas currently has the game total set and 240.5 (highest on the slate) and the Rockets favored by 5 points. In a fast-paced matchup, against a below-average defense and without Westbrook, Harden has enormous upside even with his lofty price tag.
Forward – Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers ($10,000)
Leonard is the other stud I want in my lineups, especially with Paul George (hamstring) already ruled out tonight against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The last two games (without George) Kawhi has taken a total of fifty shots, averaged 33 real-life points/GM and 54.5 DKFP/GM. Cleveland ranks 29th in Defensive Efficiency and is playing on the tail end of a back to back. With the 3rd highest implied team total (119.5), I expect the Clippers to roll over the Cavs, with Leonard being a huge part of their success.
Since I’m paying up for two studs, I’m choosing to pay down at Center tonight with DeAndre Jordan versus the Utah Jazz. Although Jarrett Allen is the starter in Brooklyn, Jordan is still seeing at least 20 minutes/GM. The veteran big man may be on the verge of a big game soon, as he has averaged 22.8 DKFP/GM over his last three games. The match up with Rudy Gobert may not be ideal, but Jordan has shown he can compete with the Utah Center. On November 12th, 2019, Jordan scored a massive 50.8 DKFP (15 PTS, 17 REB, 4 AST, 2 STL, 2 BLK) in 30 minutes against Gobert. At only $4,400, I’ll take a shot at Jordan today, in the hopes he can put up another big game against the Jazz.
These three players will be well represented in our DraftKings Daily Fantasy Basketball lineups for (1/14/20). Good luck and may your screens be green.
HappyFriday the 13thcappers! We may be superstitious when it comes to sports, in full disclosure I kept a Mark Grace baseball card in my hat while playing high school baseball because the first time I did I went 3-4 with 2 RBIs in a win. That card was destroyed by the end of the season but I never took it out of my hat again. However, when value and a good wager opportunity comes along, no Friday the 13th superstition is scary enough to keep us away from cashing a ticket. Now, let’s get to our pick for Friday the 13th!
The Charlotte Hornets (11-16) travel to the windy city to take on the Chicago Bulls (9-17) at the United Center with tip-off scheduled for 8:00 ET.
Game Line
Money Line
Spread
Total Points
Charlotte
+220
+6.5
over 212.5
Chicago
-278
-6.5
under 212.5
Now, let’s take a look at how each team performs against the lines:
Charlotte
Chicago
14 – 13
Against The Spread
13 – 13
11 – 16
Straight Up
9 – 7
106/113.8
Points For/Points Against
106.6/105.7
14 – 13
Over/Under/Push
12 – 14
CHARLOTTE
After losing 16 of their first 25 games of the season, the Hornets are looking for their third win in a row after back-to-back victories over the Washington Wizards and Brooklyn Nets. Second-year guard Devonte’ Graham who is averaging 20.0 ppg scored a career-high 40 points on 12-for-21 shooting, going 7 of 12 from beyond the arc, in Charlotte’s 113-108 win over the Nets on Wednesday. Graham continues to improve having scored over 20 points in 4 of his last 5 games. Charlotte is averaging 106 points per game, shooting 44 percent from the field and 37 percent from three-point range. The Hornets have struggled defensively, giving up 113.8 (27th) points per game. The Hornets are playing well and have confidence after 2 tightly contested victories, I expect more high-quality play tonight from head coach James Borrego‘s squad.
CHICAGO
In their last game, the Bulls defeated The Atlanta Hawks 136-102 Wednesday night. Zach LaVine led the way for the Bulls with 35 points and four assists, while Lauri Markkanen added 22 points and four rebounds as Chicago snapped a three-game slide. Wendall Carter Jr. added 11 points and 10 rebounds while Coby White chipped in with 19 points. I like the Bulls to come to play tonight and try to secure back to back wins at home. With the Bulls currently (T22) in points allowed with 105.7, I would expect points to be in abundance tonight.
This is the third game of four between Charlotte and Chicago during the regular season. Charlotte won at home 126-125 on Oct. 23 in the season opener for both teams. The teams met again in Charlotte on Nov. 23, but that time the Bulls held on for a 116-115 win. Both those games went to the over and I see more of the same tonight. Expect more offense than defense in this contest as I will gladly take the Game Totalover 212.5. -105 (5dimes) There you have it, our Charlotte Hornets vs. Chicago Bulls Prediction for 12/13/2019. Good Luck Cappers!
The Knicks prevailed 106-102 against Dallas on the road to win the first matchup between these two teams on November 8. The Knicks led at half 61-57 and each team scored 45 in the second half for the Knicks to hold on to a game that saw 9 lead changes and 7 ties. Marcus Morris led the Knicks with 29 points while Luka Doncic led all Mavs scorers with 38. The Knicks out rebounded the Mavs 56-47 which ultimately led to their victory. Yes, the drama of Kristaps Porzingis against his old team was the backdrop in that game but tonight’s game marks Porzingis’ return to Madison Square Garden for the first time as an opposing player since the Knicks traded him last season.
DALLAS. The mavericks have lost two of their last 3 but come into tonight’s matchup with an extra day of rest more the Knicks and revenge on their mind. The team is ready to support Porzingis and his 18.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game in his return to NY. The Mavericks enter this contest seventh in the league in scoring offense with 115.3 (T-9) ppg on the season and are surrendering 110.1 (T-13) so far this season.
KNICKS. Although early in the season the Knicks are already 7.5 games behind the Boston Celtics and in last place in the Atlantic Division. The Knicks enter this game 29th in the league in scoring offense with 99.5 ppg, NY also averages just 20.3 assists per contest which puts them at 28th in the league. Marcus Morris leads the team in scoring averaging 18.5 points and 6 rebounds per game. Rookie RJ Barrett is second on the team with 16 points plus 5.8 rebounds per contest on the year. Julius Randle (15.6 points, 9.6 rebounds), Kevin Knox (10.3 points), Bobby Portis (9.2 points) and Mitchell Robinson (9.6 points) are all part of a Knicks team that is 30th in the league in field goal percentage, shooting just 41.6 percent as a team. With controversy surrounding the Knicks front office vs. The Coaching staff (whether true or not) the Knicks are a team that lacks confidence at the moment and not one I want to back.
The Knicks simply are not playing well enough at the moment and I expect Porzingis to put on a show against his former team. This is more of a fade of the Knicks offense than confidence in Dallas’ defense but one we are confident in. Let’s go with the New York Knicks Team Total under 104 -110 (5dimes) in our lone NBA wager tonight Good Luck Cappers!
NBA is back! To start off our NBA season let’s take a look at the Minnesota Timberwolves (0-0) who will take on the Brooklyn Nets (0-0) to open the season for both teams at 7:35 PM tonight from Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
A quick recap of Last Year: The Minnesota Timberwolves ended last season with a 36-46 record to finish in 11th position in the Western Conference. The Wolves averaged 112 points per contest while surrendering 113. The Brooklyn Nets ended with a 42-40 record, good for 6th position in the Eastern Conference. Brooklyn made the playoffs and scored a road win against Philadelphia but the Sixers recorded four consecutive victories and eliminated the Nets. The Nets averaged 112 points per game while surrendering 112 last season.
Minnesota will run the offense through former Kentucky Wildcat Karl-Anthony Towns. The All-Star center averaged 24 points, 12 rebounds, three assists, and 1.6 blocks per game last year. Starting point guard Jeff Teague averaged 12 points and eight dishes last year and will need to get KAT the ball while former 1st round pick Andrew Wiggins who averaged 18 points per game last year will need to score consistently from the forward position to take some of the pressure off Towns. Not much has changed for the Wolves for 2018 who brought Jake Layman and Noah Vonleh in while losing Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson.
Brooklyn, on the other hand, landed coveted free agents Kyrie Irving who averaged 24 points, seven assists, five rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game last year with Boston, along with DeAndre Jordan who averaged 13 points and 15 rebounds per game last year. Most notably was the addition of MVP and World Champion Kevin Durant (not expected to play until later this season). Though KD won’t factor in the game it is nice to have that kind of leadership in the locker room. The Nets return Caris LeVert who contributed 13.7 ppg, Joe Harris who impressed with a 47.4 3P% and Spencer Dinwiddie who dropped 16.8 ppg last year.
The Wolves are looking to win their 4th consecutive game against the Nets to start their season but the Nets have an excellent backcourt and are stronger and deeper in the paint. I look for Kyrie to make a statement with his new team at home on opening night. If DeAndre Jordan, and can keep Towns in check and the rest of the Nets hit their shots, I have no problem laying the points with the Nets tonight. Let’s kick off our 2019 NBA betting season with the Brooklyn Nets -3.5 -104 (Pinnacle) over the Minnesota Timberwolves for Wednesday, October 23rd, 2019. Good Luck Cappers!
Saturday 6/1 Pick & Result: Barnacle Bill in Race #6 at Finger Lakes – Loss
Danny Green of the Toronto Raptors shoots 3 of 7 from beyond the arc to finish with 11 points playing 30 minutes in game 1 of the NBA Finals. Minutes matter and Green made the most of his. He also grabbed 2 rebounds and had 2 blocks helping the Raptors secure the win.
A great write up by The Star’s Laura Armstrong shed light on coach Nurse’s support for the veteran whom I believe should continue to see playing time during these playoffs.
Give me Danny Green to cover the over of 8.5 points in Game 2. Sportsbook.ag (-105) 1.0 unit
