NBA Picks

Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs are in Milwaukee on Saturday for an early tip-off against the shorthanded Bucks. They’re looking to win an 8th game in a row and keep the pressure on the OKC Thunder as the battle for the 1st seed in the West continues. In the latest MVP ladder on nba.com Wemby has actually surpassed SGA for the top spot after he recorded an unreal 17 blocks over his last 3 games. His defensive presence has been something else this season, he’s almost a lock to win the DPOY award and if the Spurs can somehow take over the number 1 seed he could win the MVP award as well. They beat the Bucks 119-101 back in mid-January at home, this time around they’re 18.5 point favorites.

Part of the reason why the Spurs are such huge favorites is of course the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks also have Bobby Portis, Myles Turner, Kevin Porter Jr. and Kyle Kuzma all listed as questionable here. Their last 3  of 4 games have seen them get dismantled by the Trail Blazers, Clippers and Jazz by 31, 33 and 32 points respectively. There’s a 9-game gap between them and the 10th seeded Miami Heat, it’s only a matter of time until they are mathematically eliminated from any scenario of making the postseason. If there’s one thing the Bucks can hang their hat on ahead of this game it’s the fact that they’ve won 7 of 8 home games vs the Spurs, however in most of those games they were at full strength.

These Spurs aren’t messing around. They’re beating teams by an average of 16.7 points during this 7-game win streak, posting the 3rd best offensive and 4th best defensive efficiency numbers. In order to further help Wemby’s MVP case they have to continue winning, so I can definitely see them keeping their foot on the gas pedal and running over these shorthanded Bucks. Back San Antonio.

San Antonio Spurs vs Milwaukee Bucks Predictions: Spurs -18.5 is available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

Detroit improved to 9-3 SU in games without Cade Cunningham as they ran over the New Orleans Pelicans 129-108 in their last game. It was a much needed bounce back performance after a heartbreaking loss in OT vs Atlanta before that, Jalen Duren made sure his team would win with 30 points and 10 boards on Thursday. Now the Pistons face a tough Minnesota Timberwolves challenge and Duren is on the injury report along with Marcus Sasser, Tobias Harris and Ausar Thompson. Detroit’s depth will be put to the test here, it’s likely that at least a couple of those guys will be out for Saturday’s game. They’ve not had the best of times in games against the T’Wolves lately, winning just 3 of the last 11 meetings.

Minnesota is in a similar situation with their best player Anthony Edwards being out. They too have shown great resilience winning their last 2 games against the Celtics and Rockets without him, which is a massive confidence booster with less than 10 games remaining in the regular season. The 15-0 run to overturn a 13-point deficit in the OT against the Rockets was something else, it’ll be interesting to see how much energy they have left after that performance. Julius Randle, Jaden McDaniels, Donte DiVincenzo and Bones Hyland have all taken turns leading this team on the scoring front in Ant’s absence, if you are the Pistons it might be difficult to come up with a defensive scheme as you simply don’t know where the danger is coming from.

I was really impressed with what I saw from Minnesota in their last game, I think playing at home is what will give them the edge here. There’s a lot of fight in this team, especially with Ant Man out of the line-up. The same can be said about the Pistons with Cade not playing, but they have just too many players on the injury report for my liking here. I’ll side with the home team.

Detroit Pistons vs Minnesota Timberwolves Predictions: Timberwolves -2 is available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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Sacramento continues to be undervalued in the market, particularly in these inflated spread ranges. Despite their abysmal season and overall perception as a struggling team, the Kings have shown flashes of competitiveness—most recently pushing Orlando to the brink in a narrow four-point loss. That performance reinforces the idea that this team still has fight, especially when cast in the underdog role.

Atlanta, on the other hand, is playing strong basketball and deserves respect. Their current form is solid, and they’ve been producing results. However, this line reflects a significant premium on that form, potentially inflating the spread beyond a realistic margin. The Kings will play a free-flowing style that lends itself well to backdoor cover potential. Even if Atlanta controls the game, Sacramento can find rhythm and maintain pace which makes it difficult to fully separate. Large spreads like this often come down to late-game variance, where underdogs can sneak inside the number. The Kings may not even need variance to be competitive.

Kings vs Hawks prediction: Sacramento Kings +16 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to the number.

It looks like the Bulls defense has decided to take their offseason vacation a bit earlier than expected. They just allowed 130+ points for the 3rd time in 5 games, losing to the OKC Thunder last night. There’s no shame in losing to the defending champs of course, but the effort levels have to be questioned whenever you allow this many points. Perhaps they can do a better job against the Grizzlies on Saturday, but then again Memphis does play a similar style averaging 103.2 possessions per game which ranks them 7th in pace. Chicago is only 2nd behind Miami averaging 103.8 possessions, this could be a signal of things to come in this game.

Memphis also played last night and lost to the Houston Rockets, but unlike the Thunder they kept things somewhat close and lost only by 10 points after a late rally by Houston. With most of their regulars out injured, the keys to the offense have been handed over to lesser known players and it’s very much apparent when you watch the Grizzlies play. Their last 4 games have seen them score not more than 109 points, in today’s NBA you won’t win many games finishing with that low of a total. The objective clearly isn’t to win right now, the Grizzlies are focused on building for the future, so don’t be surprised if you see a couple of unknown players out there on the court in Saturday’s game.

Neither side is trying to win here, if we’re being honest. Despite all their shortcomings, I still have to give a slight edge to Chicago. Unlike Memphis where you have 9 players on the injury report, the Bulls starting five still looks very formidable led by Josh Giddey, Matas Buzelis and others. I’ll be a high scoring game, but in the end I think the Bulls edge it out.

Chicago Bulls vs Memphis Grizzlies Predictions: Bulls -3.5 is available at time of publishing. Playable a that number.

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This is shaping up as a brutal scheduling spot for Utah, and it’s difficult to see them keeping this one competitive deep into the game. The Jazz are coming off a taxing road back-to-back, having just faced a high-powered Denver team that can stretch defenses and force Utah into uncomfortable rotations. Now they turn around and face a Phoenix squad that brings a completely different—but equally problematic—challenge.

The Suns play with physicality, defensive discipline, and half-court control, which directly counters Utah’s preferred style. The Jazz thrive when they can push pace, create space, and operate freely on offense. Phoenix, however, is built to disrupt that rhythm. They slow games down, contest shots effectively, and force opponents into tougher possessions. Fatigue becomes a major factor here. Utah’s legs are unlikely to hold up after chasing Denver’s offense, and now they must deal with Phoenix’s defensive pressure. That combination often leads to scoring droughts and poor shot selection. This projects as a mismatch in both energy and execution. If the Suns impose their will early, this could get out of hand quickly. Laying the points is justified.

Jazz vs Suns prediction: Phoenix Suns -14.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to -15.

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