NBA Picks

At just 3-6 SU in away games this season the Chicago Bulls have not impressed. However, Friday sees them going into Charlotte for a date with the 4-14 Hornets, who have lost 7 games in a row. Defense has been the root cause of all issues that the Bulls have had this year, just in their last two defeats they’ve allowed 143 points both to the Pelicans and Heat. At some point this team has to take a good look in the mirror and take accountability on that end. Maybe the Hornets are a team they can finally get some stops against? Charlotte ranks only 18th in offensive efficiency, in their last two games vs the Knicks and Hawks they scored only 101 and 110 points.

LaMelo Ball appears to be headed towards an exit in the coming weeks or months, depending on when the Hornets can find a suitable trade for him. Whenever you have your star player being one foot out the door, it’s never good for team chemistry. Charlotte’s injury situation has been improving with Brandon Miller coming back, however the Hornets have struggled to implement him into their schematics in his first few games back. At home this team has covered the spread just once in 5 games, they’ve dropped 5 straight to Eastern Conference opponents and vs the Bulls they are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 home games.

Not having Nikola Vucevic hurt the Bulls on the inside in their last game, but I hope they’ve learned their lesson here. The trio of Coby White, Josh Giddey and Ayo Dosunmu should rack up the points against the Hornets. Let’s back the road squad.

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

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The Cleveland Cavaliers and Atlanta Hawks will wrap up group-stage competition in the NBA Cup when they square off on Friday night in Atlanta. Neither team is setting the world on fire offensively this season, but Cleveland is 12-7 and Atlanta is 11-8 thanks in part to solid defense. The Hawks are more defense-oriented these days since Trae Young has been out for a month. Onyeka Okongwu, Jalen Johnson and steals machine Dyson Daniels are all playing stellar defense. Atlanta played a stinker at Washington on Tuesday, but that was an aberration as opposed to the rule. Head coach Quin Snyder’s squad had previously held New Orleans to 98 points and Charlotte to 110. Those factors are among the reasons why my Cavaliers vs Hawks pick is under 240.5.

Big man Jarrett Allen is back for Cleveland after missing a week. Allen is effective offensively, but his presence will also make scoring in the paint more difficult for the Hawks — plus he will limit second-chance opportunities. The Cavs have held 4 of their last 6 opponents to 109 points or fewer. At the other end of the floor, head coach Kenny Atkinson’s crew is coming off a dreadful 99-point performance against Toronto on Monday. This is the second-biggest number on the NBA’s 11-game Friday slate, and I think it’s one that is slightly too big.

Cavaliers vs Hawks prediction: Under 240.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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The last 2 performances from the Washington Wizards have been really encouraging. They lost to the Chicago Bulls by just 1-point and then went on to take down the Atlanta Hawks by an impressive 19-point margin. Tonight, they will get the chance to build on that as they take on a fellow 2-win team in the Indiana Pacers. The hosts continue to be ravaged by injuries, with Andrew Nembhard listed as questionable while like likes of Aaron Nesmith and Obi Toppin remain long term absentees. It is no surprise then that they have lost 3 straight games and sit dead last of the Eastern Conference standings.

One of the main issues facing the Pacers of late is their ability to score the ball. Over the last 10 games the team ranks dead last in offensive rating and true shooting percentage. The visitors have been far more efficient in the latter category, ranking in the top half of the league. They should be able to maintain that efficiency here. The Pacers are 29th during that stretch of games in opponent points in the paint, with a lack of rim protection on their roster. With the Wizards also ranking a surprising 3rd this season in 3-point percentage, they should have enough scoring avenues to keep this one close. Take the points with them here, and for those who are braver, the money line offers great value too.

Wizards vs Pacers prediction: Washington Wizards +6.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to 5.5.

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After back-to-back upset wins over Denver and Minnesota, the Kings were brought back to Earth in their last game as they lost at home to Phoenix. Not having Domantas Sabonis around was bound to hurt them at some point, moving forward the schedule won’t be kind to them in the month of December. On paper the game against Utah is a winnable one – they’ve beaten this team 9 consecutive times and are 6-2 ATS in the last 8 meetings. But, you never know with these Kings. On most nights they won’t show up, but when you least expect it they pull off miracle wins against far superior opponents.

Utah’s story of the season has been their solid home play and their disastrous run in road games. Playing at the Delta Center is literally the only reason why someone would consider backing them here. This team has lost 4 games in a row, granted he games were against elite opponents such as the Thunder, Lakers and Warriors. Hosting Sacramento will be much easier, plus there’s also the revenge factor in play as the Kings won the earlier meeting this season 105-104 in what was the 2nd game of the season for both sides.

Sacramento might have the superior record in recent meetings, but I like the Jazz chances slightly more in this scenario. The Kings are already a bottom 5 team in the league when it comes to opponent points in the paint, they’ll only get worse down low with no Sabonis out there. Lauri Markkanen had 33 in that first meeting, expect a big game from him and the Jazz defending home court.

Kings vs Jazz Predictions: Utah Jazz -1 is available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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With just 1 win to show for in their last 5 outings, the Mavericks don’t have a lot of reasons for optimism at the moment. The offense has been dreadful with just 102 and 96 points scored in their last two games vs Miami and Memphis. It’s been a struggle to score for this team without their two biggest stars, who are still out injured. Dallas scores just 105 points per 100 possessions which ranks them bottom of the league. The fact that they play the 6th fastest pace makes that stat sound a lot worse than it is.

Meanwhile, their former player Luka Doncic is enjoying life with his new team the Lakers. The team in purple and gold is 2nd in the West only behind the OKC Thunder, they’ve won 13 of 17 games and currently have an active streak of 5 wins in a row. How are the Lakers doing this? Well, that is a good question. This team does not excel in anything particularly. They rank 9th in offense and 16th in defense efficiency wise. They do have Luka Doncic though, which is the main reason for all the success they’ve had. LeBron James is also back from injury, he is slowly ramping up work and just had his best game since returning with 25 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists in the win over the Clippers.

The pick is quite obvious here. As long as Deandre Ayton keeps missing games I’ll be backing the over on the Lakers, regardless who they play against. This team and their superstar Doncic loves to run, they’ll just keep on piling the points. We just saw the Lakers score 135 and 140 points in 2 of their last 3 games, they should be able to score enough to carry us over the projected total. Give me the points here.

Dallas Mavericks vs LA Lakers Predictions: Over 230.5 is available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

This is the type of matchup where both teams enter with nothing to lose and everything to prove, and that usually translates to an elevated scoring environment. Memphis and Los Angeles have both stumbled out of the gate this season, each searching for continuity, rhythm, and anything resembling momentum. When struggling teams meet under those conditions, the approach often becomes far more open and risk-tolerant, because the identity isn’t to clamp down — it’s simply to compete.

Memphis, stylistically, already lends itself to the over. The Grizzlies push tempo as a core philosophy, ranking among the faster teams in the league. They rely on pace to generate offense because their half-court execution isn’t as polished, and that naturally inflates possessions. Against a Clippers defense that has been anything but airtight, those possessions translate into clean transition looks, quick-trigger threes, and second-chance scoring chances. Los Angeles only stays competitive when they match the game script their opponent sets. In a slower environment, the Clippers bog down and stagnate. In an up-and-down contest where baskets trade freely, they will have to press like the Grizzlies here to stay competitive. That means L.A. is incentivized to push pace right alongside Memphis instead of trying to slow the game. If either team shoots at a reasonable percentage, the volume of possessions alone should put us in position to easily clear this number.

Grizzlies vs Clippers prediction: Over 225.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to Over 226.

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