NBA Best Bets Today: November 13 Picks & Predictions
Friday the 13th brings us a spooky 10-game Emirates NBA Cup slate and plenty of intriguing matchups to sink our teeth into. The biggest games of the night include a Prime Video double-header starting with the Knicks vs Pacers game at 7 pm ET. After that we head out West for the Warriors vs Spurs match-up at 9.30 pm ET.
I’ve broken down all 10 matchups, narrowing things down to my three favorite NBA Best Bets. Full game-by-game analysis and NBA Picks will be available shortly on our website, but let's waste no time and take a look at the three bets I'm most confident in tonight!
NBA Best Bet: Karl-Anthony Towns (NYK) Over 12.5 Rebounds vs IND Pacers (-122)
Not getting that contract extension from the Knicks has proven to be a real motivating factor for Karl-Anthony Towns. Fresh off his stellar performance in the Finals, KAT has continued his solid play in the regular season as well. This is particularly visible in the rebounding department where he leads the NBA with 13.5 rebounds per game. That’s a significant increase to the 11.9 rebounds per game average he posted last season.
People were questioning whether or not the Knicks are making a mistake by letting Mitchell Robinson go, but so far Towns has stood his ground. Friday’s game vs Indiana will be a solid test for KAT, he’ll look to exploit the Pacers’ weaknesses down low. Indiana ranks 2nd for Rebounds allowed to opposing PFs this season, their center Ivica Zubac just hasn’t been as consistent as they hoped he would, mainly due to injuries. I’m counting on Towns to come up big for New York here.
Read our full New York Knicks vs Indiana Pacers Predictions
NBA Best Bet: Atlanta Hawks -7.5 Point Spread over CHI Bulls (-105)
This is exactly the opponent the Atlanta Hawks need following their 10-point loss to the Lakers on Monday night. With 3 days in between that game and Friday’s match-up with the Bulls, they should be pretty energetic out the gate. And that is definitely a good thing going into a game against the NBA’s fastest paced offense. Chicago averages 107.5 possessions per game, their strategy is to just try and outrun their opponents on every possession possible.
And that almost worked in their last two games against the 76ers and Spurs, with both ending in narrow 6 and 5 point defeats. After the loss to San Antonio the team announced rookie sensation Caleb Wilson will miss up to 6 weeks with a hand injury, that’s one less elite scorer the Hawks have to worry about here. Prior to the Lakers game Atlanta had put together a run of 3 straight games of 120, 139 and 124 points, they should get back on track against the worst defense in the NBA here. Chicago won all 3 meetings last season, there won’t be a lack of motivation on the Hawks’ part in this one that’s for sure.
NBA Best Bet: Portland Trail Blazers -10.5 Point Spread Over SAC Kings (-120)
At 1-10 SU after 11 games played it’s pretty clear that the Sacramento Kings are headed towards the lottery this season, but what is even more deflating right now is the body language of this team. Even their best player Domantas Sabonis said himself that “none of us wants to be here” referring to the losing situation that the team is in right now. We’ve seen absolutely no effort from the Kings on the defensive end – they rank 27th in points allowed at 121 per game, with almost 20 of those coming from fastbreak points.
Meanwhile, the situation in Portland couldn’t be any more different. At 8-3 SU the Trail Blazers are one of the more pleasant surprises, we just saw them take down the OKC Thunder in back-to-back games, both times by double-digits. Granted, the Thunder are handicapped with their injury situation, but whenever you can take down a team as talented as theirs, the league starts paying attention. Dame and co. are 5-1 SU on the road and 7-4 ATS which makes them one of the more reliable bets right now.
