Both teams are rusty and playing in an unfamiliar surrounding and time zone as this game is in London. It's the first game in five days for the Pacers and Nuggets. Normally a team welcomes a couple of days rest this much into the season, but five days is way too much. 

Considering their huge backcourt advantage and domination in the series, it's not asking too much for Portland to defeat the Lakers. The Trail Blazers have accomplished the task nine straight times, including the past five times at Staples Center.  C.J. McCollum is playing his best ball averaging 31 points during his last eight games. Damian Lillard has been sharp since returning two games ago from an ankle injury. Swingman Allen Crabbe is coming off a career-high 30 points. Crabbe recorded that hitting 12 of 15 shots from the floor during the Trail Blazers' 125-124 overtime home loss to Detroit this past Sunday.  The Trail Blazers want to redeem themselves from that loss. If they lose here to the Lakers they likely are looking at a three-game losing streak with the defending world champion Cavaliers on deck Wednesday. Portland coach Terry Stotts said he considers this a crucial game.  The Lakers are a bit fat and happy with consecutive victories against a pair of likely lottery teams from the Eastern Conference, the Magic and Heat.  Portland just hosted the Lakers this past Thursday and won, 118-109. Lillard and McCollum combined to score 48 points and dish off 17 assists. 
 

The Pistons are averaging 112.6 points during their last three games. They certainly can take advantage of Portland's 28th-ranked defense.

However, the Pistons' defense is in poor form giving up an average of 117 points in their last two games. 

Portland has the offense to take advantage especially with Damian Lillard back at point guard and looking sharp in his return. Only six teams average more points per game than Portland. 

Look for the Jazz to make it five straight victories against the Timberwolves. Utah is rested and plays far better defense than Minnesota giving up an average of 10 fewer points per game than Minnesota.

The Timberwolves played last night at Washington. This is a stop-the-pain game for Utah, which has lost its last two games playing on the road against the Celtics and Raptors. The Jazz are at the Grizzlies on Sunday. This is Utah's chance to beat a much lesser foe. 

The Celtics escaped with just a one-point win when these teams last met. The 76ers didn't have Joel Embiid in that game either. The Celtics have been nothing special at home going 9-6 SU and 6-9 against the spread. 

It's a plus if Embiid plays here, but I like the 76ers even without him. 

Philly has covered five of its last seven road games. The Celtics are 4-9 ATS the past 13 times playing a foe with a winning percentage below .400. Boston hosts New Orleans on Saturday so the backdoor could be open for the 76ers if the game should get out of hand, which I doubt happens. 

The 76ers actually have a winning spread and are playing well with two straight victories. Only twice in their last 14 games have the 76ers lost by more than 11 points. 

Both teams are well below average defensively and are fully rested having last been in action three days ago. That combination should produce a high octane, up-and-down game with a lot of scoring. 

The Grizzlies are coming off their best December ever while the Lakers are 2-15 in their last 17 games. Marc Gasol may not play because of a sore ankle, but Mike Conley is back in the lineup. 

 The well coached Grizzlies have beaten the Lakers 10 of the last 11 times. Memphis plays at the Clippers on Wednesday and at the Warriors on Friday so it can't afford to take a loss here.  Memphis also has covered in 11 of its last 13 Western Conference games.  The Grizzlies rank No. 2 defensively. They give up 13 fewer points per game than the Lakers. 
 

Knowing they weren't going to beat the Clippers on the road last night, the Pelicans did the smart thing. They rested big man Anthony Davis. Davis should be in for a monster performance against the guard-oriented Suns. New Orleans isn't going to lack for motivation not only looking to put a halt to a losing skid but gain revenge for a 112-111 home overtime loss suffered to Phoenix last month. That may have been the Pelicans' toughest defeat of the season.  While New Orleans is playing without rest, the Suns are in action for the fourth time in six days. Phoenix is 3-6 at home and has failed to cover four of its past five games at home. The Suns have been favored four times this season. Not only have they failed to cover each time, but they were blown out in each instance losing to the Kings by 19 points, Nets by 18, 76ers by 15 and Nuggets by six.  

The Bucks are an underrated defensive team. They rank first in the league in both defensive field goal percentage and 3-point defensive field goal percentage.

Atlanta always has prided itself on defense under Mike Budenholzer. The Hawks hit a rough patch, but look back on track now after snapping a seven-game losing streak by beating the Heat, 103-95, two nights ago. 

The Hawks still have a top-12 defense, but their offense ranks 24th averaging 100.3 points per game. 

The Bulls are proven at home. The Trail Blazers have proven to struggle on the road. 
Chicago has covered five of its seven home games this season and seven of its last nine going back to last season. The Bulls knocked off the Cavaliers, 111-105, at home this past Friday. They then suffered a letdown when they played Saturday in Dallas losing 107-82. Dwayne Wade was rested in that game.
The Bulls and Wade should be ready now. If they lose this game they could be looking at a four-game losing streak as they play at the Pistons on Tuesday and host San Antonio Thursday. Chicago has covered the past five times following a straight-up loss. 
Portland is 3-6 SU and ATS in its last nine away matchups. The Trail Blazers' only road victories during this span came against the Mavericks, Nets and Grizzlies. Portland is 0-6 ATS versus above .500 opponents.
The teams played on Nov. 15 and the Bulls slammed the Trail Blazers, 113-88, in Portland. 

Portland plays much better at home and holds a huge backcourt edge. The Trail Blazers are well rested, too, having been idle since Wednesday. They've been home since before Thanksgiving.

Miami is enduring its fourth game in six days. This is the Heat's third straight road game. They are off improbable road wins against the Nuggets and Jazz. The Heat have been doing this while short-handed being without Justice Winslow, Josh Richardson, Dion Waiters and Derrick Williams. 
Much credit to the Heat, but their win streak ends here. 

Denver has the rebounding to keep the Rockets from playing their up-tempo style. The Rockets are going to have dead legs, too, after last night's double overtime victory against the Warriors. That huge victory also puts the Rockets in a major letdown spot. This marks Houston's fifth game in eight days. 

The Nuggets are fired up and mad after getting upset at home by the shorthanded Heat in their last game. The Nuggets are healthier with the return of Danilo Gallinari and Will Barton. 

Kudos to Miami for pulling off a road upset against the Nuggets on Wednesday. That was a gutty victory by the Heat, who were down three rotation players with Dion Waiters, Justice Winslow and Josh Richardson all injured. None are going to play today.
So it's asking too much for the Heat to stay competitive with the Jazz while playing for the third time in four days - all at different venues - and in back-to-back games both in high altitude. Miami has failed to cover six of the last seven times it has played without rest. 
On the surface, it seems this is a lot of points for Utah to still lay. But the Jazz are playing their best basketball winners of four in a row. The Jazz have won those four games by an average of 20 points with the smallest victory margin being nine points. 
Utah is 9-2 ATS the last 11 times when going against a foe that has a winning percentage below .400. The 6-12 Heat have only beaten one team, Memphis, that has a winning record. 
Hassan Whiteside is Miami's best player. But he's dealing with a sore knee. Utah's Rudy Gobbert, who has 11 double-doubles on the season and is shooting better than 63 percent from the floor, is one of the few big men who can neutralize Whiteside. 

I want San Antonio going for me after the Spurs played their worst game of the season in a 95-83 home loss to the lowly Magic Tuesday night. That loss snapped a nine-game San Antonio win streak and can't make Gregg Popovich too happy. Neither can the fact that the Spurs had their lowest-scoring game of the season and committed a season-high 19 turnovers. 

I have to believe the Spurs are going to be highly motivated for this matchup. Dallas is the perfect patsy, too, with the worst record in the NBA at 3-13. The Mavericks' only victories have come against the Pelicans, Bucks and Lakers. None of those teams have a winning record. 
There is zero chance of the Spurs taking the Mavericks lightly either since Dallas hung with them in a 96-91 road loss on Nov. 21. The Mavericks missed a jumper with 15 seconds left in that game that would have given them the lead.  
The Spurs shouldn't feel fatigued since before last night they had been idle for two days. The Spurs are 7-2-1 ATS in their last 10 road games while the Mavericks have failed to cover in seven of their last nine home games and are 0-8 ATS the past eight times at home when hosting an opponent with a winning road mark. 
The Mavericks remain without injured Dirk Nowitzki. They are thin at point guard due to injuries and rank last in all of the major offensive categories - scoring, field goal percentage and 3-point shooting. San Antonio ranks sixth in fewest points allowed. 
Dallas plays at Charlotte on Thursday. The Mavericks stand a better chance of beating that opponent than San Antonio. So the Mavericks may play their bench longer if they fall too far behind in an effort to conserve energy for Thursday. 

The Grizzlies are facing life without Mike Conley. This is their first game since losing their leading scorer and assists leader to a back injury. Teams usually respond with a hard and motivated effort in their first game without their star player. That should be the case here.
Memphis is an experienced, prideful playoff team that has the third-best defense in the NBA. The Grizzlies allow seven fewer points per game than the Raptors. Toronto is good, but not elite. The price has become over inflated due to Conley's absence. 
Toronto just had a blowout home win against the 76ers. The Raptors host another bad team on Friday, the Lakers. So the Raptors can't be blamed for putting this matchup on cruise control as they enjoy what looks to be an easy week for them. 
Do note, though, that before blowing out the 76ers, the Raptors hadn't won a game by more than 13 points since opening night. 

These two teams are more about defense than offense. Detroit ranks No. 2 in fewest points allowed per game while the Hornets rank 11th.  
Charlotte just played its best defensive game of the year beating Memphis, 104-85, last night at Memphis. Now the Hornets have to return home. This marks their fourth game in five days. So don't expect a fast pace from Charlotte. 
The Pistons average just 93 points on the road, down four points from their season average. Their field goal shooting is worse on the road and their 3-point marksmanship on the road is the worst in the NBA. 
Detroit has fared very poorly on the road. The Pistons, though, have been idle the past two days. Detroit coach Stan Van Gundy wants to get his team turned around when playing on the road and he's doing it by stressing defense. The under has cashed 13 of the last 16 times Detroit has played on two days rest. 
There's the chance Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson makes his season debut here. If that's the case it would be a plus for the under. Jackson is a good player, but he figures to be rusty and there would be a transition period for his teammates, who are used now to journeyman and poor-shooting Ish Smith drawing the major point guard minutes. 

This isn't a fade on the Warriors. It's just my belief that there is some line value to the Hawks, who aren't used to getting this many points in a game.
The Hawks do play good defense and get good ball movement. However, they have cooled off after a 9-2 start and are off an embarrassing 109-94 road loss to the Lakers last night.The Hawks have a good coach and will want to redeem themselves off that bad defeat. They are a perfect 8-0 ATS when playing without rest the past eight times.
Atlanta does carry a high fatigue rating, but the Warriors are playing for the third in four days and may be without Draymond Green again. He missed the Warriors' last game with a sprained ankle. 

I see a class difference here. Derrick Rose is still getting acclimated to his new team while Russell Westbrook has become the new Oscar Robertson averaging 31 points, 11 assists and 9.9 rebounds. 
Oklahoma City holds a strong rebounding edge along with Westbrook's overall dominance. 
The Knicks have won six in a row at home. However, those victories have come against the Nets, Pistons - a horrible road team - Mavericks, slumping Hawks, Trail Blazers - who were playing their fourth road game in six days - and Hornets in overtime. 
I don't see the Knicks stepping up here. 

Both teams played last night each winning. But prior to last night, the Wizards hadn't played in three days. They are the fresher team. The Spurs are playing for the third time on the road in four days. There's always the possibility of Gregg Popovich resting key players as he's done periodically this season 
San Antonio expanded a lot energy in beating the Celtics last night. The Spurs have won eight in a row, but they aren't blowing anyone out. Of their last seven victories, six have been by six points or fewer. 
The teams meet again in six days in San Antonio. So the Spurs have no reason to pour it on leaving the back-door open should the Wizards fall behind late. 

My interest always is raised when I see the better team getting points. That's the case in this matchup. It's a series the Hawks have dominated beating the Jazz nine of the past 10 times. 
Both teams halted losing skids with big victories on Wednesday. The Jazz have back point guard George Hill, but aren't likely to have big man Derrick Favors. 
The Hawks average eight more points per game than the Jazz. Utah is the stingiest defensive team in the league, but the Hawks have a top-seven defense. Atlanta gets excellent ball movement ranking third in assists per game and in assists on made baskets percentage. 
A rejuvenated Dwight Howard provides the Hawks with the necessary inside presence to counter the physical Jazz. Howard ranks in the top-five in the NBA in rebounds, field goal percentage and is eighth in blocks. 
It's a huge NBA menu today with every team in action. This game has the second-lowest total. Points will be at a premium so getting this many is big. 

This is a circle-the-wagons game for the Jazz and they catch the Nuggets traveling off a pair of home wins playing for the third time in four days. 
It's also short revenge for the Jazz. They lost to the Nuggets just four days ago. Despite that loss, the Jazz still have covered nine of the last 12 in the series. It's a plus if George Hill is able to play for the Jazz. The Nuggets will be without Danilo Gallinari, their top offensive threat. He's out with a thigh injury. 

I'll back the Hawks - the much superior defensive club hungry for a victory - catching the Pacers with possibly four key players out. Paul George, Jeff Teague, Myles Turner and C.J. Miles are all questionable. George, Teague and Turner are their three best players. 
The Hawks force the second-most turnovers in the league. The Hawks are in stop-the-pain mode having lost three in a row, including an embarrassing home loss to the suddenly red-hot Pelicans last night. The good news for the Hawks was nobody reached the 30-minute mark. 
Indiana ranks 26th defensively. The Pacers have dropped their last two home games by a combined 57 points. 

The Spurs have won six in a row, but Gregg Popovich isn't happy calling out his players after they barely beat injury-racked Dallas, 96-91, two nights ago. 
The Spurs rested LaMarcus Aldridge in that game. Tony Parker didn't play either. 
Charlotte isn't playing well losing four of its past six and may be without big man Cody Zeller, who is better than perceived. He's been out with a shoulder injury. 

The Lakers are improved. But they still are a lottery team several tiers below Oklahoma City. LA doesn't match up well to Oklahoma City either. The Lakers' biggest weaknesses are rim protection, rebounding and protecting the ball.
The Thunder can exploit these weaknesses ranking third in rebounding with a tough inside presence and Russell Westbrook, who could be the best player in the NBA right now. He's averaging 33 points, 11.2 rebounds and 12.2 assists during his last five games. Those are Oscar Robertson numbers.
Oklahoma City has dominated this series winning the past nine times.  
The Thunder are in a foul frame of mind, too, coming off a 115-111 home overtime loss to the Pacers two days ago. Westbrook didn't shoot well in that game and will be highly motivated here in his former stomping ground having starred at UCLA. The Lakers rank among the bottom four in defense and were last in defensive field goal percentage.
The Lakers also might be without point guard D'Angelo Russell, who missed Monday's practice with a sore knee. 

It's a mistake for any team to lay this many points to Toronto. The Raptors did play last night losing in controversial fashion to the Kings in Sacramento. They are in a bitter mood following that loss when the referees waved off a game-tying shot by Terrence Ross at the buzzer. This is just a short trip from Sacramento to LA for the Raptors. 
Toronto is 9-1-1 ATS the past 11 times when playing without rest. The Raptors swept the Clippers last season and have covered the past four times in the series. 
Before losing to the Kings, the Raptors had posted road victories against the Thunder and Hornets. They then beat the Knicks at home followed by a four-point road loss to the Cavaliers then a six-point loss to the Warriors and a road win against the improved Nuggets. 
The Clippers aren't better than the Cavaliers or Warriors yet they are laying more points to the Raptors than those teams did. The Clippers carry their own high fatigue rating, too, as this marks their seventh game in 11 days and third in four days. Following this matchup, the Clippers take off an 11-game road trip so their focus could be off. 
The Clippers have star power, but so do the Raptors. Their stars - DeMar Rozan, Kyle Lowry and Jonas Valanciunas - just don't draw the publicity that the Clippers' stars do because they aren't in a major U.S. media market. 

Both teams are off bad offensive performances last night. Now, playing in the second of back-to-back games, there is a fatigue factor. I see that coming on defense with each team working hard to get their offense back in gear.

Boston has scored just 88 and 90 points during its past two games, both at home. Prior to that, the Celtics had scored at least 104 points in seven of their last eight games. They expect to be without Al Horford and Marcus Smart. That hurts them more defensively than offensively especially minus Smart. 
Avery Bradley is having a breakthrough season. He and Isaiah Thomas give Boston a strong scoring backcourt. 

The Pistons have scored 102 or more points in all but one of their five home games. The over has cashed 12 of the last 16 times the Pistons have played without rest.

Not only is Portland a better team than the Pelicans, who are tied for the worst record in the NBA, but there's a chance New Orleans could be minus Anthony Davis again.
Davis sat out New Orleans' last game this past Wednesday with a quad injury. Jrue Holiday does return for Pelicans. This will be his season debut, but he figures to be rusty.
The Trail Blazers hold a huge backcourt edge with Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum. The Trail Blazers' front line lacks star power, but there's depth and cohesion. 
Portland has beaten New Orleans in eight of the past 10 meetings. The Trail Blazers should be motivated after getting blown out by the Rockets to start their five-game road trip. 
The Trail Blazers own road victories against the Nuggets, Mavericks and Grizzlies - all better teams than the Pelicans. 

Early betting activity has driven this number down. The Cavaliers are 6-1 at home but are 0-5-1 ATS in their last six games at Quicken Loans Arena. 
I don't see the Cavaliers being overpriced here, though. 
The Cavaliers should be properly motivated and their superstars should log major minutes. LeBron James sat out Cleveland's last game. That was two nights ago when the Pacers upset the Cavaliers, 103-93, in Indiana. The Cavaliers don't play again until Wednesday following this game. 
Detroit is 1-7 ATS in its last eight road games going back to last season. The Pistons are your classic good home team/bad road club. Detroit is giving up an average of 20 more points per game on the road while shooting 11 percent worst from the floor away from The Palace of Auburn Hills. The Pistons have been on the road now in six of their last seven games. 
The Pistons last played on Wednesday losing to the Knicks, 105-102, at Madison Square Garden. The Pistons couldn't defend Kristaps Porzingis in that loss and also were outrebounded, 52-40. Andre Drummond returned for that game from an ankle injury. You have to wonder if he's 100 percent, though. The Pistons remain without their leading scorer and top point guard, Reggie Jackson. 

When comparing results from last night it looks bad: The Knicks beat the Pistons, 105-102, at home while the Wizards fell on the road to the lowly 76ers, 109-102. 
But those results factor into backing the Wizards today.
Washington is winless on the road. The Wizards are 2-3 at home with victories against the Hawks and Celtics. Their home defeats have come to the Raptors, Rockets and Cavaliers. This is their easiest home opponent of the season so far. 
The Knicks are 1-4 SU and ATS on the road. Their last two games were double-digit losses to the Celtics and Raptors. 
Prior to playing last night, the Wizards had been idle for three straight days. They should be less rusty for this matchup not to mention highly motivated after just losing to the worst team in the Eastern Conference if not the entire NBA. 
The Knicks are playing for the third time in four days. They also are the traveling team. Their fatigue rating is higher than the Wizards. 
John Wall is going to play in consecutive games for the first time this season. He saw action for less than 24 minutes last night. There's a chance the Wizards get back their excellent shooting guard, Bradley Beal. That would be an added bonus, but I like the Wizards to win here even if Beal misses a fourth straight game. 
Note, too, the Wizards are 6-1 versus the Knicks in the past seven meetings. 

The Warriors have won four in a row against the Raptors and the spot is ripe for them to continue that winning streak.
After a slow start and transition period to newcomer superstar Kevin Durant, the Warriors have picked up the pace. They have won four consecutive games averaging 122.5 points during this span. 
Golden State is well rested and prepared. The Warriors last played Sunday at home and have been in Canada awaiting the Raptors. Toronto had to fly in from Cleveland in the wee hours of the morning following a tough 121-117 physically draining loss to the Cavaliers last night.
Only two teams play at a faster pace than Golden State. The Warriors are hot and certainly have the scorers to take advantage of a tired Raptors squad.  

The Pistons are unbeaten at home. However, they have been far less impressive on the road. Detroit is 1-5 away from The Palace at Auburn Hills. They have lost to the Nets and Suns and have lost by double-digits to the Raptors, Clippers and Spurs. The Knicks fall somewhere in the middle of those teams. The home club has won each of the last four meetings in the series.
Detroit traditionally flounders at Madison Square Garden failing to cover in 20 of its last 26 road games versus the Knicks. 
The Knicks returned home two days ago following a pair of road losses and got back on track by beating Dallas, 93-77. The key for the Knicks was coach Jeff Hornacek's decision to go small. The Knicks have the versatility to do that. 
Andre Drummond is the best rebounder in basketball and the Pistons' top player. He didn't play in Detroit's last game due to an ankle injury. He's a game-time decision here. If he plays, though, he's not likely to be 100 percent. 

The Nets have proven feisty this season usually providing a strong effort. They should be motivated here after getting blown out last night by the Clippers. Brooklyn is 5-1 ATS following a loss. The Nets did hold out Brook Lopez, their best player, against the Clippers and didn't have any player log more than 29 minutes.
The Lakers aren't as bad as they've been the past couple of years, but they remain inexperienced, don't play good defense and are prone to mistakes. They are at the same lottery level the Nets are. The Lakers have failed to cover six of the last eight times they've been chalk. 

Boston's defense has been dreadful. Brad Stevens realizes that. So he's made adjustments. Rookie Jaylen Brown goes back to the bench. Into the starting line-up goes Kelly Olynik and Marcus Smart, two defensive-minded players. They're joined by Avery Bradley, one of the best defensive guards. A Smart/Bradley backcourt is one of the better defensive tandems in the league. 
The Pacers are going through a transition period under new coach Nate McMillan. The Pacers are running more, but carry a high fatigue rating playing for the third time in four days and second in two nights. The Pacers' last two games - both against the lowly 76ers - went into overtime. The Pacers could manage only 105 points against the 76ers last night despite playing overtime. Philadelphia ranks third-from-the-bottom in defensive shooting percentage. 

Utah gives up the second-fewest points per game in the NBA. Orlando is last in scoring. The Magic just surrendered a season-high 123 points at home two nights ago in an embarrassing 16-point loss to Minnesota.
Orlando coach Frank Vogel is a half-court, defensive-minded coach. Obviously he was not pleased with that outcome against the Timberwolves. Look for the Magic to play an intense defensive game here with Bismack Biyombo, a defensive-minded center with no offensive skills, to get more minutes. 

Golden State is enduring some criticism this season with some of it being that the team is in transition losing their rim protectors and adjusting to the presence of superstar Kevin Durant.
That talk was fueled when the Warriors were blown out by 29 points at home by the Spurs opening night.
Since then, though, the Warriors have gone 6-1. It's business as usual as Golden State leads the league in points per game and also is the top shooting team in the NBA. 
The line is shorter than I'd it would come probably because the Warriors played last night and blew out Dallas by 21 points. I say the Warriors are in rhythm now and hot from beyond the arc. The Nuggets can't match that perimeter shooting. The Nuggets' rotation also is short a player as swingman Will Barton remains out.
The Warriors are 18-9 ATS when playing on zero rest. They don't play again until Sunday when they host Phoenix. So the Warriors stars should play major minutes with no reason to hold anything back for this game. The Warriors also have revenge motivation having lost last season during their previous visit to Denver. 

The Bulls are playing without rest and in action for the fifth in seven days. As much as Dwayne Wade would like to shine in his return to Miami there's a major fatigue factor he and the team face. Wade is 34 and played 34 minutes in a hard fought Chicago loss to Atlanta last night.  
The Bulls are 5-11 ATS the last 16 times playing on the second of back-to-back games. Chicago has played better at home this season. The Bulls are 1-3 away from United Center. Miami has covered 12 of its last 16 home games and went 4-0 SU and ATS versus Chicago last season. 
This is a home game Heat president Pat Riley doesn't want to lose. So a concentrated effort should be forthcoming from the Heat, who are getting solid years from their two key players Hassan Whiteside and Goran Dragic. 

The Rockets are playing in their fifth straight road game and just beat Washington last night. The Spurs haven't played in four days. I'd rather have Gregg Popovich than any other coach with extra prep time. The Spurs have used this time to get healthier. 
Houston has played a lightweight schedule. The Rockets lack the defense to keep this game under double-digits. San Antonio has won the last three meetings against the Rockets by an average of close to 16 points per game. 

This is an early-season pivotal game for Memphis. The Grizzlies have lost two in a row at home during their homestand that concludes with this game. Those losses were to the Clippers and Trail Blazers. Now the Grizzlies step down in class to face Denver. The Grizzlies need this victory because six of their next seven games are on the road, including four straight. 
The Grizzlies finally have their full rotation intact with Tony Allen returning from injury and Chandler Parsons, the team's big free-agent acquisition, set to play in his second game of the season after being out following knee surgery. Parsons played in Memphis' last game, which was two days ago, and was understandably rusty going scoreless in 22 minutes. He should play much better for this matchup. 
The Grizzlies don't play again until Saturday so nothing should be held back. 
Denver is fat and happy after playing its finest game of the season, beating Boston 123-107 on the road this past Sunday. This is the final game of the Nuggets' five-game, nine-day road trip. 

First, note the starting time. It's 9 a.m. West Coast time. That's very early for Utah. 
Now look at Utah's numbers. The Jazz are second-to-last in scoring at 93.7 points a game. There's a chance they get their best offensive player, Gordon Hayward, here for the first time this season. If that's the case, Hayward figures to be rusty. 
The Jazz are tough defensively again ranking third in the NBA holding foes to 93.7 points per games and rate seventh in defensive field goal percentage. 
The Knicks have just played the Bulls and Rockets, two of the most up-tempo teams in the NBA. Now they draw the half-court, defensive-minded Jazz. The Knicks failed to break 100 points in three of their five games, not reaching 90 points in two of those contests. It was only against the Bulls and Rockets that they had big scoring games. 
New York is in transition mode with a new coach, new point guard and trying to pick up Phil Jackson's triangle offense with key new players. So the Knicks figure to have problems with Utah's tight defense while the Jazz are weak offensively and not helped by this rare starting time. 

Considering the circumstances and matchup, it's not too much to ask Milwaukee to beat Sacramento at home. 
The Bucks are playing their best ball after starting slow. They are averaging 121 points in their last two games, victories against the Pelicans on the road and a blowout home win against the Pacers two days ago. 
The Kings are once again in transition with a new coach, Dave Joerger. He's an upgrade on George Karl, but it's going to take time for the Kings to begin to show improvement. They've had limited practice time opening the season playing six games in nine days. This marks their fourth road contest in six days. 
Sacramento doesn't have a strong bench and has one of the weaker starting backcourts with Ty Lawson filling it at point guard for suspended starter Darren Collison and shooting guard Arron Afflalo making just 37.5 percent of his field goals and averaging one assist. 
Each team has a superstar. The Kings have big man DeMarcus Cousins while the Bucks have versatile Giannis Anteokounmpo, who has carried over his tremendous play from late last season and is putting up monster numbers across the board. 
The Bucks rank among the top in points scored in the paint. The Bucks can come at Cousins with a three-headed monster of Miles Plumlee, Greg Monroe and John Henson. Milwaukee's bench is playing well, too. 

Revenge and Gregg Popovich. That says it all here. I want the Spurs going for me and I'll lay a short road price to get them after Utah dealt San Antonio a 106-91 loss this past Tuesday at San Antonio.
The Spurs haven't played since. They've had three days to stew about that loss and prepare for this short revenge spot. 
The Jazz are playing well.They played a perfect game against the Spurs while San Antonio was flat. I don't see that combination coming up here. The Jazz aren't a strong perimeter team, especially with top scorer Gordon Hayward out. Yet they knocked down 15 3-pointers against San Antonio. 
The line could be higher but Tony Parker won't play for San Antonio. Parker is vastly overrated, though, at this late stage of his career. Parker is in his 16th season and is averaging less than six points a game while hitting only 33 percent of his shot. 
Utah hasn't been good when stepping up in class failing to cover 12 of the last 15 times versus above .500 opponents.

This isn't the high scoring Thunder team of years past. The Thunder, minus Kevin Durant, are now a grind-out, physical team totally dependent on Russell Westbrook and erratic Victor Oladipo to make plays. They are below average offensively in the frontcourt. The Thunder should play hard against Durant in his first game against his former team. The Thunder know they aren't going to beat the Warriors by playing run-and-gun with them. 
The Warriors have yet to find a consistent offensive rhythm yet as Durant fits into his new teammates. Golden State failed to break 106 points in half of its four games. 
There should be a lot of intensity to this matchup as the Thunder have revenge from last season's playoff loss - blowing a 3-1 series lead - along with the Durant factor. The under has cashed six of the last seven times the teams have played at Golden State.

Dallas is getting into dire straits at 0-3. This is a circle-the-wagons game for the Mavericks and they catch the Jazz in a letdown spot.
Utah came in with its "A" game and upset the Spurs, 106-91, as a 9 1/2-point road 'dog last night. I doubt the Jazz can put together consecutive games like that in back-to-back days relying on over-the-hill veteran Joe Johnson. He and George Hill logged big minutes in that victory. The Jazz are without leading scorer, small forward Gordon Hayward, and their backcourt depth is down minus Alec Burks. 
Dallas has covered 11 of its last 15 road games going back to last season. This is what Wesley Matthews was quoted as saying about tonight's game: "We can't slip anymore. Whatever the hell it takes, that's what we've got to do." 
The Mavericks should have Dirk Nowitzki back for the first time since their opening game. Dallas is 7-2-1 ATS in its last 10 meetings versus the Jazz, including 4-1 ATS in Salt Lake City.

Not surprisingly it is talking a while for the Warriors to get in sync with newcomer Kevin Durant on board. Golden State is 0-3 ATS beating the Pelicans by eight and Suns by six each on the road in its last two games. 
If the Warriors play as poorly as they did against those two lottery teams, they'll lose straight-up to the revenge-minded Trail Blazers. 
Portland has nearly everyone back from last year's 44-win total. The Trail Blazers played the Warriors tough in the playoffs last season covering two of the five games during the series and losing another one in overtime although failing to cover. Portland had a 12-point third quarter lead in that game. 
Golden State is nowhere near reaching its peak yet so it's a ripe time to draw the Warriors. Damion Lillard is outplaying Stephen Curry so far while stating his case as a legitimate MVP candidate. The Warriors are making only 26.7 percent of their 3-pointers while the Trail Blazers ranked sixth connecting on 39.1 percent of their 3-pointers. Portland also is averaging two more points per game than Golden State. 

This is the last stop on the Warriors' three game road trip. They host Oklahoma City on Thursday, which is a much bigger game for Durant going against his former team.

New Orleans is 0-3 desperate for a victory. The Pelicans are better than their record. Their last two games were against Golden State and San Antonio. New Orleans has the best big man in basketball, Anthony Davis. The Bucks have no answer for him.

Milwaukee is 1-2 and lucky to have that record. The Bucks lost by 11 points at home to the Hornets, nipped the Nets (who were playing without rest) at home by two at the buzzer and were blown out by 15 points against the Pistons two days ago. Going back to last season, the Bucks have failed to cover in their last nine games.
Andre Drummond dominated the Bucks' weak frontcourt scoring 20 points and pulling down 23 rebounds. That's ominous considering how much damage Davis can do against a perimeter-dominated team such as the Bucks. 
The Bucks are not in sync yet in addition to their below average frontcourt. Their keys are Giannis Antetokoumpo, Jabari Parker and Matthew Dellavedova. Newcomer Tony Snell should be a large part of Milwaukee's rotation, too. Antetokoumpo is Milwaukee's best player by far. He's also the Bucks' main ballhandler and he lacks chemistry at this early stage with Dellavedova and Snell, both of whom weren't with Milwaukee last season. Snell just joined the Bucks a few days ago.  
The Pelicans have covered five of the last six times they have hosted the Bucks. 

The Pacers aren't playing well enough to lay this many points against an improved Lakers team that does have some young talent. Monta Ellis and Jeff Teague are a poor defensive backcourt for indiana. 

The Lakers are better coached now with Luke Walton while the Pacers are going through a huge transition and new style approach with their coaching change from half-court Frank Vogel to up-tempo Nate McMillan. The Lakers do well against these types of opponents rather than tough rebounding grinders like the Thunder, who they last played.   

The Thunder are overrated. They are 2-0 but their wins have been against the 76ers by six points and Suns at home in overtime. 
Russell Westbrook is going to get his points. He's also going to do it by taking a ton of shots. The Thunder are a different team without Kevin Durant. They grind out victories and aren't built to cover large margins. 
The Lakers are better coached under Luke Walton and have a young, talent base that is maturing with Jordan Clarkson, Julius Randle and D'Angelo Russell. The Lakers' improvement was on display when they defeated the Rockets in their opener. 

The Pistons aren't strong enough to lay this many points in a division matchup, especially being forced to use journeymen Ish Smith and Beno Udrih at point guard until Reggie Jackson returns from injury.
The Bucks are due to shoot better. Their bench has been upgraded with swingman Tony Snell, a healthy John Henson and what looks to be big improvement from Rashad Vaughn. Matthew Delladova gives the Bucks a toughness they lacked last season. 
Detroit lost its opener, but then buried the Magic by 26 points at home in its last game. The Pistons are 3-8 ATS following a cover. 

Milwaukee is likely looking at being 0-3 if it loses this game. So motivation should be high. The Bucks' starters didn't play well with the exception of Giannis Antetokounmpo when they lost at home in their opener, 107-96, to Charlotte this past Wednesday. 
The Hornets are off to a fast 2-0 start after beating the Heat on the road Friday night. Now the Bucks step way down in class facing the Nets - a team oddsmakers assigned the lowest over/under win total - at home. After this matchup, the Bucks travel to Detroit to play the Pistons on Sunday in a game they will be underdogs in. 
Brooklyn is 2-0 ATS getting a cover in its opener against the overpriced Celtics and upsetting the Pacers at home last night. It's going to be extremely rare to find the Nets in a happy and fat state. This is one of those rare times. 
The Nets are playing in their third game in four days. They have to go back on the road and then come back home to host the Bulls and Dwayne Wade on Monday. Brooklyn is 2-9 ATS in its last 11 road contests and 0-6 ATS when playing without rest going back to last season. 
The Bucks have dominated the Nets winning 11 of the past 15 meetings, including all three times last season. This is extremely satisfying for Bucks coach Jason Kidd, who played and coached for the Nets and left that franchise on bad terms. Kidd will hold no qualms about trying to bury the Nets at home. 

Detroit has won and covered in its last six games versus the Magic, winning those games by an average of 15.5 points per game. 
But now the Magic have retooled with a new coach and a more physical frontcourt. Will it make a difference? Maybe down the road, but not here. 
This is Orlando's second game. The Magic have seven new players. It's going to take them a while to get in sync. The Magic didn't look good in their opener, a 108-96 home loss to Miami that no longer has Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and Luol Deng. 
The Pistons are off a bad loss, too, opening with a 109-91 road defeat to Toronto. Fiery Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy ripped his team's lack of defense and rebounding in that game. Look for the Pistons to come back strong at home where they covered 63 percent of the time last season. 

This early in the season it's an advantage to already have played a game. That's the case here where the Celtics dispatched the Nets last night. Chicago is making its season debut. 
The Celtics had a game to get out kinks, get acquainted with Al Horford and establish rotation. Isaiah Thomas was in great form with 25 points and nine assists as the Celtics looked good in building up a 23-point fourth quarter lead against the Nets. But the Celtics had to bring their starters back on the court with two minutes left to hang on a for a 122-117 victory.
I'm not worried about Boston's bench. The Celtics have excellent depth. Rookie Jaylen Brown displayed flashes that he's going to be a contributor, too, scoring nine points on 3-of-4 shooting. 
No team has been better than Boston in covering the spread when playing without rest. The Celtics are 40-17-1 ATS in the second of back-to-back games. 
The Bulls have a lot of new faces. Gone are Derrick Rose, Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah. In are Dwayne Wade, Rajon Rondo and Robin Lopez. It's going to take a while for Wade, Rondo and Jimmy Butler to get acclimated to one another. There's only one basketball after all. 
Boston is the better team with the superior coach. They should beat the Bulls here. 

The Wizards are dangerous when motivated and their star backcourt is healthy. Both factors are in play here.
The Randy Wittman era mercifully ended in Washington. New coach Scott Brooks is an upgrade as the Wizards have the talent to not only make the playoffs - which they embarrassingly failed to do last season - but win a playoff series or two. That's because they have a backcourt of John Wall and Bradley Beal. Wall is an elite point guard while Beal is a tremendous talent who has had trouble staying healthy. He averaged 17.4 points last season in 55 games and starts this season at 100 percent. 
The Wizards should get improvement from young players Otto Porter and Kelly Oubre Jr. I'm expecting a better year, too, from big man Marcin Gortat. 
The Hawks lost Al Horford and gained way past-his-prime Dwight Howard. That's a downgrade. Atlanta also has a major question at point guard entrusting Dennis Schroder to replace departed All-Star Jeff Teague. Schroder is a wild card. He's backed up by unheralded Malcom Delaney. I give the Wizards a huge backcourt check mark in this matchup. 

Maybe the oddsmaker didn't quite comprehend who Orlando's new coach is when making this opening total. It's Frank Vogel. He's a defensive-minded, half-court style coach who doesn't want his team pushing pace. He won't have to concern himself with that happening in Orlando because the Magic aren't built to run.
Orlando is a  smashmouth team now under Vogel. Miami isn't a high-scoring team either especially with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh no longer on the team. 
Aside from Goran Dragic, neither team figures to do much offensive damage from the perimeter. The Magic are especially challenged offensively in the backcourt where defensive specialist Elfrid Payton is the point guard. 
The Magic are going to try winning by dominating the boards and playing hard-nosed defense. They aren't going to dominate the boards against Hassan Whiteside, the No. 3 rebounder and shot block leader last season. The Heat don't have to even be at their defensive-best to hold Orlando under 100 points. 

Miami has won six of its last seven season-openers, including the past five. That's a nice history going into this matchup, but no longer do the Heat have any of their Big Three as LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh are all gone. 
Still, look for the Heat to make it six straight season-opening victories. Miami is down. but not as much as perceived. Goran Dragic is good and in line for his best season with Wade gone to the Bulls. Hassan Whiteside is a top-six big man. Justice Winslow holds a lot of promise. The Heat have depth and a system in place. Eric Spoelstra has been the head coach since 2008. 
Orlando holds promise, but is in transition right now. The Magic have a new coach, Frank Vogel, and are breaking in seven new players. The Heat have an identity. The Magic are seeking one.
Vogel is changing the Magic installing a slowdown, smashmouth style. It's going to take time for this system to work. Orlando went 2-5 in preseason. One of those defeats was 107-77 to the Heat in Miami. Whiteside and Winslow - two of Miami's three best players - didn't even play. The Magic aren't going to be able to dominate the boards against Whiteside, who led the league in blocks and was No. 3 in rebounding last season. 
Note, too, that the Magic won't have physical big man Bismack Biyombo for this game. He's serving a one-game suspension for flagrant fouls committed accumulated during last season's playoffs when he played for the Raptors. 

Oddsmakers are high on Utah projecting the Jazz to win 47 1/2 games. Utah was 40-42 last season. Utah could very well be improved, but this isn't the time to jump on the Jazz.
The Jazz are trying to combine youth with a number of imported veterans, including point guard George Hill, Boris Diaw and Joe Johnson. It's going to take time for the mix to get in sync. Things are made far worse for Utah because of injuries. Out until at least mid-November is the Jazz's best offensive player, Gordon Hayward. He has a broken finger. Guard and sixth man Alec Burks is out, too, with a knee injury and big man Derrick Favors is questionable with a knee injury. 
Those three players averaged close to a combined 50 points per game and all were a key part of Quin Snyder's rotation. If the oddsmaker knew now what he didn't know a month ago, Utah's win total would have been lower. This is what Hill was quoted as saying about his team: "It's tough because we don't have a full roster right now. And without a full roster, it's kind of hard to see exactly where we're at. Our focus right now is to get everybody healthy. ..." 
The Trail Blazers are poised to start fast with nearly everyone back from their 44-win team of a year ago, a team that reached the second round of the playoffs by beating the Clippers and then proved competitive against the Warriors. 
Portland holds a huge backcourt edge with Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum. The Trail Blazers' backcourt was upgraded, too, with swingman Evan Turner joining the team.
The two teams just met in a dress rehearsal this past Wednesday at Salt Lake City. Portland won, 88-84, on the road. The Trail Blazers won despite getting only eight free throw attempts compared to the Jazz making 19 of 23 free throws. 
Portland beat Utah in three of four regular season meetings last season. Lillard didn't play in the game the Trail Blazers lost to the Jazz. Portland is 5-1 SU the past six times hosting Utah, going 2-0 last season winning by an average of nine points. 

It's my belief the Warriors are the superior team here when they have Draymond Green. He returns to action for this Game 6. 
LeBron James and Kyrie Irving took advantage of Green's Game 5 suspension to combine to make an astounding 33 of 54 shots from floor. The rest of the Cavaliers aren't impressive and I don't see James and Irving having a Game for the Ages like they did in Game 5. 
Golden State has proven itself time after time following a loss going 16-1 in those instances! The Warriors are an underdog here making that powerful 94 percent trend even stronger. 
A telling statistic from Game 5 was the Cavaliers coming up with just 15 assists. Cleveland's ball movement wasn't good. Kevin Love continues to be a non-factor and the Warriors own a huge bench edge.
The extra time off from playing on Monday favors the Warriors because they are much better coached with Steve Kerr over rookie coach Tyronn Lue. It's a plus if Andrew Bogut is able to play for the Warriors, but not essential. 
The Warriors are going to have fresh legs and Green, who not only is a tremendous defender but helps open the floor offensively for Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. The importance of Green to Golden State is immeasurable and it will show in this game. 
The Cavaliers, on the other hand, are totally reliant on James and Irving. Those two aren't enough to stop a rested and superior Warriors team from winning. 

The Warriors have played in 20 postseason games - and this total opened the lowest of any of them. 

Cleveland scored 120 points in Game 3 of the series this past Wednesday. Golden State averaged 107 points in winning the first two games of the series. Each of the first three games of the series has been a blowout. A close game is due. The spread for this matchup reflects that, which puts the possibility of overtime into play. 
Steph Curry is due, too, for a huge game. He's averaging 16 points per game in the series, down 14 points per game from his 30-point season average. Golden State is the No. 1 scoring team in the NBA averaging a tick under 115 points per game. 
The Cavaliers have reached triple digits in 23 of their last 28 games. Their confidence is up after torching the Warriors for 120 points two days ago. Kyrie Irving is back on track and LeBron James remains unstoppable cementing his status as an all-time great. 
The Cavaliers accomplished this huge scoring game despite missing Kevin Love, their third-leading scorer. He's questionable due to a concussion. If Love sits out again, the Cavaliers go small and play fast. It's not a minus, though, for the over if Love plays since he's such a weak defender. 

Zig Zag can only work when two teams are close to even. That's not the case in this NBA Championship Series. Golden State clearly is dominant. The Cavaliers don't have the coaching, bench and versatility to beat the Warriors even in this must-win spot at home.
It's not a fluke the Warriors have outscored the Cavaliers by a combined 48 points during the first two games. Switching venues to Cleveland should ensure a full effort from the Cavaliers, but that's not enough for them to win a game. The Cavaliers simply are outmatched here. 
Playing three days since Sunday's Game 2 is going to only magnify the gap because Steve Kerr is a far better coach than Cleveland's inexperienced rookie head man Tyronn Lue. But Lue could be Phil Jackson, Gregg Popovich and Red Auberbach all rolled into one and he still couldn't find a way to beat the Warriors because his Cavaliers simply can't match the talent and depth of Golden State. There are no X's and O's that can change that. 
Golden State has covered 69 percent of the time when playing on two full days of rest during the past 51 instances. Cleveland is 5-12 ATS the past 17 times when playing on two full days of rest. 
The Cavaliers actually have been playing decent defense coming up with 15 steals and forcing 20 turnovers in Game 2. It didn't matter because the Warriors have so many aces besides superstar Stephen Curry and stars Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. Golden State is shooting better than 50 percent from the floor in the series. Lue can't hide the defensive weaknesses of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, who is hurt. Irving is playing terrible on offense, too, missing 24 of 36 field goals while having more turnovers than assists.
LeBron James just doesn't have the necessary help. Curry, Thompson and Green do. The Warriors are effective when they go big with Andrew Bogut and you could argue that no one has played better two-way basketball than Andre Iguodala. Proof of this is the Warriors being plus 49 points when Iguodala has been on the court. 

The oddsmaker has opened this Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals with the lowest total of the series. I don't believe it's justified.

Cleveland is averaging 104.4 points in the series. That includes a give-up game where it scored just 84 points. Toronto is averaging 102 points at home where it plays much better. 
The Cavaliers are coming off a Game 5 home win where they scored 116 points. Only twice in their last 23 games have the Cavaliers failed to reach triple digits. Kevin Love broke out of his slump in Game 5 scoring 25 points making eight of 10 shots from the floor. Kyrie Irving scored 23 points hitting nine of 17 shots from the field. LeBron James certainly is going to get his points. But now Love and Irving are back on track.
Kyle Lowry is the key to the Raptors. He's been terrible on the road, but strong at home averaging 27.5 points while connecting on 8 of 15 shots from beyond the arc. The Raptors also have back 7-foot center Jonas Valanciunas. He had been superb in the playoffs until suffering a sprained ankle that had sidelined him for nearly three weeks. He gives Toronto needed inside scoring and offensive versatility. 
Another key is both teams should have fresh legs since nobody played more than 32 minutes during the Game 5 blowout two nights ago. Only two players even logged more than 30 minutes.  

Yes, I know this is the Warriors' season and the Zig-Zag fully is in play here, which means Golden State is the side to play following two straight losses.
But it's too difficult for me to turn down this many points considering how much the Thunder have outplayed the Warriors during Games 3 and 4 winning by a combined 52 points. 

Forget about last season when the Warriors won the championship. Forget the Warriors' record regular season. This is the present and simply put the Thunder are outrebounding, outshooting and even outhustling Golden Sate. The statistics for the series bear this out: The Thunder are shooting 45.6 percent from the floor to the Warriors' 44.4 percent, are plus 27 on the boards, plus six in steals, have 14 more blocked shots and have committed five fewer turnovers.

Oklahoma City is the healthier team, has the momentum and its confidence level is at its highest. Contrast this with the Warriors, who are on the wrong end of an elimination game for the first time in Steve Kerr's two years. 

The Warriors are in uncharted waters. Their big men aren't playing well. Neither is Draymond Green. Stephen Curry isn't physically right, maybe playing at 70 percent since returning six games ago from a sprained right MCL. 
The Cavaliers blew out the Raptors last night after losing two in a row. But there's a class difference between those two teams. There isn't a class difference between these two teams. If there is, it's the Thunder being much better than the Warriors right now. 

Golden State and Oklahoma City are the two highest scoring teams in the NBA. But to reach this high of a total both have to be on their games. That hasn't happened yet in this Western Conference Finals. Through the first three games of the series, the losing team has averaged 99.3 points. 
Oklahoma City is coming off a 133-105 burial of the Warriors. Now it's up to the Warriors to make the proper adjustments. I see Steve Kerr doing that by limiting the Thunder in transition. Perhaps no player is more lethal on the fast break than Russell Westbrook. The Warriors have the flexibility and talent to also be effective in a half court game. That means a slower tempo. 
I fully anticipate - and expect - an intense, gut-check defensive effort from the Warriors. The under has cashed 12 of the last 17 times the Warriors gave up triple digits in their last game and has cashed six of the past seven times Golden State has surrendered 125 points or more in its previous game.

OK, the Raptors got their measure of respect beating Cleveland, 99-84, at home in Game 3 of this Eastern Conference Final series this past Saturday. 
There is no way a game like that happens to Cleveland in Game 4. I fully expect to see the Cavaliers play their "A" game. Even their "B" game should be enough to cover this number. 
Toronto had its moment. Now things revert back. The Cavaliers buried the Raptors by 31 and 19 points, respectively, during the first two games of this series. The Cavaliers are - and always will be - in control of this series. They totally outclass the Raptors, who have gone as far as they can go. 
LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Co. buried the Pistons and Hawks. The Raptors are next in line. 
Toronto has failed to cover six of the past seven times following a victory. The Raptors also are 4-10 ATS versus foes with a winning record. 

I have no doubt the Cavaliers are going to put up their share of points here. They've scored triple digits in their last 20 games, are averaging 113.4 points during their last five games and 111.5 points during the first two games of this series despite taking the air out of the ball during the final minutes because of holding huge leads. 
Toronto has been embarrassed the first two games - both on the road. Now the Raptors are home where a supreme effort should be forthcoming. It's an understatement to say point guard Kyle Lowry is way overdue having averaged just nine points in the series while missing 20 of 28 shots from the floor, including 14 of 15 from beyond the arc. 
The oddsmaker opened this total again under 200. Neither game exceeded 199. But there's a reason for that. There have been less than 80 points scored during the two fourth quarters because of the blowouts. Neither team even shot the ball during their final possession.
Cleveland is too powerful for Toronto. But this shouldn't be a blowout. Certainly the oddsmaker doesn't think so dropping the line in half. 
The over has cashed 24 of the past 30 times the Raptors have played following a double-digit defeat. 

Never before have the Cavaliers blown out a team in the playoffs like they did Toronto in Game 1 winning by 31 points. The Cavaliers have yet to taste defeat in the postseason and they certainly can't be faulted for feeling overconfident in hosting the Raptors in Game 2. 
No, I don't see the Raptors pulling off an upset for the ages here. But I do see a better situation for Toronto and a strong effort forthcoming. That should ensure the Raptors of staying within a dozen points of Cleveland.
Keep in mind, the Raptors were tired and obviously flat in Game 1 this past Tuesday having just finished a grueling seven-game series against Miami on Sunday. The opener against Cleveland was Toronto's third game at a different gym in five days. Only one day to prepare and regroup to face the Cavaliers wasn't nearly enough.
Now the Raptors have been at the same venue for three days. So look for a lot fresher Raptors team especially star guards DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowery, who saw their shortest playing time against the Cavaliers in any playoff game. 
Toronto has proven to be resilient and tough following a loss covering seven of the past 10 times in that instance. Each time the Raptors lost in the playoffs, too, they bounced back with a victory going 6-0 in these spots. The Raptors also are 13-5 ATS the past 18 times versus foes with a winning percentage above .600. 
The Raptors had a better record than Detroit and Atlanta. Yet the Cavaliers were 10 1/2 and 11-point home favorites against the Pistons in the playoffs and minus 7 and 7 1/2 versus the Hawks at home in the playoffs. 
So the Cavaliers certainly are paying a premium for their lopsided Game 1 victory. I'll take the value with an underdog that has much to prove, including a lot of self-respect, following Game 1. 

The opening total in Game 2 of the Thunder-Warriors Western Conference Finals is down from Game 1 when the number was as high as 224. 
I thought the oddsmaker had it right with his Game 1 total. Golden State led the NBA in scoring at 114.9 points a game and Oklahoma City was No. 2 at 110.2 points. 
The teams combined for 210 points in Game 1 with the Thunder winning, 108-102. There was a rust factor in that matchup with Golden State having been idle for four days while the Thunder had not played for three days. That rust factor will be gone for Wednesday's game since Game 1 was played on Monday. 
Oklahoma City reached 108 points despite Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook combining to make just 17 of 51 shots from the floor. The Thunder shot 68.8 percent from the foul line when during the season their free throw percentage was 78.2 percent. The Thunder know they are capable of playing better even though they pulled the upset. 
Golden State managed only 42 points in the second half on Monday with just 14 coming in the fourth quarter. Those numbers are extremely out of character for the Warriors. I don't see that pattern repeating in this Game 2. If the Warriors get up by 14 points - like they did in Game 1 - they are not going to letup physically or mentally. That means keeping a fast pace. During the season, the Warriors were No. 2 in tempo. 
Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined to connect on 20 of 47 shots from the field in Game 1. They are capable of better. The Warriors also shot poorly from the foul line and from 3-point range. 
The Warriors made just 64.7 percent of their free throws and shot 36.7 percent from 3-point range when during the season they averaged an NBA-best 41.6 percent. 
Both teams - and their superstars - are due to shoot better from the floor. The free throw shooting should be much improved, too. The feeling out process is finished. These teams are about offense. And now that the total is lower than before this is the time to take advantage with an over. 

The Thunder are getting a lot of kudos for knocking off San Antonio. But this is a bad spot for Oklahoma City. Remember what happened to the Thunder when they played at San Antonio in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series? They were blitzed by 32 points.
Now I'm not saying Golden State is going to bury the Thunder like that, but I do believe the timing and matchup is right for the Warriors to win by double digits in this opener of the Western Conference finals. 
The Warriors have a tremendous home floor as evidenced by losing just once at Oracle Arena all season. Golden State went 3-0 versus Oklahoma City during the regular season winning at home against the Thunder by 15 and 8 points, respectively. The Warriors have covered in seven of their last eight home game, including going 5-1 ATS during the playoffs.  
Now much of that is factored into the line. What's isn't built as much into the line is the belief that the Warriors have the versatility, flexibility, superior coaching and athletic talent to take advantage of being off for four full days and counter the Thunder's rebounding edge. 
Oklahoma City was able to beat San Antonio by dominating the Spurs on the boards. That forced the Spurs into a deliberate style where they had to rely on a mediocre perimeter game. San Antonio got out of sync. Some of the Spurs showed their considerable age.
The Warriors' talent are in their prime. Stephen Curry proved he's back from his knee injury averaging 34.5 points, 9.5 assists and seven rebounds during the final two games of Golden State's semifinal victory over the Trail Blazers. Curry and banged-up center Andrew Bogut should heavily benefit from the extra time off between series. 
I expect the Warriors to be in sync and able to hurt the Thunder via fast breaks, something the older and slower Spurs were unable to do. The Thunder aren't going to be able to beat the Warriors like they did the Spurs. That difference is going to manifest itself in this Game 1. There's also the chance the Thunder still are on a big high from upsetting the Spurs and not able to settle down for this much different opponent especially being on the road.  

I can understand a certain respect level for the Spurs and Gregg Popovich. But opening the Spurs a road favorite based on the past four games in this playoff series is just plain wrong. 

Since getting blown out in Game 1, the Thunder has won three of four winning by one on the road, 14 at home and by four points on the road while losing by four points in Game 3 at home. The Thunder has outrebounded the Spurs in each of these past four games. And that's the key to this game and the series.
The Spurs and Popovich are limited in what they can plan and do when Oklahoma City is controlling the boards. The Thunder led the NBA in rebounding this season. They outrebounded the Spurs by 18 boards in Tuesday's Game 5 victory. Unsung Steven Adams is coming up big. There is no fluke to Oklahoma City controlling the backboard. 
This is what Tony Parker was quoted as saying following the Spurs' Game 5 loss: "We know that's (rebounding) the key of the series. We know we have to control the boards. We made a lot of stops tonight (Tuesday), but we just can't get the boards and it's killing us in the end. Control the boards. I think that's the key of the series. We can't keep giving them opportunities to score." 
Popovich has tried to limit superstars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook by playing more half-court offense. The Spurs actually were getting needed stops in Game 5 holding Durant and Westbrook to a combined 20 of 48 (41.6 percent) shooting from the floor. But the Thunder still were able to upset the Spurs in San Antonio by their rebounding dominance. That's not going to change especially with the venue being moved now to Oklahoma City and the Thunder that much more confident. 
San Antonio built a 67-15 regular-season record by steamrolling lesser foes. The Spurs are 2-8 ATS the last 10 times when facing foes with a winning mark above .600. They also have failed to cover seven of the last 10 times following a loss. 
Oklahoma City is playing its finest basketball right now. The Thunder certainly are capable of winning a championship. They are 12-4 ATS the past 16 times meeting opponents with a winning record. 
The Thunder also have covered seven of their last nine games against San Antonio and are 12-3 ATS the last 15 times hosting the Thunder. 

Since Game 1, the Thunder have outplayed the Spurs winning two of the last three. Oklahoma City has the most talented player, Kevin Durant, and is the better rebounding team. Steve Adams has turned into a strong wildcard proving to be highly effective inside against San Antonio. 
The Spurs have much on their plate already dealing with Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka. Now Adams has to be accounted for, too. 
Oklahoma City has covered eight of the past 10 times on the road going against an opponent with a home winning percentage above .600. The Spurs fattened their record during the season burying patsies. They are 2-7 ATS the past nine times hosting foes with a winning percentage above .600. 
Yes, home-court means a lot. I respect the heck out of San Antonio and Gregg Popovich especially when playing at home. But this line is inflated enough to get involved with Oklahoma City. 

If you count just regulation, all three games so far in this series have gone under the total. The Raptors have gone under in eight of their 10 playoff games. The Heat's gone under in seven of their last eight playoff games. So why go over?
Because the dynamics are about to change starting with this Game 4. 
Toronto lost 7-footer Jonas Valanciunas for the series with an ankle injury. Miami is down its center, Hassan Whiteside. His troublesome right knee bucked just six minutes into Game 3. Whiteside, who led the NBA in blocked shots, has a sprained MCL. This is the type of injury that has sidelined Stephen Curry for the past two weeks.
Because of these two key center injuries, the Raptors and Heat are each going to play small-ball. That means increased tempo and a faster paced game. It's a huge plus for Toronto's All-Star backcourt of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan because they'll be able to have more open space to work. Lowry finally found his shooting stroke pouring in 29 points during the second half of Game 3.
Whiteside not only is tough defensively, but weak offensively. He had only five assists in his last 17 games. He'll be replaced by a pair of undersized centers - Udonis Haslem and Josh McRoberts - and Amare Stoudemire, who is near the end of his career and never played defense even in his prime. 

The Raptors are forced to give major minutes to 6-foot-9 Bismack Biyombo at center. Biyombo can't score, but is undersized weakening Toronto defensively. 
Note, too, the game is in Miami where the Heat have averaged 110.3 points during their last 17 games at American Airlines Arena. 

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nba/miami-heat/article76428262.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nba/miami-heat/article76428262.html#storylink=cpy

Golden State and Portland have gone over the total in seven of their last eight head-to-head meetings. I expect that trend to continue here.
The Warriors finally showed they could adjust to temporary life without Stephen Curry scoring 34 points in the fourth quarter during the team's last meeting, which was this past Tuesday. Yes, five days ago. Both teams are fully fresh now.
The Trail Blazers don't have the personnel to try to grind down the Warriors with a physical, half-court style. They know that. Their best approach is to play fast and aggressive. That's what they did in scoring 87 points during the first three quarters of Tuesday's game. Unfortunately for the Trail Blazers, their players were tired and ran out of gas. That won't happen here because of the long rest period between games. 
I see Portland coming out with a lot of energy, sparked by its home crowd. The Warriors welcome a fast-paced, wide open style. They have the shooters - even without Curry - to pile up points in a hurry. 

The teams last played back on Monday so expect lots of energy. 
The Spurs aren't going to shoot 60.7 percent from the floor like in Game 1. But they certainly figure to shoot better than the 42.6 percent they did in Game 2. San Antonio averaged 103.5 points a game during the regular season and is averaging 105.5 points in six playoff games. The Thunder surrender an average of 103 points per contest.
The Thunder was the No. 2 scoring team in the NBA during the regular season averaging 110.2 points a game. It was an encouraging sign for them to see Kevin Durant hit 11 of 19 shots from the floor in Game 2 after being in a shooting slump during the postseason. Oklahoma City shoulder enter this matchup full of confidence and vigor after upsetting the Spurs in San Antonio. That means staying aggressive on fast break opportunities. 
Superstars dominate the playoffs - and these teams have them. LaMarcus Aldridge has been on fire missing just 10 of 44 field goals during the first two games of this series while averaging 39.5 points. I see the Spurs having better ball movement and improved possession in this Game 3 as the Thunder look to clamp down on Aldridge.  

The Raptors find themselves in a must-win spot here by virtue of losing Game 1, 102-96, in overtime at home this past Tuesday. A Toronto loss to Miami in this Game 2 could set up a Heat sweep with Games 3 and 4 in Miami. 
The oddsmaker is well aware of this. It's certainly no bargain laying this many points with the Raptors. But I'm confident the handicap will hold. This is Toronto's game to win. 
Toronto is the younger team with much to prove especially All-Star Kyle Lowry. The Heat are the old gunslingers. They managed to thwart off the Raptors' late challenge in Game 1, but Dwayne Wade doesn't have much spring in his step and Hassan Whiteside isn't 100 percent. Both teams had to go the full seven games to win their first-round series. The Heat are the older team and had to come back from being down 3-2 to Charlotte to pull it off. The Heat will be the more fatigued team on Thursday, in action for the third time in five days having gone from home to Charlotte to Toronto.  
Even defeating the Raptors in Game 1, Miami still has only covered three of its past 11 road matchups. 
It's easy to get down on Toronto for not winning at home in Game 1. Still, let's not forget the Raptors had a better season record than Miami by a whopping eight games, won three of four against the Heat during the regular season and is playing at Air Canada Centre where they averaged 104.4 points per game. 
Now this isn't to cast a blind eye to how poorly DeMar DeRozan and Lowry are playing. The Raptors live-and-die with their two backcourt All-Stars. Toronto's backcourt shot just 12-of-35 (34.2 percent) from the floor in Game 1. Lowry had a mere seven points, including a half-court 3-pointer that forced overtime. Miami, by contrast, had its backcourt connect on 20 of 41 (48.7 percent) shots from the field. Yet the Raptors still took the Heat to overtime. 
Lowry and DeRozan didn't play well either in the Raptors' first-round series against the Pacers combining to shoot less than 32 percent from the field. During the season, the Raptors hit 37 percent of their 3-pointers. Only four teams had a higher percentage. 
Toronto's backcourt stars are well overdue to shoot much better. If those two just have their average games, the Raptors should easily prevail given how well some of their other players such as center Jonas Valanciunas are performing.  
I'm not advocating the Raptors are the superior team and should win the series. But I do believe the zig-zag pattern is a fit here. It's a natural letdown spot for the Heat while the Raptors should display a game-of-the-year type mentality.