Sacramento has won three in a row. Phoenix has won four straight. So something has to give.
The Kings are not a good road team, but Phoenix isn't strong enough to lay this many points especially on the defensive end where it holds foes to fewer than two points less per game than Sacramento.
Barring a semi-miracle, the Suns aren't a playoff team. If you discount the Suns' 117-point performance against Houston two games ago, they are averaging 89.4 points during their last seven games. The Suns have a losing spread record at home during their past 15 games at U.S. Airways Center.
Phoenix has bigger games on deck hosting Portland on Friday and Oklahoma City on Sunday. The Suns may still be without point guard Brandon Knight, who has missed the last six games with an ankle injury.
You can't judge the Kings by their 25-45 overall record. They are far more respectable since George Karl replaced Tyrone Corbin. Rudy Gay is thriving under Karl's system and DeMarcus Cousins is putting up superstar numbers. Cousins is a matchup nightmare for the undersized Suns and center Alex Len, who is just returning from an ankle injury.
 

Cleveland is hot winning 27 of its last 33. The Cavaliers are comfortably in second place in the Eastern Conference with little chance of moving up or down.
The Cavs very well may be the best team in the East. But they should not be road chalk against Memphis.
The Grizzlies also are playing well winning five of their last six, including the past three winning all five of these games by 11 or more points. The Grizzlies have the second-best record in the much stronger Western Conference, which is a surprise to some. The Grizzlies have a chip on their shoulder and want to prove themselves versus elite competition, which is what they face here. It's also a revenge spot for Memphis, which lost 105-91 on the road to the Cavaliers on Dec. 21 when it was missing Zach Randolph and had not traded for Jeff Green yet.
Memphis has a strong home-court. The Grizzlies have won 27 of their 34 home games, while Cleveland is three games above .500 on the road - and that's playing in the much weaker Eastern Conference.  
The Grizzlies present match up problems for every team with their No. 2 ranked defense and physical front line. Cleveland gives up 45.4 points in the paint on the road, which ranks fourth from the bottom. No team scores more points inside than Memphis thanks to Randolph and Marc Gasol. Randolph is a double-double machine and is likely to be guarded by Kevin Love, a weak defender.
The Cavaliers have been taking far more 3-pointers since acquiring gunner J.R. Smith. The Grizzlies hold foes to less than 33 percent shooting from 3-point range at FedEx Forum. That figure would rank No. 2 in the league if it included all of Memphis' games.
 
 

Expect the Heat to play hard in order to make amends for blowing a 16-point fourth-quarter lead last night on the road against the Bucks in an 89-88 loss. Milwaukee pulled out the victory on a 3-pointer by Khris Middleton at the buzzer.
Miami is 4-1-2 ATS the past seven times when playing without rest. This is a crucial game for the Heat especially following that loss to Milwaukee as the Heat, Bucks and Celtics are all fighting for a playoff spot.
The Heat are 0-2 on their current four-game road trip having lost to Oklahoma City, which plays extremely well at home, this past Sunday. Before these past two games, though, the Heat had been playing well having won three in a row defeating the Cavaliers, Trail Blazers and Nuggets.
Miami may not have center Hassan Whiteside, who suffered a cut between two fingers against the Bucks and had to have 10 stiches. If he is able to play it would be a nice plus. But I like the Heat covering this number even if Whiteside doesn't play. Boston has a small front line without Jared Sullinger. The Heat wouldn't have problems matching up to the Celtics in the paint with Udonis Haslem, Michael Beasley and Luol Deng.  
Dwayne Wade will be the best player on the court and he's been playing well.
The Celtics are expected to get back point guard Isaiah Thomas, who has missed the past eight games because of a bad back. Boston went 5-3 in those games. Thomas is a streak shooter who figures to be rusty. He's also a ball hog so it's going to take time for the Celtics to get back in sync with him running things instead of Evan Turner.

Portland ranks fifth in defensive field goal percentage. Golden State is No. 1 in defensive field goal percentage.

It's going to be even more difficult for the Trail Blazers to score as they likely will be missing LaMarcus Aldridge, Nicolas Batum and Chris Kaman, who doesn't play any defense. All three players are doubtful. 

The under has cashed in 23 of Portland's last 35 home games while the under has cashed in eight of Golden State's last 11 road games.

Oklahoma City has lost much of its star power and depth. That's not a good combination when laying a big number especially with a huge game on deck tomorrow night.
But that's the situation the Thunder are in minus Kevin Durant, Serge Ibaka, Nick Collison and now guard Andre Roberson, who suffered an ankle injury on Sunday and will be out several weeks.
The Thunder are playing well having won three in a row, including impressively beating hot Miami at home this past Sunday. This, though, is a flat spot for them especially when they play at San Antonio on Wednesday in a much more challenging matchup.
The Lakers have lost nine of their last 11, but are off a 101-87 home victory against the 76ers this past Sunday. Quietly, the Lakers have been a huge money-maker this month cashing 11 of their last 14, including their last five road games. They have not lost by more than seven points during their last 14 games.

Scoring is up, defense is down for both of these teams.

The Nets have scored at least 122 points in three of their last four games. Brooklyn has allowed an average of 108.7 points per game in regulation during its past four games.

The Celtics have allowed an average of 109.3 points during their last three games. Boston gets back point guard Marcus Smart.

Here we have two lottery teams with nothing to lose. The 76ers are used to playing half-court Eastern Conference ball. Now they get to play an up-tempo Western Conference team that doesn't play defense. The Lakers rank 28th in points allowed per game and defensive field goal percentage.
 The last time the 76ers played a team from the Western Conference was five games ago and they scored 114 points off Sacramento, an equally bad defense.
The Lakers have faced three strong defenses in a row - the Hawks, Warriors and Jazz. They scored 105 points on the Warriors, who are No. 1 in defensive field goal percentage.
The Lakers have been idle since Thursday so they should bring a lot of energy.

Both teams played last night. The Trail Blazers lost to the Magic and Memphis upset Dallas on the road by 11 points.
The Grizzlies are better equipped to handle this matchup of teams playing without rest. The Trail Blazers are playing their fifth road game in seven days. Their weak bench is made weaker by the absence of Wesley Matthews.
Memphis' depth has improved with Mike Conley and Vince Carter back. The Grizzlies are a much better team with Conley in the lineup. He had missed four games with an ankle injury until returning last night versus Dallas.
Portland is not a good road team as evidenced by their 16-17 away mark, 15-18 ATS. Memphis has one of the strongest home courts in the league.
The Trail Blazers rely heavily on LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard. Both played big minutes last night. The Grizzlies are a tough matchup for the Trail Blazers because they have excellent physical frontcourt defenders and Tony Allen is a defensive whiz who can defend Lillard.
Memphis has won eight of the last nine in the series, covering seven of the past eight. They are 3-0 this season against the Trail Blazers.

The Bulls have been up and down. Now they are on an up cycle. They've won two in a row beating the Pacers and Raptors at home. Taj Gibson returned in last night's 16-point victory against the Raptors after missing the past 10 games with an elbow injury. All-Star guard Jimmy Butler could return tonight.
Chicago is trying to earn the No. 2 seed in the East. The Bulls can't afford to slip against the lowly Pistons, losers of 11 of their last 12. Chicago is 20-14 on the road. Detroit is 5-13 ATS in its last 18 home games versus opponents with a winning road mark.
The Bulls are not a great team. But they are still several tiers above Detroit even without Butler. Chicago is 9-6 minus Butler. The Bulls look much better when not going against elite Western Conference opponents. The Pistons are definitely a team they can handle.
The Pistons are a dead team. They lost 94-83 in their last game to the 76ers this past Wednesday. The Pistons are one of the worst shooting teams in the NBA and are far less effective inside with Greg Monroe out. Detroit was outscored 40-20 in the paint by the 76ers. Monroe missed that game with a strained knee and is doubtful to play against the Bulls.

The Grizzlies have had two full days to stew about their loss to Detroit this past Tuesday. The Pistons ended a 10-game losing streak with that victory.
Dallas isn't good at home - covering 42 percent of its games at American Airlines Center - has not fared well versus elite competition and is 8-22-2 ATS in its last 32 games against Western Conference foes. The Mavericks have also failed to cover four of the last five times when laying three or more points.
The Grizzlies are too physical for Dallas. Memphis ranks No. 2 in the NBA in fewest points allowed per game. The Grizzlies also rank in the top 10 in forcing turnovers.
The Mavericks lack the inside muscle to match up well against the Grizzlies. This was evident during their last meeting. That occurred on Jan. 27 in Dallas with the Grizzlies cruising to a 109-90 victory.
There's a chance the Grizzlies get back point guard Mike Conley, who has missed the last four games with a sprained ankle. Conley's absence has hurt the Grizzlies. But I still like them in this spot regardless of Conley's status. If he does suit up it's a nice bonus.

Indiana is an excellent defensive team ranking third in the league in fewest points per game and defensive field goal percentage.
Cleveland is underrated defensively. The Cavaliers' defense has improved with the addition of J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert and Timofey Mozgov.
Neither team, though, has been in great defensive form during the last week so we have a fairly high total.
The Pacers are really struggling offensively, averaging 91 points on 40.9 percent shooting during their last three games. The Pacers make their mark on defense not offense. They have lost and failed to cover in their last three matchups. This is a stop-the-pain game for them.
So I'm anticipating a maximum defensive effort. if you discount an off-game against the Raptors two games ago, the Pacers have given up an average of just 87.7 points per game during their last nine games.
I'm expected a strong defensive effort from Cleveland, too. The Cavaliers know they need to regain their earlier defensive dominance having surrendered 106 or more points in three of their last four games.

Now word has come down that LeBron James missed the shoot around today because he was ill. Obviously it would be another huge plus to the under if he didn't play.

Orlando's defense has slipped again. The Magic are giving up an average of 112.3 points per game during their last three games.

Portland has a top 10 offense and is the No. 1 free throw shooting team in the NBA. The Trail Blazers are averaging 107.6 points during their last six games. But their defense hasn't been very good as they've been surrendering 105 points per game during this span.

The Suns aren't going to have Brandon Knight nor Alex Len back for this game. They aren't likely to make the playoffs either.

But if Phoenix has any hope of making the postseason it must win this game. The Suns have had four days off since beating the Knicks. This is their season. They won't lack for intensity or preparation.

The Pelicans are off two draining games, a double overtime loss to Denver at home on Sunday and a one-point home win versus the Bucks two days ago. They are the more tired team. It would be a huge break for the Suns if New Orleans held out Anthony Davis, who is bothered by a sore ankle. 

But even if Davis plays, I like the Suns to get the job done here. 

The Hawks downed the Warriors, 124-116, when the teams met last month. I expect far more defensive intensity in this rematch in a battle of the two teams with the best records.
Atlanta ranks fourth in defense giving up 96.5 points per game. The Warriors rate No. 1 in defensive field goal percentage holdings foes to 42.6 percent.
Kyle Korver and Klay Thompson both are out, too. That's huge from a defensive standpoint.

The Pacers are averaging 103.5 points in their last four games. The Bulls are giving up 104.5 points during their last five games.
Chicago's defense has been down all season especially at home. The over has cashed 62 percent of the time during Bulls home games this season.
Indiana is 24-10-1 to the over during its last 35 road contests.

Orlando is a lottery team that has lost eight of its last 10.
But the Magic excel in situations exactly like this, partly because the marketplace usually doesn't care for them.
Orlando has covered 17 of the past 22 times versus foes with a winning home mark. The Magic is 6-1 ATS the past seven times they've been double-digit road 'dogs.
Houston is a bit fat after an impressive road upset win against the Clippers two days ago. The Rockets have more challenging tasks following this matchup hosting improved Denver and playoff-contender Phoenix. There is no reason for the Rockets to go all out against a non-conference lottery foe.
Orlando is vulnerable from 3-point range, which is Houston's strength. However, the Rockets are in a long range shooting slump making just 27.5 percent from beyond the arc during their last five games compared to hitting nearly 35 percent before then.
The Magic have improved a great deal defensively once they got rid of Jacque Vaughn. They are off an embarrassing 123-108 loss to the Cavaliers this past Sunday. This is what Magic coach James Borrego said following that loss to Cleveland. "Tonight (Sunday) was not a great defensive effort. It was probably due to Cleveland and partly our effort, our execution defensively. But we are a defensive team, and I'll continue to say that. Our identity is on the defensive end."
Statistics back up what Borrego says. Even giving up 123 points to the Cavaliers, Orlando still is surrendering nearly three fewer points per game at 99.5 since Borrego replaced Vaughn, while forcing nearly three more turnovers per game, too.
The Rockets historically have trouble with Orlando, too. The Magic have covered nine of the past 10 in the series, including the last four in Houston. The Rockets also may be without starting point guard Patrick Beverley, who is dealing with an elbow injury.

The Lakers actually have been playing excellent defense during their last six games holding foes to an average of 91.6 points per game during this span.
LA isn't winning, but is staying close and covering spreads. The Lakers have not lost by double digits during their past 12 games and are 7-0 ATS following a straight-up loss. They also have covered in their last four road games.
The Lakers are going with a lot of youngsters. So they are one of the few teams with fresh legs at this late stage of the season. Stronger foes also are resting key players, or at least reducing their minutes when they play the Lakers.
Golden State has one of its bigger games of the season on deck when it hosts Atlanta on Wednesday. It's a revenge spot for the Warriors and a pivotal matchup in deciding the NBA's best record. So I'm not expecting big minutes from their starters, or an all-out intense effort. At the very least, the back-door should be wide open.
The Warriors have had trouble gearing up for lottery teams failing to cover eight of the past nine times versus below .500 opponents. Golden State plays five games during the next eight days. So this figures to be a spot where the Warriors will be reducing starter's minutes.

Portland is averaging 112.3 points during its last four games - all without Wesley Matthews. 

Damion Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge continue to play at high levels and now Nicolas Batum finally has begun to step up. Portland's ball movement has been excellent.

But I expect Washington to score its share of points, too, as John Wall is back to playing at a high level and the Wizards are much more dangerous offensively with Bradley Beal in the lineup. 

Toronto was starting to play better until getting blown out at home last night by Portland. The Raptors have a solid bench. They are 9-4 ATS the past 13 times when playing without rest.

Indiana is a different type of team than Portland. The Raptors match up much better against Indiana. Toronto has won the past three meetings in the series, incuding both times this season with one of the victories coming by 13 at Indiana. 

The Pacers are thin in the backcourt. I'm expecting Kyle Lowry to play much better than he did in the loss to Portland this past Sunday. George Hill is an underrated point guard, but he's not Damian Lillard.

Portland is just an average road team made worse by the absence of Wesley Matthews. The Trail Blazers lost 121-113 to Minnesota in their lone road game since Matthews went down with a ruptured left Achilles tendon.
Toronto has been slumping, but the Raptors took a huge step beating Miami, 102-92, this past Friday. Kyle Lowry is back at point guard and the Raptors are healthy. There has been nothing wrong with their top-five offense. They are averaging 105.5 points per game during their last six games, which is slightly above their season average.

The Pistons were blown out last night by the Trail Blazers losing by 19 points. Detroit is 6-0 ATS following a loss of more than 10 points and 10-3 ATS the next game when they didn't cover the spread during their previous game.
Detroit can match up to the Jazz's tall front line with Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe, both of whom are having solid seasons. Drummond has pulled down 20 or more rebounds in three of the last five games. The Pistons would catch a major break if Utah center Rudy Gobert, who is having a breakout season, can't play after tweaking his ankle during the Jazz's last game this past Thursday.
The line is high here because Utah is playing its finest ball winning nine of its last 11. Detroit has lost nine in a row to fall out of playoff contention.  This is the Pistons' final game of their road swing. I see a bounce back effort after last night's embarrassing defeat. 
This is the fourth time in their last 10 games the Jazz are laying more than seven points. They are 0-3 ATS the previous three times. Utah is 26th in scoring. The Jazz lack the offense to lay a big number.  
The Pistons can stay with the Jazz. In their last eight road games, the Pistons have only lost by more than seven points twice. During this span, the Pistons beat the Hornets by 28 points, lost by three to the Pelicans, lost by five to the Pacers, lost by four to the Wizards and lost by seven to the Warriors.

With their season on the brink, I don't believe it's a leap of faith to believe the Nets can cover this mid-range number against the 76ers.
This may be the only time all season where the 76ers are fat and happy after coming from 18 points down at home to beat the road-weary Kings, 114-107, last night.
Despite putting up those many points, the 76ers still rank last in the league in scoring and shooting percentage. The Kings rank 28th defensively. The Nets rate a respectable 17th in points allowed per game.
While the 76ers' roster is littered with unknowns, the Nets have star power with Deron Williams (who finally started shooting better), Joe Johnson and Brook Lopez, who is playing better.
The prideful veteran Nets not only have revenge for a loss to the 76ers in their last meeting, but their season is on the line here. Brooklyn has lost five in a row to fall 3 1/2 games back of the last playoff spot in the East with 19 games remaining on the regular season schedule. A loss here to the 76ers, arguably the worst team in the NBA, would be the end.
The Nets have age on them, but they've also been idle the past two days. Philly, on the other hand, is playing for the third time in four days and without rest.
Brooklyn has covered five of its last seven road contests and has taken care of business against bad teams going 11-5 ATS the past 16 times playing foes with a winning percentage below .400.

The Hawks have little to play for these days with the best record in the Eastern Conference all but clinched. That's been evident when the Hawks rested starters in a loss to the 76ers this past Saturday and during a 115-102 blowout loss two nights ago to the lowly Nuggets.
When the Hawks want to play, though, they are an elite team. That was the case a week ago when the beat the surging Cavaliers by nine points.
I see the Hawks wanting to get back on track after that embarrassing defeat to the Nuggets. Atlanta is 8-1 ATS the past nine times following a defeat and has covered 73 percent of its last 27 road games.
Since Feb. 28, the Suns have played three opponents with winning record. In those games they lost by 25 to the Spurs, by 10 to the Cavaliers and by 18 to the Warriors. The losses to the Spurs and Warriors came at home where the Suns have dropped four of six.
Phoenix also might be missing Brandon Knight again. He's dealing with a sprained ankle that caused him to sit out Phoenix's last game this past Wednesday, a victory against the Timberwolves.
The Suns lack the size to hurt Atlanta inside and they give up the second-highest 3-point shooting percentage when playing at home at 38.5 percent. Sparked by sharp-shooter Kyle Korver, the Hawks own the second-best 3-point shooting percentage in the NBA at 38.5 percent.

 

I recognize that Utah is playing its finest ball right now. The Jazz are 6-1 in their last seven games.
Houston, though, is playing well, too, winning seven of its last 10. The Rockets did lose at Portland last night. But the fatigue factor shouldn't rate high here since prior to meeting Portland, the Rocket last played on Saturday. Houston doesn't play again until Sunday. So a focused, intense effort should be forthcoming as unlike the lottery-bound Jazz, the Rockets are battling for playoff positioning.  
Houston usually takes care of business against below .500 teams covering 14 of the last 18 times in that spot. The Jazz are playing excellent defense, but their last four games have been against the Celtics, 76ers, Nets and Knicks. Now they step way up in class.
The Jazz also could be without their leading scorer, Gordon Hayward. He missed Utah's last game two nights ago due to a back injury.
Houston is the superior team. The Rockets have owned the Jazz winning seven of the past eight meetings, the last three by an average of 21.3 points. It has been 10 games since the Jazz last faced an offensive player as prolific as James Harden, who ranks No. 2 in scoring in the league at 27 points a game.

Yes, the Bulls are without their top three scorers although Derrick Rose wasn't having a great season. 

But Chicago still has enough depth and talent to cover this number against the 76ers. Philly has been idle since Saturday when it upset the Hawks. That's too long for the 76ers to sit. They are 0-5 ATS the last five times when playing on three or more days rest. 

The Bulls had to play at the Spurs, who are playing better now, and then hosted the Grizzlies in their last game two days ago. The Bulls played well, but were too short-handed to beat Memphis. Now Chicago steps way down in class and will be highly focused trying to get the No. 2 seed in the East in what is now a circle-the-wagons game for them following three consecutive losses.

The 76ers haven't won consecutive games since January. I don't see the 76ers ending that streak here. 

If the Pistons want to retain any flicker of playoff hope, they must win this game. A six-game losing streak make them a long shot to make the playoffs after they pulled within one game of reaching the eighth spot on Feb. 22.
Maybe flying to the West Coast and not practicing yesterday will help Detroit because the Pistons are a tired team. And tired teams usually don't shoot well. That's been the problem for the Pistons, particularly in their backcourt where Reggie Jackson and Kenavious Caldwell-Pope have been ice cold.
I see the Lakers as being the remedy to Detroit's cold-shooting woes. The Lakers have been torched by other team's guards this month, including giving up 31 points to Monta Ellis at home two nights ago. Ellis entered that matchup shooting less than 28 percent from the floor during his last four games.
The Lakers are an NBA-worst 4-21 since Jan. 11. They've dropped five in a row and are likely to still be missing Nick Young. The Pistons have covered 11 of their last 16 road contests.
Following this matchup, the Pistons play road games against the Warriors, Trail Blazers and hot Jazz. That makes this game their easiest one - and a huge must-win. A loss to such a bad team as the Lakers would be devastating, something Stan Van Gundy is well aware of.

I want LeBron James and Cleveland in this revenge spot against a bogus Western Conference playoff team that is in a bad spot.
Dallas shot a blistering 56.4 percent when it beat Cleveland, 109-90, on the road Jan. 4. James didn't play in that game and Kyrie Irving had to depart in the third quarter with an injury.
Cleveland is healthy now and refreshed having last played on Saturday after playing four games in five days. Dallas got past the Lakers on Sunday night. This is the Mavericks' first game back from three games on the West Coast.
The Mavericks are just 16-14 in their last 30 games and have consistently failed to step up against stronger competition. They are 7-17 ATS versus foes with a winning record.
Dallas doesn't play that well at home either, covering 45 percent of their games at American Airlines Center. Dallas gives up the second-worst percentage of 3-point baskets at home in the league behind only the Knicks. The Cavaliers have stepped up their perimeter attack averaging 31.3 shots from beyond the arc since Jan. 15.
The Cavaliers have three superstars in their prime plus a strong bench and rotation. They are 10-2 ATS the past 12 times going against Western Conference opponents. Dallas isn't nearly at that level. Dirk Nowitzki is past him prime and Rajon Rondo has been a disappointment since coming from Boston.

Tony Parker finally is playing better and the Spurs have picked up their scoring. In their last five games, San Antonio is averaging 111.2 points per game while shooting nearly 48 percent from the floor. Parker is averaging better than 25 points while shooting better than 64 percent from the floor during his last three games.

Toronto is giving up an average of 106.1 points per game during its last eight games. Toronto is slumping, but look for its offense to pick up with point guard Kyle Lowry back to run things. Only four teams score more points per game than the Raptors. 

The record shows New Orleans and Milwaukee each having 29 losses. But know this: New Orleans is better than Milwaukee. And the Bucks playing at home doesn't change that.
The Pelicans are 7-2 in their last nine games. Every game is a must win spot for them as they battle to grab the final playoff position in the much superior Western Conference.
New Orleans is coming off a win against Memphis this past Friday. That was Anthony Davis' third game back from a shoulder injury. He's averaging 30.3 points and 12.3 rebounds since returning. He's a legitimate MVP candidate. Eric Gordon and Tyreke Evans are playing at high levels, too.
Trading for point guard Norris Cole to help fill the void of injured point guard Jrue Holiday was a shrewd move by the Pelicans. Cole is a nice complementary player and knows how to win having collected a couple of rings when he was with the Heat.  
The Pelicans have covered seven of the last eight times on the road when going against a foe with a winning home record.
The Bucks were maybe the biggest surprise team of the first half. But opposing teams have caught up to them and the Bucks have gotten worse after trading point guard Brandon Knight and getting turnover-prone, poor shooting Michael Carter-Williams in return.
Since that deal, the Bucks have gone 3-6. Their only victories during this span were against the Nuggets, 76ers and Wizards. This was before Denver made its much needed coaching change and had lost 13 of its past 15. The 76ers are tied for the second-fewest wins in the league. The Wizards are 4-13 in their last 17 games and were without Bradley Beal. The Bucks needed a career-game from Kris Middleton to get past Washington. 
Before swapping point guards, the Bucks had won eight of nine. The young and inexperienced Bucks haven't fully adjusted to Carter-Williams and have lost some of their chemistry and confidence. The Bucks have turned into an undisciplined, out-of-control team playing not to lose instead of being loose.
The Bucks now step up in class to face a legitimate Western Conference playoff contender that is playing well. Milwaukee is 1-7 ATS in its last eight games versus Western Conference opponents.
The Pelicans have a good track record versus Milwaukee winning 14 of the last 16 in the series, including going 6-2 the past eight times in Milwaukee.

The aging Nets made the decision at the trade deadline that they are all in. They didn't deal any of their veterans. They are going for the playoffs and they know they can't afford a home loss to the Jazz.
Yes, Utah is playing tremendous defense. But Brooklyn is decently defensively, too, has a stronger bench with Jarrett Jack, Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young. The Nets also catch the Jazz concluding their four-game, six-day road trip.
This is close to a circle-the-wagons game for the Nets after consecutive home losses to the Hornets this past Wednesday and in overtime to the Suns on Friday in which they blew a 15-point lead with less than six minutes to play. Those were bad home defeats. The Nets are going all-out here and they catch the Jazz with a high fatigue rating.

The timing is right for the Timberwolves to upset the Trail Blazers.
Minnesota has lost four in a row, including all three during its current homestand. This is the Timberwolves' final game at Target Center before heading out for four consecutive road games - all likely losses since they face the Clippers, Suns, Thunder and Spurs.
The Timberwolves are off an embarrassing blowout loss to the Nuggets in their last game. Flip Saunders said it was his team's most disappointing loss in two months. Following an off day and then a day of practice should ensure a fresh and motivated Timberwolves squad for this matchup. Nikola Pekovic and Gary Neal are expected to play.
This will be Portland's first game since finding out that Wesley Matthews is out for the season after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon on Thursday against the Mavericks. Matthews isn't just Portland's third-leading scorer and top 3-point shooter. He brings a strong all-around game and is a steady force having played in 153 straight games. Matthews is an underrated player and his loss is going to be felt. LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard are the stars, but Matthews has been the unsung glue for Portland.
 The Trail Blazers' weak bench is made worse by the Matthews' injury since it elevates Arron Afflalo into the starting lineup. Afflalo is having a down year so far. That may change since he's now with the Trail Blazers and not the Nuggets. But he's still going through an adjustment period.  
The Timberwolves usually play better defense at home. They also have capable scorers. Rookie Andrew Wiggins is averaging 20.9 points in his last seven games. Minnesota has covered five of the past six times at home.
Portland is in a weird spot and not just because of the shell shock over losing Matthews. The Trail Blazers just hosted the Mavericks on Thursday and blew them out. After this game they fly back to Portland for consecutive home games. So this is an odd situational element and also marks Portland's third game in four days. That's rough on any team especially one with weak reserves.

Now that word has come down that Devin Harris will not play the Mavericks are really hurting at guard. Monta Ellis represents the Mavericks' only backcourt scoring threat. Dallas' backcourt rotation is Ellis, Rajon Rondo, who has not been a good fit for the Mavericks, J.J. Barea, who has a thumb injury, and Raymond Felton. 

Keep in mind, too, the Mavericks also are without Chandler Parsons and that Golden State ranks No. 1 in defensive field goal percentage. 

The Mavericks have been playing better defense lately giving up an average of 94.6 points during their last six games. 

The Cavaliers have been the hottest team during the last six weeks. Record-wise, the Hawks are the best team in the NBA. But based on current form, Cleveland is better than Atlanta right now.
The Hawks aren't quite in the same great form they showed earlier this season although still are plenty good. But with home-court advantage through-out the conference playoffs all but locked up, the Hawks don't have quite the motivation and incentive the Cavaliers do as the Cavaliers are in a dog fight for the second seed in the East.
The Hawks have won the last two meetings in the series, both of which occurred in December. Cleveland is different and better since then as newcomers and supplemental pieces J.R. Smith, Timofey Mozgov and Iman Shumpert have fit in well and upgraded the Cavaliers' defense.
The Hawks have four All-Stars but none of them are as good as LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love.

Question: Which team has been playing the best defense in the NBA? Go to the head of the class if you answered the Utah Jazz.
The Jazz always had the height, but now the defensive effort and mindset have kicked in. Utah is giving up an average of only 83.2 points per game during its last seven games. That's simply incredible.
Boston scored just 79 points in an embarrassing 31-point loss to Cleveland last night. Brad Stevens called out his team for lack of effort. So I'm expecting an intense Celtics effort here. I'm also expecting a slow pace as the Jazz just played the physical Grizzlies last night.
The under has cashed 10 of the past 14 times the Jazz have been on the road playing a foe with a losing home record. The under also has cashed seven of the last 10 times the Celtics have played following a loss.
 

The Suns are worse than their overall won-lost record. Their players realize they aren't going to make the playoffs after some early season promise so morale and chemistry are down. Phoenix has dropped 10 of its last 13. The Suns are 2-7-1 ATS in their last 10 road games.
The Magic have become rejuvenated defensively under interim coach James Borrego. Since Borrego replaced inept Jacque Vaughn nine games ago, the Magic have given up an average of 92 points per game. Not one opponent has reached triple digits against them during this past nine-game span.
Orlando is 7-3-1 ATS in is last 11 games and can take advantage of the Suns' 28th-ranked defense and minus 2.2 rebound differential.

This is a lot of points to be taking with a hot Jazz squad especially with such a low over/under total.
Utah is playing its best defense of the season holding its past five foes to an average of 82.8 points per game. The Jazz are 6-2 in their last eight games - and their wins have come against solid opponents. During this span, Utah has defeated the Pelicans, Trail Blazers, Spurs and Bucks.
The Jazz have the height and physical front line to match up to the Grizzlies with Derrick Favors and underrated Rudy Gobert.
Memphis isn't playing well right now. In their last three games, the Grizzlies lost by 12 points to the Kings, lost by 18 to the Clippers who were missing Blake Griffin, and nipped the Timberwolves by four.
The Grizzlies also have a bigger game on deck Wednesday when they play on the road against the Rockets.  

Even if Kyrie Irving plays as expected after missing the last two games with a shoulder strain, I'm backing Boston at this point spread range.
The Celtics are well-coached, have good chemistry and are playing hard the entire game. They won't lack for motivation either just one game out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Boston has covered 11 of its last 15 road games and is 8-0 ATS the past eight times meeting foes with a winning record.
The Cavaliers are off a frustrating overtime road loss to the Rockets this past Sunday. So LeBron James and Co. might be fired-up here, but they also have a tougher foe on deck Wednesday when they play at Toronto.  

Forget their season record. The Timberwolves are much better now with a healthy roster, except for Nikola Pekovic who is questionable, and the addition of Kevin Garnett.
Garnett is near the end of a great career, but the team's all-time leader in points and rebounds can still inspire and provides much needed leadership and a winner's mentality. Garnett's return to Minnesota also has rejuvenated the fan base. Garnett purchased 1,000 tickets for this game to be given out to fans.
The Timberwolves have the talent to upset the Blake Griffin-less Clippers and they catch LA in a vulnerable scheduling spot. The Clippers are off impressive road victories against the Grizzlies on Friday and Bulls on Sunday. After this game, the Clippers fly back to LA to host Portland on Wednesday in a much more challenging contest for them.
Despite these recent victories, the Clippers still are 6-13 ATS during their past 19 road contests. They also haven't done well when playing on Monday failing to cover seven of the past eight times on that day.
Minnesota has covered its past four home games and in six of its last seven versus Western Conference foes.

This is a stop the pain game for the Raptors, who have beaten the 76ers seven times in a row.

The Raptors are off their most embarrassing loss of the season falling to the Knicks and won't have a better opportunity to end their losing streak even without Kyle Lowery.

The 76ers could be without their current leading scorer, Robert Covington. The 76ers rank at the bottom of most of the major statistical categories, including scoring, and are playing without rest. The Raptors have the depth to take full advantage of that. 

Under Brad Stevens, you can usually count on the Celtics to play scrappy and hard. The Celtics have been playing well covering eight of their last 10, including winning and covering their last three games.
Boston catches Golden State playing its fourth road game in six days and with a game at Brooklyn on deck Monday. The Warriors are just 3-6 ATS during their past nine games.
The Celtics have been getting solid contributions from their latest newcomers Isaiah Thomas, who knows the Warriors well having played in the same division against them with Phoenix and Sacramento, and Jonas Jerebko.
Marcus Smart and Avery Bradley are hard-nosed defenders who will make Stephen Curry work to earn his points.
The Celtics played Golden State tough on the road losing 114-111 in the first meeting on Jan. 25.

Both teams played last night, which favors the deeper Hawks. 

Miami isn't close to Atlanta's level. It has been more than a month since the Heat even beat an above .500 team. Their last five victories have been against the 76ers, Knicks twice, Magic and Celtics before the Isaiah Thomas trade. 

The teams met twice this season and the Hawks won both times by double-digits. Miami has fared much better on the road than at home where it is 10-16 SU, 8-16-2 ATS. The Hawks, by contrast, have covered 20 of their last 26 road contests. 

The Heat are minus Chris Bosh and have ball-handling problems that the Hawks can exploit. 

Now that the reality of Derrick Rose undergoing his third knee surgery since 2011 and being out for the season has sunk in, look for the Bulls to regroup for this home matchup. The Bulls were slapped by the Hornets, 98-86, at United Center two nights ago in their first game since learning of Rose's injury.
This is what Bulls center Joakim Noah was quoted as saying after the loss to the Hornets: "We've got to play a lot harder.Mentally, I think we were a little bit drained with everything that happened. I just know we have to play a lot harder if we're going to be successful."
The Bulls have covered each of the last six times following a loss. Rose actually wasn't having a strong year - his shooting percentage and minutes played per game were way down from his career marks - and Chicago has good backcourt depth.
Minnesota isn't 100 percent either as rotation players Anthony Bennett and Shabazz Muhammad are out.
The Timberwolves are off an emotional 97-77 home win against the Wizards. That game marked the return of Kevin Garnett, the team's all-time leader in many of their statistics categories. There is a chance the Timberwolves rest the 38-year-old Garnett since the Timberwolves have a home game on Saturday. Minnesota is 3-7-1 ATS in its last 11 games following a victory.
The Bulls have won six of the past seven times when hosting the Timberwolves. I see the Bulls' intensity being up here while the road Timberwolves have a letdown following Garnett's emotional home return.

Discount Orlando's season statistics. Instead concentrate on how improved the Magic are particularly defensively since James Borrego replaced overmatch Jacque Vaughn as head coach. 

Since Borrego took over, the Magic are giving up just 91.7 points per game. This isn't a kill spot for the Hawks, who have to play on the road against the Heat Saturday night. 

The Magic have been gold on the road covering 64 percent of the time. 

Golden State is not playing at peak efficiency heading into its fourth of six consecutive road games. The Warriors have allowed 107 and 110 points during their last two games beating the Wizards and falling to the Cavaliers last night when LeBron James went off for 42 points.
Toronto doesn't have a star anywhere close to James. Its best scorer is streaky DeMar DeRozan, who is shooting 34 percent in his last three games. The Raptors are struggling themselves averaging 92 points in their last six games.
This is the Raptors' first game back from a four-game road swing so their offense still may be off especially facing a Golden State defense that ranks No. 1 in defensive field goal percentage and fourth in defensive 3-point percentage.
Both teams are going to be strongly motivated to play intense with tight defense. The Warriors didn't like James embarrassing them last night while the Raptors are on a three-game losing streak.

The Suns are not a playoff team - and they know it. Their frontcourt is nothing special and their backcourt isn't deep anymore.
Until they beat hopeless Denver last night, the Suns were 1-8 in their last nine games, losing five in a row. They are 3-8 ATS in their last 11 Western Conference matchups.
The Suns lose part of their home-court edge having to play last night in Denver while the Thunder was idle. The Suns come home tired. Oklahoma City has covered in six of its last eight visits to the desert.
The Thunder have covered in their last seven games. They are 4-0 since the All-Star break beating market expectations by 30 points during this span.
No player has had a better February than Russell Westbrook. Serge Ibaka is playing at a high level now, too, and can help Oklahoma City's front line take advantage of the Suns' mediocre inside players. The Suns give up the third-most points in the NBA, have the sixth-lowest rebounding percentage in the league and are undergoing trade-transition trouble with nearly one-third of their roster revamped.

The timing is right to ride the red-hot Cavaliers and fade the Warriors in this matchup. Cleveland is 17-2 in its last 19 games and has won 10 in a row at home. They catch the Warriors in the middle of a six-game road swing and not playing up to their earlier high standards. In their last two games, the Warriors allowed the Pacers to shoot better than 48 percent from the floor and then allowed the Wizards to make 53.2 percent of their field goals this past Tuesday.
Going back even further the Warriors only beat the 76ers by five points, Timberwolves by three and struggling Spurs by 11. Maybe in the end the Warriors prove to be the best team, but right now they are in a down cycle.
The Cavaliers are going to be highly motivated for this matchup especially with a revenge factor and being on the road during four of their next five games. Cleveland was missing LeBron James when it lost to Golden State last month and entered that matchup on a three-game losing streak.
The key to beating the Warriors is limiting their fast breaks and defending well against the 3-pointer. The Cavaliers allow less than 10 fast break points at home, which leads the league. The Cavaliers have held their last three opponents to 22 percent from 3-point range.

Minnesota plays better defense at home. If you discount its performance against Atlanta, Minnesota has allowed an average of 98.3 points during its last eight games at Target Center. 

Expect the Timberwolves to pay more attention to defense now that Kevin Garnett has joined them. I see the Timberwolves slowing the pace down in this matchup after Flip Saunders played Andrew Wiggins 41 minutes, Ricky Rubio 41 minutes, Kevin Martin 41 minutes and Nikola Pekovic 34 minutes in a 113-102 loss to Houston this past Monday. 

The Timberwolves have a history of slowing down the pace following an up-tempo game. The under has cashed 13 of the past 18 times after Minnesota scored 100 or more points in its previous game. The Timberwolves also are 5-0 to the under following a double-digit defeat. 

The Wizards don't figure to push things either after a hard-fough game last night against Golden State. The Wizards have been without shooting guard Bradley Beal. His chief replacement - Garrett Temple - is more about defense than offense.

Note, too, that the under has cashed five of the last seven times Washington has played without rest. 

The Hawks are back on track after a satisfying road win at Milwaukee. They have had two days to rest and prepare and are back home. Dallas has had problems when stepping up in class. The Mavericks are 6-14 ATS the past 20 times playing a foe with a winning record.

The Mavericks' chemistry has been altered with Rajon Rondo and not in a positive way. Rondo and Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle got into a shouting match during last night's victory against the Raptors. 

Dallas has padded its record against easy foes. The Hawks, though, are 14-3 ATS when playing an opponent with a record above .600.

It's an added plus if Tyson Chandler can't go for the Mavericks after he banged up his hip last night. 

Look I'm not fooled by the Pistons' 23-33 record. They are better than that and have been playing well going 18-10 in their last 28 games, including posting decisive victories against the Bulls and Wizards following All-Star break.
But I'm not sold on the new-look Pistons stepping up in this matchup against a vastly superior opponent that is the hottest team in basketball. The Cavaliers have come together winning 16 of their last 18. During this time, the Cavaliers are shooting a league-best 47.9 percent from the field while averaging 108.6 points.
The Cavaliers have adjusted to their new faces, Timofey Mozgov, J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert. They have fit in well supporting  superstars LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love.
The Pistons are on their third starting point guard with newcomer Reggie Jackson, who will be making just his second  appearance with Detroit. Jackson likely will be joined in the starting lineup by another Detroit newcomer, Tayshaun Prince. The Cavaliers are the wrong team - at the wrong time - for the Pistons to make these adjustments against.
Cleveland is 7-2 ATS on one day's rest and has covered 11 of the past 15 times following a win.  

You have to go back to mid-December to find the last time the Spurs dropped three in a row. The Spurs are 0-2 out of the All-Star break losing to the Clippers and Warriors. Now, though, they step way down in class.
Utah is off an impressive 92-76 win against Portland this past Friday in its first game following All-Star break. That was the Jazz's second consecutive home victory. They haven't won three in a row at home all season.
The young Jazz are a lottery team and very inconsistent. They are 11-15 at home with a .500 spread record in Salt Lake City.
San Antonio's offense is down this season. Tony Parker has yet to fully get going. But the Spurs still average 97.6 points on the road. The Jazz have lost 30 of the past 34 times when giving up 97 or more points.  
The Spurs have a huge edge in talent with Parker, a still highly effective Tim Duncan at 38 and Kawhi Leonard. They aren't going to lack for motivation either off back-to-back defeats.
When the teams last met on Jan. 18 in San Antonio, the Spurs held the Jazz to their lowest point total in 16 years winning 89-69.  

The last four in this series have gone over the total and this one should, too.
Houston's defense has been going downhill minus Dwight Howard. The Rockets did hold Toronto to 76 points in their last game, but during their previous five games gave up an average of 111.8 points per game.
The Timberwolves are much improved offensively with Ricky Rubio back in sync, Kevin Martin healthy and Andrew Wiggins coming around. Nikola Pekovic can hurt the Rockets down low without Howard patrolling the middle.
Minnesota is averaging two more possessions on the road than at home while going over 56 percent of the time away from Target Center.
The Timberwolves are terrible on defense giving up the second-most points per game and ranking last in defensive field goal percentage. They also are tied for last in 3-point defensive field goal percentage on the road making them highly vulnerable to James Harden. The Rockets rank sixth in the league in scoring while Harden leads the league in scoring.

The Hornets got the rust off on Saturday when they lost 110-103 to the hot Thunder at home. That was Charlotte's first game since Feb. 10.
The Hornets had covered five straight times as underdogs until last night. They are contending for a playoff spot, upgraded their backcourt by adding veteran Mo Williams, who played extremely well last night, and rank fifth in fewest points allowed per game.
Charlotte is scrappy, well-coached and usually very good in an underdog role. The Hornets also have covered in seven of their last nine road games.
The Hornets can take advantage of Dallas' soft frontcourt with Al Jefferson and have perhaps their best defensive player back from injury in Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.
Dallas is off a satisfying and much needed victory this past Friday against Houston. Up next for the Mavericks are far more challenging games against Toronto and Atlanta.
The Mavericks are not a strong home club. They are 5-13-2 ATS in their last 20 home games. Dallas also is likely to be missing Chandler Parsons, who suffered a sprained ankle against the Rockets. Parsons is Dallas' third-leading scorer and top 3-point shooter. His absence will be felt especially with Monta Ellis in a shooting slump making only 35.1 percent of his shots from the floor during the last eight games.  

Washington is just 14-16 in its last 30 games. But there still is a class difference between these two teams. The Pistons are adjusting to their third new starting point guard and Reggie Jackson is no match for John Wall, who is averaging 30 points in his last three games versus Detroit. This is Jackson's first game for the Pistons.
The Wizards are sure to be fired-up after losing by 38 points to the Cavaliers in their first game following the All-Star break. That was their worst home defeat in 40 years.
Washington is just 1-8 against the Raptors, Hawks and Cavaliers. But they have taken care of business versus bad teams in the conference. The Wizards have the rebounding to match up against Detroit and own the stronger backcourt even with Bradley Beal out. Newcomer Ramon Sessions, a solid backup veteran point guard, is more comfortable after seeing his first action for the Wizards against Cleveland.
This is an important game for the Wizards. They are in the midst of playing six games in nine days and have Golden State on deck Tuesday, which is a probable loss.  

.

The Hawks haven't lost three in a row all season. They will, though, if they lose this matchup. I don't see that happening.
Atlanta wasn't playing up to its early high standard right before the All-Star break and then came out of the break getting blasted 105-80 by the Raptors at home.
I see the Hawks hunkering down here, improving their defense and comfortably beating the Bucks. Milwaukee is playing well, but its lineup is different now with Brandon Knight gone. Until Michael Carter-Williams is ready to return from a toe injury - and it won't be here - the Bucks are way below average at point guard.
The Bucks' strength is coaching, versatility and a strong bench. The Hawks have all of those traits, too, plus a far better starting lineup with four All-Stars. The Hawks have won during their last five visits to Bradley Center.
There are several distractions the Bucks face, too. They were active at the trade deadline so adjustments have to be made. Also Larry Sanders was let go ending an on-going saga. Milwaukee was fortunate to draw totally messed-up Denver for its first game following the All-Star break. This is a huge step up in class.  
Atlanta received a wake-up call from the Raptors. The Hawks haven't been playing well - which is a big reason why this line is so low. But I see a full, focused effort from the more talented team. That should result in an easy Hawks cover.

I'll go with the borderline playoff team from the Western Conference against the borderline playoff team from the much inferior Eastern Conference.
The Pelicans are a .500 club playing in the far more difficult division while Miami is 23-30.
The Heat have been a better road club. They are 9-15 SU at home, 8-15-1 ATS. Miami is 2-8-1 during its past 11 home contests versus opponents with a losing road mark.
This has become a crucial game for the Pelicans after losing last night to the Magic. Anthony Davis and Ryan Anderson each returned from injury, but both were rusty against the Magic. They should both be much better today. The Heat have no one near the caliber of Davis.
New Orleans has covered 13 of the past 16 times when playing without rest.  
Dwayne Wade is back for Miami from a hamstring injury, but his minutes may be limited since he played last night. The Heat had an easy time since they played the Knicks, who are now without Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire. The Pelicans are several tiers above the Knicks.
Goran Dragic could make his Miami debut here. However, there is going to be an adjustment period for Dragic, Wade and the rest of the team. Chris Bosh remains out and his health concerns must be a team distraction.

Nobody is saying the Nets are a good team. But despite an awful record, the Nets are just one game out of a playoff spot. Brooklyn can't compete against elite teams, but can be trusted to take care of business against bottom feeders.  
The Lakers are 1-15 in their last 16 games going 3-12-1 ATS. They have dropped six in a row, rank last in defense and are in the midst of more lineup changes. Winning is not paramount with the Lakers. Improving their lottery position is.
Minus Kobe Bryant, the Lakers have no one to push and motivate.  
The week-long All-Star break should prove beneficial to the veteran-laded Nets especially for Joe Johnson and Deron Williams. Brooklyn retained Brook Lopez so it has a scoring advantage inside against the Lakers.
The Nets improved themselves at the All-Streak break trading Kevin Garnett for Thaddeus Young, who is averaging 14.3 points this season and ranked in the top three in steals last season. Young should be available against the Lakers.
The Nets give up nearly seven fewer points per game than the Lakers and their defense is going to be improved with Young's presence. Brooklyn ranks 14th defensively despite not having a player ranked in the top 50 in steals.  
Brooklyn has four more road games on this Western Conference road trip. This is the Nets' easiest matchup. They can't afford not to be ready.

I see the Kings and their fans motivated and energized for the first time in a long period with the coaching switch to George Karl, who makes his Sacramento coaching debut here.
The Kings have a huge frontcourt edge with DeMarcus Cousins, who is averaging a career-high 23.8 points and 12.5 rebounds. The Celtics are further hampered inside with Jared Sullinger out with a foot injury. Sullinger is Boston's leading scorer and rebounder. The Celtics lack size minus Sullinger.
Boston's lacks the frontcourt depth to adequately replace Sullinger. The Celtics' backcourt was upgraded at the trade deadline yesterday with the acquisition of Isaiah Thomas. He is not expected to play tonight. If Thomas does play, it will be an adjustment with all new teammates. The Kings also know their former teammate.   
The Celtics have lost in their last three trips to Sacramento and are 1-4 ATS the past five times playing the Kings on the road.

The Hawks had lost some of their mojo going into All-Star break. They were just 3-3 and off a loss to Boston. The Hawks are one of the few teams that didn't benefit that much from the week long break as four of their players and head coach participated in the All-Star Game.

The Raptors have a history of playing well in their first game back following the All-Star break under Dwane Casey. They beat the Wizards on the road each of the past two years in these instances and three years ago nearly won at Houston despite having a terrible team. 

Toronto is 2-1 versus the Hawks this season. The Raptors have outrebounded the Hawks in each of the games. The Hawks lack a wing man who scares the Raptors. 

The Raptors match up well to the Hawks. They are the more rested team and have a good history in this spot. 

I like Doc Rivers, but no coach is better with extra preparation time than Gregg Popovich.
This, of course, is the first game for both teams since the All-Star break. The Clippers entered the break 3-5 in their last eight games. They are not in great form especially defensively where they have surrendered an average of 110.4 points during their past five games.
San Antonio plays at Golden State on Friday. The Spurs are not going to be favored in that matchup. No way does Popovich want his team losing their first two games following All-Star break.
The Spurs also will be extra motivated by an embarrassing 105-85 home loss to the Clippers during their last meeting on Jan. 31. That was the Clippers' widest margin of victory ever against San Antonio. The star of the game was Blake Griffin, who scored 31 points and pulled down 13 rebounds.
Griffin is expected to be out at least another two weeks after having surgery last week to remove a staph infection from his right elbow.
The Spurs are the better defensive club, giving up four less points per game than the Clippers. San Antonio, though, is averaging 103.9 points per 100 possessions down from 108.2 from last season when they won the championship.
Tony Parker hasn't had a great year. Look for Parker, who had been dealing with a sore hamstring, to be rejuvenated following the long break and up for the challenge of squaring off against fellow star point guard Chris Paul.
The Spurs have a long history of starting to peak following the break. The Spurs have shown signs of coming on winning 13 of their last 17. They are fresh following the All-Star break, are a prideful, extremely well-coached team with revenge and draw the Clippers minus their star inside scorer, Griffin.
All of this should result in the Spurs winning this game by more than a basket.   

The Spurs shouldn't lack motivation as they have revenge for a blown 18-point lead in a 105-104 home loss to the Pistons last month.
San Antonio was missing Kawhi Leonard in that game and Tony Parker missed the second half. The Spurs are healthy now.
Detroit has failed to cover in 21 of its last 30 home games. The Pistons are 3-11 ATS in their past 14 home contests versus foes with a winning road mark.
The Pistons are fat and happy heading into break having defeated the Hornets on the road last night in big fashion. The Pistons have a huge backcourt disadvantage minus Brandon Jennings, who scored the winning basket in their earlier victory against San Antonio.  

The Nets are an old, veteran team composed of one-time stars past their primes. They are vulnerable to athletic, deep teams.
Memphis isn't especially athletic, nor does it have a deep bench. The Grizzlies' strength is rebounding and physical play. They are much more of an Eastern Conference team than a racehorse Western Conference opponent. Brooklyn has defeated Memphis in two of its past three meetings.  
The Nets can hang with them matchup-wise and won't lack for motivation. The veteran Nets have a lot of prideful players. This is their last game before All-Star break. The Nets are battling for a playoff spot and also some of their veterans - Deron Williams, Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson come quickly to mind - are playing for their futures. There are trade rumors swirling around them. So a strong effort should be forthcoming.
The Grizzlies aren't looking to cover a double-digit margin. They have a more important game and tougher opponent on deck Wednesday when they play the Thunder in Oklahoma City.
 

This marks the Clippers' final game of their eight-game road trip that started Jan. 28. The trip has turned into a disaster with Blake Griffin and J.J. Redick out. The Clippers have lost and failed to cover in their last four games. They have a high fatigue rating here.
But they also are catching far too many points here in a step-up spot against an overrated foe that is 3-11 against the Western Conference's seven other teams in playoff position.
Dallas is 5-16-1 ATS in its last 22 games versus Western Conference foes and has covered just 40 percent of its home games this season.
The Clippers have been hurt on the boards, outrebounded by 46 during their last three games. The Mavericks are not a good rebounding team, though, and will have trouble dealing with DeAndre Jordan, who has averaged 16.4 points and 15.2 rebounds in his last five games versus the Mavericks.

The won-lost records show Toronto better than San Antonio at 34-17 compared to the Spurs' 32-18. But make no mistake, there is a class difference between these two clubs.
The Spurs are far superior to the Raptors. The defending world champions finally appear healthy now for the first time.
This is the opening game of the Spurs' annual rodeo road swing - nine consecutive away matchups. San Antonio just concluded a 5-1 homestand and has won nine of its last 11. The Spurs won't be home again until March 4. They certainly want to start their trip out right.  
The Spurs are a perfect 6-0 SU and ATS this season when beginning a road trip of two or more games. No coach is more dangerous with a day of extra preparation time than Gregg Popovich. The Spurs have added incentive here, too, because their next victory would give Popovich his 1,000th win. Popovich is not the type of guy who wants that distraction and hoopla to linger with his team. The Spurs want to achieve that milestone for Popovich as soon as possible.
Toronto took advantage of a tired Clippers squad to post a 123-107 win two days ago. Prior to that, however, the Raptors lost games to the Bucks and Nets, two borderline playoff teams in the much weaker Eastern Conference.
The Raptors have failed to cover in seven of their last nine home games and are 3-12-1 ATS on one days rest. They also are only 1-7 ATS in their last eight home games when facing a foe with a winning road mark.
San Antonio not only has a winning road record - straight-up and ATS - but has won seven in a row versus the Raptors, including the past four in Toronto. The Spurs are far better than the Raptors on one day rest covering 23 of the past 34 times during those instances.

The Bulls have the better talent especially with Jrue Holiday out for New Orleans. The Bulls have been idle for two days and are seeking to halt a three-game losing streak. They have not lost four in a row all season.
New Orleans is coming off a dramatic 116-113 road win at Oklahoma City last night when Anthony Davis made a 3-pointer as time expired. Davis is a monster, but the Bulls can slow him down with Joakim Noah, one of the top defensive players - if not the best - in the league.
The Pelicans used up a lot of energy in upsetting the Thunder last night. This will be their third game in four days. They lost to the Bulls in Chicago, 107-100, when they had Holiday back on Dec. 27.
The Bulls are 17-9 on the road. That's the best away mark in the Eastern Conference.
Chicago is 8-16 ATS at home, but owns a winning road ATS mark. The Bulls have defeated New Orleans 10 of the last 13 times while covering five of the past six times in New Orleans.

Matchup-wise Orlando is the more talented team. They have the best frontcourt player in Nikola Vucevic and a huge backcourt advantage.
Throw in a huge situational spot for the Magic and it's worth laying this number.
The Magic are desperate to end their 10-game losing streak and five-game home losing skid. Orlando is better than its 15-37 record with Vucevic, Victor Oladipo, Tobias Harris and Elfrid Payton. The Lakers can't match that young talent.
On Thursday, the Magic addressed their underachieving ways by firing coach Jacque Vaughn and his young assistant coaches. A coaching change usually brings short term positive results especially one needed as much as this.
Interim coach James Borrego, who is 37, will be anxious to prove himself now that he has a chance. It's probably not a coincidence the Magic made the coaching move right before playing the Lakers, who have lost eight in a row on the road and 11 of their past 12 overall games. The Lakers' morale can't be too good after blowing a late six-point lead in regulation during their last game falling in overtime to the Bucks on the road. That loss had to sting Lakers coach Bryon Scott, who doesn't like Bucks coach Jason Kidd. The feud stems from when Scott coached Kidd when they were with the Nets.  
Orlando has added incentive because the Lakers blew them out earlier this season. The Lakers likely won't be nearly as motivated coming off the matchup versus Kidd's Bucks and with a national TV game coming up next against LeBron James and the Cavaliers on Sunday.
The Magic have been competitive in their last two games against far superior competition going against the Thunder and Spurs on the road. They lost to both of these teams by seven points, covering each game. Now they drop down in class to face the bottom-five Lakers.
 

Look for both offenses to be rusty as the Bulls last played on Friday while the Rockets have been idle since Saturday. That's too long of a layoff for this time of the season when teams are in the rhythm of playing at least every other day. These non-conference opponents are familiar with each other, too, having met last month.
Joakim Noah is in the argument for best defensive player in the league and he's back for Chicago. The Rockets will be missing Dwight Howard, which hurts defensively but also offensively.
The Rockets have gone under in 17 of their last 24 home contests while the under has cashed in 11 of Chicago's last 13 road games versus winning teams.

Fortunate to be in the Eastern Conference, the Pacers remain in the playoff hunt. They have double revenge motivation and catch the Pistons without rest off a big home win against Miami last night.

The Pacers have had a ton of injuries, but point guard George Hill is back and his minutes are increasing. That's a key.

I don't like the Pistons' situation at point guard with Brandon Jennings out for the season. Journeyman D.J. Augustine isn't going to be that effective in a back-to-back situation and he has nothing proven behind him.

The Trail Blazers are 2-8 SU and ATS in their last 10 games and have lost three in a row. This skid is not deceiving. The Trail Blazers are not playing well.
It's too big a leap of faith to believe the Trail Blazers can just turn it on here and bury the Jazz.
Utah is 6-6 in its last 12 road games. The Jazz have covered 10 of their last 14 road contests. They are loose, feel no pressure and are off a confidence-building 110-100 home victory over powerful Golden State. That game was back on Friday so the Jazz have had plenty of time to come down from that high while preparing for this matchup. The Jazz have had good point spread success in Portland covering seven of the past 10 times there.
Portland is down two big men with Robin Lopez and to a much lesser extent Joel Freeland both being out. The Jazz have a physical, tall front line that's helped them post nearly a plus nine rebounding margin per game during the last five games.
LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard are Portland's two best players. The team has a weak bench. Aldridge is holding up so far, but the heavy minutes he's been playing have caught up to Lillard as we near All-Star break. The point guard is shooting just 33 percent from the floor during the last 10 games.
This is Portland's first home game since Jan. 24. The Trail Blazers have a bigger game on deck hosting Phoenix Thursday. Utah has been idle since Friday so it's a good spot, too, for the Jazz.  

 

The Heat are much better on the road where they have a winning straight-up record and 14-9-1 ATS mark.
Detroit isn't the same without point guard and catalyst Brandon Jennings. The Pistons are 1-4 in their last five games.
The Heat are much improved inside thanks to Hassan Whiteside. Dwayne Wade remains out, but Chris Bosh is playing and Luol Deng could return.
Miami has won nine of the past 10 times when visiting Detroit.

The guard-oriented, finesse Suns are not a good matchup against the physical, rugged Grizzlies, who are playing their finest defense of the season.
Phoenix has lost six in a row to Memphis, including twice this season by an average of 11.5 points although one game did go into overtime.
The Grizzlies have won 10 of their last 11, including six straight. They are giving up only 82.6 points per game during their last six games. In their last two games, the Grizzlies held Oklahoma City to 74 points and Denver to 69.
Phoenix only managed 87 points against Golden State in its last game this past Saturday at home during a 19-point loss. The Warriors rank No. 1 defensively. Memphis is No. 2 defensively.
The Grizzlies are a solid 14-7 on the road with a winning away spread mark. The Suns are just a .500 team versus the spread at home.

While the Celtics are in rebuild mode again this season having dealt Rajon Rondo and Jeff Green, the Heat are fighting for a playoff spot and consider this a crucial game as they begin a four-game road trip.
Miami is a miserable 8-15 at home, but 12-11 on the road. The Heat have covered 59 percent of their away matchups. Boston is 2-7 ATS the past nine times when hosting an opponent with a winning road mark.
The Celtics are five games under .500 at home. Their home attendance may be down for this matchup with the Patriots playing in the Super Bowl later in the day. Miami has covered nine of the last 10 times versus foes with a losing home mark. Boston has lost five of its past six home games, including the last three.
The Heat buried the Celtics, 100-84, at home when they last met on Dec. 21. What's significant about that is the Heat won by 16 despite not having Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and Hassan Whiteside.
Whiteside has emerged has an inside force ranking in the top 10 in rebounding and leading the league in blocked shots since Jan. 11. He's averaging 17.7 rebounds and 15.3 points during his last three games. Boston is a below average rebounding team without a starter taller than 6-foot-9.
Wade is out again, but Bosh and Whiteside will play. So could Luol Deng, who has missed the last two games with a calf injury.

It's easy to see a lot of points being scored by these two teams. But the oddsmaker opened this game much too high considering the circumstances.
Golden State ranks No. 1 in defensive field goal percentage and No. 3 in defensive 3-point percentage. The Suns are a guard-oriented perimeter team. This is their first road game since Jan. 13.
The Warriors are trying to keep from losing three in a row for the first time this season. They gave up 110 points to Utah last night in an embarrassing performance. Their intensity level should be sky-high for this home matchup. The Warriors had to play up-tempo in an effort to rally against the Jazz. So their game pace is likely to be slower here especially knowing the Suns like to run.
Phoenix is off a physical 99-93 home win against the Bulls last night so its running capability may be down a notch, too.  
 

No team is giving up fewer points per game this month than Charlotte at 89.8. The Nuggets have been in a scoring slump averaging 93.1 points during their past seven games. Brian Shaw still can't seem to figure out the right rotation. Denver has lost eight of its past nine. 

Al Jefferson is getting better each game since his return from injury. This will be his sixth game back since being out with a groin injury. Jefferson had 22 points when the Hornets beat the Nuggets, 110-82, at home last month. 

The Pistons have yet to win in three games since losing point guard Brandon Jennings for the season. Detroit just has journeyman D.J. Augustin and rookie Spencer Dinwiddie as their only point guards now. 

The Pistons only scored 69 points against the 76ers this past Wednesday in their last game. The Rockets have won four in a row. They beat Boston on the road last night by six points despite James Harden missing 17 of 21 shots from the floor. 

The Rockets have won the last seven in this series. The return of Terrence Jones reduces the loss of Dwight Howard. 

Since they met in the playoffs last season, the Raptors have remained good while the Nets have sunk to the point where they would miss the postseason if the playoffs began now.
But this might work to Brooklyn's advantage in this matchup because now Toronto has a much bigger game on Saturday when it takes on the Wizards.
This is a circle-the-wagons game for Brooklyn, losers of 11 of its last 13 and six straight at home. The Nets should be highly motivated and rested as this marks just their second game in a week due to Monday's home game postponement against Portland.
The extra rest has given the Nets some extra pep in their step and helped reduce some of the tendinitis in Joe Johnson's knee, which has slowed him down. Deron Williams won't be ready to return to the court yet, but Jarrett Jack has been playing well in his absence.
The Nets do play respectable defense ranking 13th. They've held 28 opponents under 100 points. Brooklyn also has won four of its five home contests versus the Raptors.
The Raptors are playing for the third time in four nights - all in different cities. They need to cut back the minutes of some of their key players here with Washington on deck tomorrow night.  
 

Dwight Howard isn't going to play, but the Celtics have a weak front line and the spread isn't as high as it would be if Howard were playing. 

The Celtics have dropped 10 of their last 15. They just aren't a very good team as they keep getting rid of their best players in an effort to rebuild. They also are banged up in the backcourt as neither Avery Bradley nor Evan Turner is 100 percent. 

This is a difficult schedule spot for Boston. The Celtics just got through playing six consecutive road games that took them to the Pacific Time Zone then Mountain Time Zone and then back to West Coast time. Now they're playing on Eastern time. 

Houston has recovered from its recent losses to Golden State to post three straight victories and covers beating the Suns, Lakers and Mavericks. Getting underrated Terrence Jones back helps reduce the loss of Howard. 

The Rockets have covered 11 of the past 12 times when playing a below .500 opponent and have covered 10 of the last 13 times in Boston.

Both of these teams are in rebuilding mode. The Bucks have made bigger strides this season under Jason Kidd and own the stronger bench, but Orlando has the better talent with Nikola Vucevic, Victor Oladipo, Tobias Harris and an improving rookie point guard in Elfrid Payton.
Even though Miami and Orlando are way down this season, it's still not that easy to do the Florida two-step and beat the Heat and Magic in consecutive road games, which is what the Bucks are trying to do.
The Magic have absolutely owned Milwaukee in Orlando winning the past 17 times! The last time the Bucks won in Orlando was 2004. That sustained kind of history can't be discounted. The Magic usually give the Bucks problems covering in nine of the last 12 meetings.  
Orlando has dropped 12 of its last 14. The Magic players and coach Jacque Vaughn believe their team is very close to turning things around. Orlando has been idle since Monday. Milwaukee is playing its third consecutive road game and is minus Jabari Parker and Larry Sanders in the middle.
The Magic's next three games are against Western Conference foes the Mavericks, Spurs and Thunder. That's likely three more losses. This is the matchup they want. So they should be well prepared and motivated.

The Heat have been playing tremendous defense, are home and have double-revenge motivation going here.
Miami has held nine of its last 10 foes under 100 points, including the past five. The Heat are off an impressive and confidence-boosting 96-84 road win against the Bulls two days ago.
While Miami is 5-3 in its last eight games, Milwaukee has dropped three of its last four and is playing for the third time in four days. The Bucks have won both meetings against Miami this season.
The Heat, though, have found a center now - Hassan Whiteside. He scored 14 points, pulled down 13 rebounds and blocked a franchise-record 12 shots against the Bulls. The Heat are healthy with Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and Luol Deng all in the lineup, now fortified with the emerging Whiteside, who has averaged 12.3 points, 8.6 rebounds and four blocks in his last nine games. Sparked by Whiteside, the Hat have held 10 of their last 12 foes below their season scoring average.
The Bucks can't counter this star power and are without their best shot-blocker, suspended Larry Sanders.  

The Pacers rank No. 3 in scoring defense, are highly motivated to end their seven-game losing streak and have back starting point guard George Hill. 

Orlando is playing more up-tempo. This has resulted in better offensive production but it has been at the cost of defense. The Magic are surrendering an average of 118.5 points during their last four games, all losses. Orlando has yielded triple digits in each of its last eight games. The Knicks, who rank second-to-last in scoring, just put up 113 points on Orlando.  

Orlando has been better on the road. The Magic are 5-14 SU at home, 7-12 ATS.  

Nikola Vucevic is playing well for Orlando, but the Pacers rank 22 spots higher than the Magic in rebounding. I also like Indiana's coaching edge with Frank Vogel. Orlando coach Jacque Vaughn still hasn't solved his team's defensive woes, lack of toughness, nor has he found the right rotation. 

The Clippers have the superstars, but that doesn't mean they are better than the Suns when playing in Phoenix.
Los Angeles has won three in a row. Those victories those were against below .500 teams the Nets, Celtics and Kings.
Phoenix has gone 14-5 since switching its lineup. The Suns were in a position to win the other five games during this span during the final minute. Their last non-competitive loss was back on Dec. 14. Since Dec. 17, the Suns have the third-best record in the NBA behind only the Warriors and Hawks.
The Suns' trio of outstanding guards - Goran Dragic, Eric Bledsoe and Isaiah Thomas - can cause a lot of problems for the depth-shy Clippers. Phoenix has broken the 100-point barrier in all but one of its last 17 games.
The Suns nearly upset the Clippers in LA during their previous meeting blowing a four-point lead with 34 seconds left in a 121-120 overtime loss while missing Thomas.

The Rockets lost a lot of their swagger and confidence after suffering recent blowout losses to Golden State. Now they face the hot Suns on the road, a team they do not match up against well at all.

The Suns are going for their seventh consecutive home win. They have not played a bad game in nearly a month going 14-4 during their last 18 games with two of those defeats coming on the road in overtime to Oklahoma City and Memphis. 

Houston is 3-5 in its last eight road contests. The Rockets catch a rested and relaxed Suns squad that has been home for 10 days. Phoenix is averaging 112.5 points in its last four home contests. The Suns rank No. 3 in steals and turnovers forced led by their star guard trio of Goran Dragic, Eric Bledsoe and Isaiah Thomas. 

Houston's defense has slipped and the Rockets have trouble handling the ball ranking second to last in turnovers and number of steals allowed. 

Denver had started to show signs of life earlier this month, but have lost four in a row. Three of those defeats came to the Mavericks, Warriors and Spurs, though.
Now the Nuggets step way down in class in a circle-the-wagons game for them. Denver has been idle the past two days and gets back sharpshooter Danilo Gallinari. He had missed the last 15 games with a knee injury. Gallinari can take some of the perimeter pressure off Arron Afflalo.
The Nuggets are making just 40.8 percent of their shots from the field during their losing streak and 33 percent from the 3-point line. They also are hitting just 66.3 percent from the free-throw line. Gallinari should help turn around those low marks.
The Celtics just ended a 24-game road losing streak to Western Conference foes by nipping injury-plagued Portland, 90-89, last night on a 3-pointer by Evan Turner with one second left. This puts the Celtics, who dealt away point guard Rajon Rondo and leading scorer Jeff Green, in a letdown spot lacking the offense to stay with Denver.
Not only are the Celtics playing without rest, but they are entering a new time zone and playing in high altitude. They have a bad track record in Denver having lost the past five times there while failing to cover eight of the last 10 times, including losing by 31 points last season at Pepsi Center.
I like the Nuggets even if Kenneth Faried can't play. He missed Thursday's practice with flulike symptoms.

The Nets don't have the offense to hang with the Clippers and are fat and happy after holding off Sacramento last night to open their West Coast trip with a victory. They have a far more winnable road game against the Jazz on Saturday.
The Clippers, unlike the Nets who are without Deron Williams, are healthy and their stars are in their prime. The Clippers rank in the top four in scoring, field goal percentage and 3-point percentage.
Brooklyn is averaging just 92 points during its last 10 games going 2-8 SU, 3-7 ATS. The Nets are averaging 11 points fewer per game than the Clippers. The Clippers are giving up less than 99 points per game at home. They have defeated the Nets nine of the last 10 times at Staples Center, including the past three. LA also is 6-3 ATS hosting below .500 Eastern Conference opponents.
The Nets beat the Kings in large part because of a strong performance from center Brook Lopez, who scored 22 points and had six blocks. Lopez figures to struggle, though, matched against DeAndre Jordan, who is having a monster season leading the NBA in rebounding and field goal percentage while ranking second in blocks.   
Another key for the Clippers is focus. They should have it since they last played on Monday and won't play again until Sunday.  

Lot of superstars here with James Harden, Dwight Howard and Stephen Curry. So offense is the first thing to come to mind.
However, these two teams rank first and second, respectively, in defensive efficiency. Golden State also is No. 1 in defensive field goal percentage while the Rockets rank second in defensive 3-point percentage.
Yet we have a very high total here. Why? Besides the star power there is the Warriors' 131-106 road win against the Rockets this past Saturday. That's a combined 237 points.
But in the two previous games this season the Rockets and Warriors combined for 185 points and 198 points.
The Rockets are going to play defense with a great deal of intensity after giving up their highest point total in 120 games following that humiliating 25-point home loss to the Warriors. This is what Rockets coach Kevin McHale was quoted as saying after the loss to the Warriors, "We have to be a lot better. We didn't put up any kind of fight. We didn't have the effort against them."
So I'm expecting a big defensive effort from the Rockets, while the Warriors have surrendered an average of only 91 points per game during their last five home games with three of those matchups coming against respectable offenses Denver, Cleveland and Oklahoma City.  

San Antonio is starting to make its move with Kawhi Leonard back healthy. The Spurs have won five of their last six, including three in a row. Leonard helped the Spurs win their last two games - 110-96 over Portland and 89-69 over Utah. San Antonio has tightened its defense allowing just 91.1 points per game during its last six matchups.
There is some urgency with the Spurs as they are in seventh place in the Western Conference. No coach is better with time to prepare than Gregg Popovich. The Spurs were one of the few teams that did not play on Monday.
Denver is playing for the fourth time in the last five days. The Nuggets played yesterday and were blown out on the road at Golden State, 122-79. They probably will play hard following that humiliation, but they are not playing well with three straight losses and have yet to settle on a rotation. Brian Shaw, in my view, is in way over his head as a head coach giving San Antonio a coaching edge of massive proportions.

Taking to the road after six straight home games might be the best thing for the Raptors especially since they are taking on the Bucks.
Toronto may have been playing over its head during the early stages of the season, but the Raptors aren't as bad as they've been lately losing seven of their last nine. This is a circle-the-wagons type of matchup for the Raptors after losing 95-93 at home on Sunday to New Orleans, who were missing Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday.
The Raptors have owned the Bucks winning the past five in the series. This includes a 124-82 home win against Milwaukee on Nov. 21. That was the Bucks' worst loss of the season.  
The Bucks weren't suffering from jet lag either during that defeat like they could be here having played their last game in London this past Thursday against the hopeless Knicks. Toronto played early on Sunday and is 6-1 ATS the last seven times when playing without rest.
This will be DeMar DeRozan's fourth game back from a torn abductor. So the adjustment period should be over. DeRozan and Kyle Lowery give Toronto the two best players on the court.
Milwaukee's one-time deep bench has been weakened by injuries to Jabari Parker and Kendall Marshall, both out for the season, and by the suspension to center Larry Sanders, its best shot-blocker.  

Detroit and Atlanta have been two play-on teams. But the spot and line value clearly favor the Pistons in this matchup.
The Pistons catch the Hawks in action for the fifth time in seven days and returning home for this holiday matchup after a hugely successful four-game road trip where they defeated the 76ers, Celtics, Raptors and Bulls.
The Hawks are playing outstanding, but so is Detroit. The Pistons have won 11 of their last 13 games going 10-3 ATS. One of those defeats came at home, 106-103, to the Hawks 10 days ago. That was the first time the Pistons lost since getting rid of Josh Smith.
The Pistons have won and covered their last seven road games, posting victories against the Spurs, Mavericks and Raptors during this span.
Detroit can hang tight with Atlanta on the road especially given the Hawks' fatigue and situational disadvantages.    

Revenge can be overrated in the NBA. Not here. The Wizards were embarrassed 102-80 at home last night by Eastern Conference rival Brooklyn.
Now Washington can do something right away about it as this is a back-to-back home-road series.
The Wizards were ripe for a letdown last night having posted impressive victories this week against the Spurs and Bulls. The Nets entered last night's matchup on a seven-game losing streak with trade rumors swirling around several of their players.
But the Nets played well, particularly Brook Lopez, and the Wizards had their poorest game of the season. Sensing his team lacked the necessary energy - which happens during the course of the long NBA season - Wizards coach Randy Wittman pulled his starters early. Only John Wall logged more than 26 minutes. He played 31 minutes.
I'm expecting a monster effort from the Wizards, who are the more rested team with the superior talent and stronger bench especially with Deron Williams out for the Nets. Washington's key players are in their prime. Brooklyn's top players are past their prime.
Normally the Nets wouldn't be able to match the Wizards' physical play and up-tempo pace. I don't see them doing it twice in a row especially off such a satisfying victory and considering how bad they've been playing with a 2-7 ATS mark in their last nine games. Marcin Gortat is much better than he looked Friday. He should be able to clamp down on the slow-footed Lopez.

A revenge spot for Dallas has the oddsmaker opening this game way too high. The Mavericks sat out Dirk Nowitzki, Tyson Chandler and Rajon Rondo when they met the Nuggets at Pepsi Center two nights ago. The Nuggets won, 114-107.
Those three stars are all slated to be in Dallas' lineup tonight. But it's not a given the Mavericks are going to easily defeat the Nuggets, who are playing their finest ball of the season with five straight victories. The Nuggets are averaging 109.8 points per game on 51.5 percent shooting from the floor during their winning streak.
 Denver has defeated Dallas in six of the last eight meetings. The Nuggets outrebounded the Mavericks by 12 this past Wednesday. Chandler being back makes a difference. He's the third-leading rebounder in the league. But the Nuggets still will be active on the boards thanks to Kenneth Faried, who had 22 points and 14 rebounds versus Dallas two nights ago. Only 11 players average more rebounds per game than Faried.
The Nuggets were short-handed at point guard when they beat Dallas. That won't be the case tonight as they have former Maverick Jameer Nelson to back up Ty Lawson, who played huge on Wednesday with 29 points and 12 assists. Nelson knows the Mavericks well having started the first 23 games for them this season. His knowledge should come in handy.
Dallas has covered just one of its last 12 games versus Western Conference opponents. The Mavericks also have a much better spread record on the road than at home where they have failed to cover nine of the past 12 times.

Enough is enough. Now that LeBron James is back in the lineup and taking on the league's second-worst defense expect the Cavaliers to end their six-game losing streak with a resounding victory over the Lakers.
The Lakers are surrendering 106.8 points per game and have matchup problems all over the court starting with James, who hit 11 of 18 shots from the field while scoring 33 points against the Suns two nights ago. James didn't look rusty at all after missing the previous eight games with a sore knee.
Los Angeles' point guards Ronnie Price and Jeremy Lin are going to have problems handling Kyrie Irving and Cleveland newcomer Timofey Mozgov has hurt the Lakers' in the past with his inside presence.
It's going to be difficult for the Lakers to keep pace with Cleveland's scoring as their two main scorers, Kobe Bryant and Nick Young, are in shooting slumps. Bryant is at the end of a Hall of Fame career. The Lakers play better without him and his atrocious less than 37 percent shooting percentage, ball-hog ways.
The Cavaliers are going to treat this game with a great deal of urgency being under .500 now and having dropped nine of their last 10.

The spot couldn't be better for Denver. The Nuggets have been idle for four days and catch the aging Mavericks off an overtime road victory against Sacramento last night. All of Dallas' starters logged at least 36 minutes against the Kings with four of them seeing at least 38 minutes of action. Big man Tyson Chandler played nearly 44 minutes.  
Now the Mavs have to go into Denver's high altitude from the West Coast where they lose an hour because of the time change and face the Nuggets, who are playing their finest ball with a four-game winning streak. Arron Afflalo has been especially hot for the Nuggets averaging 23 points in his last five games.
These same two teams meet again Friday in Dallas. That's the better spot for the Mavericks. Not here.  

Dallas hasn't lost three games in a row all season and I don't see the Mavericks losing here. The Mavericks are 19-2 in their last 21 regular-season games versus Sacramento.
The Mavericks were rolling along riding a six-game winning streak where they were outscoring their opponents by 13.5 points per game until losing to the hot Pistons last Wednesday and then getting blown out, 120-100, by the Clippers on the road this past Saturday.
Dallas is much superior to Sacramento and won't lack for motivation. The Kings possess talent with DeMarcus Cousins and Rudy Gay. But they are immature, which could factor in this matchup as the Kings blew out the Cavaliers at home this past Saturday.  
Sacramento is just 3-10-2 ATS in its last 15 home games even with that victory. The Mavericks are 48-20 ATS under Rick Carlisle following a loss and have covered 69 percent of their previous 89 road matchups.
Dallas came from 24 points down to beat Sacramento in the first meeting of the season, 106-98. The Kings were playing better back then. They have yet to reach their early-season promise since naming recycled Tyrone Corbin as their interim coach 13 games ago going 5-8.

This is a bad matchup for the Nets, who are short in the backcourt without injured Deron Williams and don't have the inside talent to contain Dwight Howard.
The Rockets are playing well while Brooklyn is not. Houston has won three in a row - all by 12 points or more. The Rockets rank third in the NBA in defense and are averaging 108.4 points in their last five games. James Harden is leading the league in scoring. The Rockets have improved their rotation since bringing Josh Smith off the bench.
The Nets have dropped five in a row, averaging less than 87 points per game during this span. Brooklyn traditionally struggles versus athletic teams. There is a fatigue issue, too, for the Nets playing for the sixth time in nine days. Houston has won 14 of the last 15 in the series going 11-4 ATS.
The Rockets have covered the past seven times when facing a below .500 team. The Nets are 5-15-1 ATS the last 21 times when meeting a foe with a road winning percentage above .600.

The Timberwolves have to win sometime don't they? They are mired in a 13-game losing streak minus key players Ricky Rubio, Nikola Pekovic and Kevin Martin. In addition, veteran point guard Mo Williams turned an ankle in the Wolves' narrow loss to the Suns two nights and may not play.
But unlike the 76ers and Knicks - the other two worst teams in the NBA - the Timberwolves have some exciting young talent and usually can be counted on for a good effort. More than half of their defeats during their losing streak have been by single-digits.
The Bucks may be the most improved team in the Eastern Conference, but they have lost and failed to cover in their last four home games. Milwaukee is down key players, too, especially in the frontcourt where Ersan Ilyasova, Jabari Parker and Larry Sanders are all out.
Minnesota has won four of the last five in the series. Andrew Wiggins is making a strong bid to win Rookie of the Year honors averaging 22.6 points and shooting 51.3 percent from the floor during the last eight games. Anthony Bennett has put together two straight double-double performances and Shabazz Muhammad has scored 18 or more points in eight of his last 13 games.

I'm going to take this many points with Utah after word that Trey Burks is healthy enough to play after missing the last game due to illness. Utah has covered seven of its last eight road games and catch Chicago in a flat spot.
The Bulls are off an impressive home win against the Rockets this past Monday and are at Washington on Friday in a much bigger game.
Chicago is 6-11 ATS at United Center this season and have failed to cover seven of the past nine times when playing foes that have a winning percentage under .400.
The Bulls have won 10 of their past 11 games, but only one of those victories was by more than nine points.
The Jazz nearly beat the Bulls when they met back in late November losing by two points. Only of the last five games between the two teams have been decided by more than four points.

I'll take the points with a good Western Conference team versus a good Eastern Conference team. Memphis ranks sixth defensively and is shooting 46.6 percent from the floor. Atlanta ranks fifth defensively and shoots 46.7 percent from the floor. The Grizzlies are 19-1 the past 20 times when outshooting their opponent.
The spot is good for the Grizzlies catching the Hawks in their first home game back from three straight wins on the West Coast, a journey that didn't finish until this past Monday.

These have been two play-on teams, but I believe the Suns get it done here in a revenge spot and off one of their most impressive victories of the season.
Phoenix has covered nine of its last 10. The Suns rolled past Toronto, 125-109, this past Sunday for their eighth win in their last 10 games. Phoenix is 7-1 on the road versus Eastern Conference foes, winning the last five times.
The Bucks stepped way down in competition beating the Knicks on the road this past Sunday, 95-82. If they didn't win that game they would have losing record since Jabari Parker went down 10 games ago.
The Suns have won during their past three visits to Milwaukee. They lost at home, though, in mid-December to the Bucks on a crazy 3-point shot at the buzzer, 96-94. The Suns didn't have Goran Dragic for that game. Dragic is their best player. He's averaging 19.4 points during the last seven games.  
The Bucks can't match the Suns in the backcourt and aren't a superior rebounding team to take advantage of Phoenix's smallish frontcourt especially with perennial distraction Larry Sanders missing in action.

Much is made of Minnesota's many injuries. But Utah is down to its fourth-string shooting guard with Alec Burks, Rodney Hood and Patrick Christopher all out. The Jazz also lost center Enes Kanter last night in their 98-92 home loss to the Hawks. Kanter suffered an ankle injury leaving Utah thin up front, too, along with the backcourt.
Due to their guard injuries, Trey Burke had to log 39 minutes against the Hawks and his arms obviously were weary because he missed a mind-boggling 19 of 21 shots from the field, including all 11 of his 3-point attempts. The Jazz didn't mail in this game either. They had a strong fourth quarter comeback that fell short.
Now the Jazz have to make the trek to wintery Minnesota less than 24 hours after falling to the Hawks. Utah has failed to cover six of the last eight times it has played on zero rest. The Timberwolves, losers of 10 in a row, may seem like the perfect patsy but they are not. They have covered four in a row, have some young talent and rank seventh in fast break points. They will run on the tired Jazz, who are down a key rebounder with Kanter sidelined.
Minnesota also has covered in four of its last five versus Utah and have revenge for a 100-94 loss to the Jazz in Salt Lake City this past Tuesday.

The Grizzlies are back on track following their 95-87 home win against the Spurs this past Tuesday. Memphis doesn't want to give that great win right back with a loss against the lowly Lakers.

Memphis ranks fifth defensively giving up 12 points fewer per game than the Lakers, who rank last defensively. The Grizzlies remain without Zach Randolph, but still dominate inside against the Lakers with Marc Gasol and at point guard with Mike Conley, who quietly is having an outstanding season. Conley has taken advantage of the Lakers' weakness at point guard to average 22 points and shoot 56.4 percent from the field in the last three games versus LA.

The Grizzlies have defeated the Lakers in eight of the last 10 meetings, including the past four. They beat the Lakers on Nov. 26 by six points when the Lakers played pretty well. I don't think the Lakers will be that sharp here coming off a 111-103 road win at Denver. Kobe Bryant may have had his best game of the season in that victory. Bryant, though, is shooting 37.5 percent from the floor.

No team has been hotter than Atlanta, which has won 14 of 15. The Hawks have proven they can beat elite competition, too, reeling off five straight victories with those wins coming against the Bulls, Cavaliers, Rockets, Mavericks and Clippers. The first four of those victories were achieved on the road.

Atlanta rallied from a 13-point deficit to knock off the Clippers on Tuesday in its last game. I see a letdown for the Hawks as they finally step down in class. The two teams meet again tomorrow night in Milwaukee so it's not a kill spot either for the Hawks.

The Bucks should be fired-up after holding a 50-minute players-only meeting following their last game, a 108-101 home loss to the Hornets. Atlanta has been playing outstanding defense, but the Bucks have reached triple digits in 12 of their past 14 games. They are shooting 49.9 percent from the field this month, best in the NBA.

The Bucks have covered 12 of 17 road games this season and have the highest scoring bench in the league. That puts them in line for at least a back-door cover if the Hawks play better than expected.