Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #562 Friday 10* Top Play Charlotte Hornets (+) vs Milwaukee Bucks @ 3:05 ET (game play in Paris) - Sometimes strange results happen. That was evident in the first meeting between these teams this season. On the final day of November, these teams met in Milwaukee. The Hornets had 5 more shot attempts from the field than the Bucks and yet lost the game by a margin of 41 points! That is helping to offer line value here as now this game is being played on a neutral floor and yet the the line is in the 14 range just like the first meeting at Milwaukee. The fact this game is in Paris makes it practically a "Super Bowl" game for Charlotte. In an otherwise disappointing season, the Hornets know this is an opportunity to win a huge game on "the big stage" in the first ever regular season game played in France. The Hornets are still alive in the Eastern Conference playoff race but odds are not good with the way their season has been going. This includes a current 7-game losing streak for Charlotte while Milwaukee enters this game having won 7 straight. Also, the Bucks have their sights set on an NBA Championship. I foresee them winning this game of course but only by single digits as the Hornets aren't going to go down without a helluva fight. Ugly losses for Charlotte in their two most recent games and also in that first meeting at Milwaukee. Before failing to cover their most recent road game, the Hornets were on a 4-1 ATS run in road games. The Bucks are on a 2-5 ATS run in games in which they are a double digit favorite. Milwaukee is 1-4 ATS this season when off a home win against a divisional foe. The Hornets are 3-0 ATS this season when off a loss against a divisional foe. 10* CHARLOTTE

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #555 Thursday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Cleveland Cavaliers vs Washington Wizards @ 7:05 ET - The Wizards are off an OT loss at Miami last night. However, when you look at minutes played, Washington actually spread the workload quite well. You don't see excessively heavy minutes for anyone really and, in essence, that makes this a normal back to back situation. The over is 22-12 (including 4-1 this season) when the Wizards are playing the 2nd game of a back to back. As for the Cavaliers, they are off an embarrassing home loss on Monday in which they had a horrific shooting night and scored just 86 points. Note that the over is 10-4 this season when Cleveland is off a home loss. Also, prior to that under, the Cavaliers had been 8-2 to the over so far this month. The Cavs are fired up after their embarrassing performance against an equally bad Knicks team. Their game plan tonight, coming in rested and with the Wizards in the 2nd night of a back to back, is to try and run Washington right out of the arena. Of course the Wizards do like to play fast so the result is a game with a ton of points that will look like a track meet with guys running up and down the floor and trying to get quick open shots in transition. Yesterday's Washington game had a total of 229 and that flew over the total (in regulation too) and plus the Wizards entered that game having gone 8-2 to the over this season in road games with a posted total of 230 or more. Tonight's Cavaliers game falls into that category and I look for another high-scoring match-up. Washington plays this game with revenge from a home loss to the Cavs and the over is 8-4 this season when playing with same season revenge. 10* OVER the total in Cleveland

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #539 Wednesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76'ers (+) @ Toronto Raptors @ 7 ET - Both teams come into this one on 4-game winning streaks but each have played weak teams so call that a draw. That said, even without Joel Embiid, the Sixers offer great value as a sizable dog in this spot. They were knocked out of the post-season by the Raptors in May. They got some revenge with an early December home win over the Raptors but they did lose their earlier match-up this season at Toronto. The 76ers have a recent history of struggling in games played at Toronto. As a result, look for a highly motivated and intense road dog taking the court at Scotiabank Arena tonight. The Raptors are just 2-4 SU in their last 6 games against teams with a winning record. The Sixers are 10-5 ATS (11-4 SU) this season when off a game in which they scored 115 points or more. Toronto is as high as a 6.5 point favorite in spots this morning but many books have them at -6. I would not be surprised if the line stays there or falls even lower. The Raptors are 3-6 ATS this season when they are a home favorite of 6 points or less. That said, Toronto is in for an all-out war here and I am grabbing the value with the underdog. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #531 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Detroit Pistons vs Sacramento Kings @ 7:05 ET - The Pistons total burned me Monday at Washington when the teams had a great first half but then both teams struggled to score in the second half. With Detroit back at home for this one, I expect to get immediate payback here as they host the Kings. Note that the Pistons are 5-1 to the over in their last 6 home games. Overall Detroit was on an 11-3 run to the over before their ugly low-scoring loss to the Wizards Monday. As for Sacramento, they enter this game having recorded overs in 5 straight games overall. Also, in Kings road games, the over is on a 5-1 run. Both these teams struggle defensively but have also been scoring well of late. It is the perfect recipe for a non-conference match-up with very little defensive intensity to fly over the total. 10* OVER the total in Detroit

Afternoon Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #506 Monday 10* Top Play Brooklyn Nets (+) vs Philadelphia 76ers @ 3:05 ET - The Nets have extra motivation against the 76ers and are getting much healthier. They recently welcomed back Kyrie Irving plus Caris LeVert. Additionally, Joe Harris and Garrett Temple - both missed Saturday's blowout loss versus Bucks - are expected back here. So, while the Sixers are still without big man Joel Embiid, Brooklyn is getting healthy again and they are motivated not only by last season's playoff series loss to Philly, the Nets also seek revenge for a loss at Philadelphia last week punctuated by a bad fourth quarter. Brooklyn knows they let one slip away and they want to make up for that here with a huge effort here at home where they blasted the 76ers by a 20 point margin earlier this season. The Sixers are off a tight road win at the Knicks and that was Philadelphia's 5th consecutive ATS loss on the road. Though Philly won the game straight up at New York, they entered that game with a 7-14 SU record on the road this season. Up next for the 76ers is a big game at Toronto - the city where their season ended last year on that playoff series-clinching shot (the infamous one) by Kawhi Leonard. That said, this is a very bad spot for the Sixers and a good one for a Nets team that is home off an ugly loss and getting key rotation players back on the floor. 10* BROOKLYN

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #501 Monday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Washington Wizards vs Detroit Pistons @ 2:05 ET - The over is on an 11-3 run in Pistons games. Detroit scored 136 points at Atlanta on Saturday. The Wizards allowed 140 points at Toronto on Friday. Now two teams that are both content to play at a fast pace and that focus very little on the defensive end are matched up in what should be a track meet. The over is 3-1 in the last 4 meetings between these teams. Washington averages 116 points per game at home this season but the Wizards also are allowing 120 points per game. That is why, though this total is a big one, I have no hesitation in grabbing the over in this match-up! The line is right around a pick'em in this game and in a match-up where the Wizards have a chance to win it generally means to expect a ton of points because this team simply does not play defense! In games with a posted total of 230 or more points, the over is 13-6 in Wizards games this season. Washington is playing this game with road loss revenge and that is a situation that has seen the over go 11-3 this season. Detroit is 4-1 to the over this season when off a game in which they scored 120 points or more. Indeed, expect a track meet style of play in this one. 10* OVER the total in Washington

Total of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #567 Sunday 10* Top Play OVER the total in San Antonio Spurs vs Miami Heat @ 3:05 ET - The Spurs are off back to back losses and they continue to respond off losses with more offense rather than defense. San Antonio games are 8-1 to the over the last 9 times they've been off a loss. Also, when off a loss by 6 or less points this season the Spurs are 8-0 to the over (1 push). In non-conference action this season, San Antonio's games are 13-4 to the over with one push. The Spurs enter this game have averaged 117.5 points per game their last 10 games. The Heat have been red hot on the offensive end and have averaged 116.5 points per game their last 6 games. Both of these teams, overall, have trended over the total this season. They just met in Miami on Wednesday and that game stayed under the total but that has been the exception, rather than the norm, for both of these teams of late. Heat road games with a total posted at 220 points or more are 4-1 to the over. Miami's games against teams with a losing record this season have gone 13-5 to the over. You can tell by the line (roughly pick'em) on this game that it is expected to be a tight battle. That said, I have no hesitation in expecting each of these teams to get to at least 110 points here and, of course, that would result in an over in this match-up. 10* OVER the total in San Antonio

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #552 Saturday 10* Top Play Atlanta Hawks (+) vs Detroit Pistons @ 7:35 ET - The Hawks off big upset win at San Antonio last night. With Atlanta in a back to back and Detroit having been off each of the past two days, the Pistons are getting all the attention from the betting markets here. However, Detroit is also off a big upset win at Boston and that was preceded by a 3-15 ATS run for a slumping Pistons team. As for the Hawks, yesterday's win brings them to 6-3 ATS their last 9 games and they're also off back to back straight-up wins and could have Jeff Teague (acquired in trade with Wolves) available tonight as well. Atlanta is starting to build a little momentum and they have revenge against the Pistons thanks to a 25 point loss at Detroit two months ago. Prior to that the Hawks had covered 5 of their last 6 games against the Pistons. Look for them to resume that ATS dominance in this series tonight. 10* ATLANTA

Atlantic Division Total of the Year - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #553 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in New York Knicks vs Philadelphia 76ers @ 7:35 ET - The Knicks will be in "run and gun" mode as they are at home and catching the Sixers in the 2nd night of a back to back situation. Philadelphia allowed just 89 points in their home win over the Bulls last night. However, Philly used a lot of defensive energy in holding Chicago to just 18 points in the 4th quarter and to 24 points or less in each of the other 3 quarters as well. Sometimes a team needs a "night off" from the defensive intensity even when they're playing. In other words, the 76ers still have another game to be played tonight but don't be surprised if it is a much more open-floor affair after last night's grinder game with the Bulls. The Sixers have allowed an average of 112 points per game in their last 5 road games. The Knicks have allowed an average of 124 points per game their last 8 games. 76ers Saturday games are 6-2 to the over this season. New York is off an embarrassing home loss to the Suns on Thursday and they are 4-2 to the over this season when off a home loss by a double digit margin. Plenty of points in this one! 10* OVER the total in New York

Eastern Conference Total of the Year - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #533 Friday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Toronto Raptors vs Washington Wizards @ 7:05 ET - The over is a perfect 5-0 in the last 5 meetings between these teams. The Wizards are one of the worst teams in the NBA defensively as they are allowing 120 points per game on the season. The Raptors are a big favorite here with good reason and they won't take their foot off the gas in this one. Toronto's games are 7-2 to the over this season when they are a home favorite in a range of 6.5 to 12 points. Washington's games are 12-4-1 to the over this season when they are playing against a team with a winning record. Also, the Wizards are off back to back non-covers and that is a situation that has seen the over go 7-0-1 in Washington's game this season. When these teams get together it has been a track meet in recent match-ups and I am expecting another one tonight with plenty of run and gun action. Will gladly test the perfect trends noted above. 10* OVER the total in Toronto

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #531 Friday 10* Top Play Chicago Bulls (+) @ Philadelphia 76ers @ 7:05 ET - The line looks low right? A bad Bulls team facing a 76ers team that is 19-2 SU at home this season and yet the line, as of early Friday morning, is only a 7.5 across the board. In typical contrarian fashion I am grabbing the points with the team most won't want! Note that Philadelphia pulled away late for the win and cover against Brooklyn Wednesday. As impressive as the final score may have been, the Nets were actually in that game all the way. The Sixers simply aren't the same team without Joel Embiid and he is currently out with an injury. The Bulls have been scrappy recently and are exactly the type of team that will sneak up on a good team like Philly in a spot like this and give them all sorts of trouble. Chicago has won and covered 2 of its last 3 games and note that the Sixers, prior to their win over Brooklyn, had lost 6 of their past 8 games SU. The Bulls are 8-2 ATS this season when they enter a game having lost 6 or 7 of their past 8 games. The 76ers are 4-7 ATS this season as a home favorite in a range of 6.5 to 12 points. Grab the points with the scrappy underdog in this one. 10* CHICAGO

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #524 Thursday 10* Top Play Milwaukee Bucks (-) vs Boston Celtics @ 8:05 ET - What happens when the best team in the NBA is at home and playing with revenge and catching a struggling team off a loss and in the 2nd night of a back to back? You're about to see first-hand that the result is an absolute annihilation! When the Bucks faced the Celtics in Boston on October 30th it was a revenge game for the home team as they had been eliminated by Milwaukee in the playoffs in May. Even with all the motivation and revenge angle for the Celtics, the Bucks still raced out to a 16-point lead at the half. However, Milwaukee then got outscored by 27 points in the second half and lost by double digits. That said, this is payback time for the Bucks and I don't see them being denied. 5 of the last 6 meetings between these teams have been decided by double digits. Also, 4 of the Celtics last 5 losses have come by double digits. 13 of the Bucks last 15 wins have come by a margin of 9 or more points. Milwaukee is 19-2 at home this season while the Celtics are barely above .500 in road games this season. Boston has lost 4 of its last 6 games and the Bucks have the rest edge and are motivated here. Blowout time. 10* MILWAUKEE

Atlantic Division Game of the Year - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #502 Wednesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) vs Brooklyn Nets @ 7:05 ET - Perfect set up here. Both teams off losses but the Nets were in action last night. Brooklyn is playing this game with no rest. Philadelphia is off back to back losses and they were off yesterday so they have the rest edge here. Also, Brooklyn got their playoff revenge over the Sixers in the first meeting this season as the Nets blasted the 76ers by a margin of 20 points. Philly hasn't forgotten that game and they are in an angry mood here because they have lost 6 of their past 8 games overall. With Joel Embiid out we're getting line value here as this line is being kept shorter than it would have been of course. That said, I am happy to lay the relatively small number when you consider the situational edges here and the fact that Brooklyn is 1-6 SU in their last 7 road games while the 76ers are 18-2 SU in home games this season. Lay it! 10* PHILADELPHIA

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #503 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Boston Celtics vs Detroit Pistons @ 7:05 ET - The Celtics are known for being a solid team defensively. They have earned that reputation. But sometimes that helps lead to value going the other way when certain situations arise and that is precisely what we have here. It is hard for Boston to be be excited about facing a slumping Pistons team when they have a huge game tomorrow night at Milwaukee! Undoubtedly these are the types of games where the superior team - in this case, the Celtics - has a drop-off in defensive intensity. That said, don't be surprised when the Pistons score very well in this game. However, Detroit leaves much to be desired on the defensive end. That said, I look for a solid over in this match-up. Overall, 3 of the last 4 meetings between these teams have gone over the total. Also, 3 of the last 4 times they have met in Boston, the games have gone over the total. The over is 9-3 in the Pistons last dozen games. The Celtics have averaged 119 points per game in their past 4 home games. Look for them to get at least that here and for the Pistons to eclipse the century mark as well and, as a result, this flies over the total. 10* OVER the total in Boston

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #575 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Memphis Grizzlies vs Houston Rockets @ 8:05 ET - These are two of the fastest teams in the league in terms of possessions per game. The opening total of 238 will scare many away but the fact this game should be an absolute track meet going both ways. Memphis is a very young team and they want to play fast and look to score plenty of points in transition. Of course the Rockets are one of the top teams in the league for efficiency on offense. That said, I have no hesitation in expecting these teams to combine to average 60 or more points per quarter in this one. Memphis is playing with a lot of confidence thanks to a 5-game winning streak. The Rockets sit atop of the Southwest Division standings and enter this game having rolled to big point totals in 4 of their last 5 games. They're looking to make up for that one dud (on the road) by coming up with a huge effort in their first road game since then. In the other 4 games the Rockets have averaged 127 points per game. As for Memphis, they have averaged 127 points per game during their current 5-game winning streak. You can see why I would not be surprised to see this game get into the 255 range. The over is 4-2 in Houston's last 6 games. The over is 12-4 in the Grizzlies last 16 games. Look for the high-scoring trend to continue here. 10* OVER the total in Memphis

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #561 Monday 10* Top Play Chicago Bulls (+) @ Boston Celtics @ 7:35 ET - Bulls are off win at Detroit. While it is true that Chicago had been struggling prior to that, they did have an 18-point lead at Indiana in their prior game before faltering late in the game. That said, I feel the Bulls have been more competitive of late and they are catching the Celtics at the right time to be a dangerous underdog here. Boston is off a huge 140 to 105 win over New Orleans. That is the type of victory that can have a team feeling a little too "fat and happy" and they often have some struggles in their next game after one like that. Note that, prior to that game the Celtics had lost 3 straight games SU. Overall, Boston had lost 4 of 7 games SU prior to the win over the Pelicans. Also, 2 of those 3 wins came by a margin of 7 or less points. Per the above, you can see why I am happy to challenge the Celtics to win this game by double digits. The Bulls lost by 29 points in their lone visit here last year and did get throttled in 2 of the 3 meetings between these teams. That said, they'll be ready to go here! The Bulls stopped the bleeding with their win at Detroit Saturday and Chicago is 7-1 ATS this season when they enter a game having lost 6 or 7 of their past 8 games SU. After ending their losing streak they build some momentum with another strong effort here. Boston is 30-54 ATS long-term (and 1-3 ATS this season) when off a game in which they scored 120 points or more. 10* CHICAGO

Total Dominator - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #553 Sunday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Denver Nuggets vs Los Angeles Clippers @ 8:05 ET - Paul George is out for this game but of course that is factored into the side and total. Look for a higher scoring game than many are anticipating here as the Nuggets are off a home loss yesterday to Cleveland. Of course that is in an inexcusable loss and I look for Denver to respond by looking to run the Goerge-less Clippers right of the arena tonight. The Nuggets will push the pace and, prior to back to back unders (including yesterday just barely staying under) Denver had gone over the total in 6 straight games and 11 of last 13. Los Angeles. prior to their low-scoring win over Golden State Friday, had gone over the total in 3 straight games. The Clippers have allowed an average of 122 points per game in their last two visits to Denver and the Nuggets are only a 2 point favorite in this match-up. Would a 122-120 Denver win surprise me here? Not in the least! In other words I feel this total is set too low and I look for others to again step up for LA (like they did versus GS) with George being out. Plenty of points in this one. 10* OVER the total in Denver

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #555 Saturday 10* Top Play Charlotte Hornets (+) @ Phoenix Suns @ 8:05 ET - The Hornets fit the ugly dog theory here. Sure it may seem tough to back them given their record but we're able to fade a Suns team that, in my opinion, is overvalued with this line at 8 points. Note that Phoenix is just 4-11 SU in their last 15 games and NONE of those 4 wins came by more than 8 points. In other words if you bet the Suns at today's line in each of their last 15 games you won exactly ZERO out of 15 bets. It is too much in my opinion. Keep in mind this is also a revenge game for the Hornets since the Suns beat them last month at Charlotte. That victory came by a margin of just 5 points and I expect another very close game here. I also like the fact that the Hornets are off an ugly loss at Utah while the Suns are off a home win over Orlando. Charlotte is 4-4 SU in their last 8 road games and one of those losses came by just a bucket. Also, prior to their loss to the Jazz, the Hornets were on a 2-2 SU run and one of those losses was by just 2 points to the Raptors. The road dog is motivated and ready to go here and they seek revenge plus look to make up for a poor effort at Utah. 10* CHARLOTTE

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #534 Saturday 10* Top Play Detroit Pistons (-) vs Chicago Bulls @ 7:05 ET - The Bulls are off another loss yesterday. Not only is this a back to back spot for Chicago but they have also lost 6 straight games both SU and ATS. Look for that trend to continue here for the Bulls as they face an angry Pistons team that just lost in overtime on their home floor against the Cavaliers on Thursday. Yes it is true that Detroit hasn't been winning much of late either but they had won 2 of 3 before that loss to Cleveland and certainly they have a big edge here playing at home and catching the Bulls in a tough scheduling spot. Also this is a big-time revenge spot as Chicago has won all 3 meetings so far this season. Pistons have something to say about that today and I look for them to avenge those losses in a big way! 10* DETROIT

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #512 Friday 10* Top Play Brooklyn Nets (+) vs Miami Heat @ 7:35 ET - I am well aware of the fact that the Nets have lost 7 straight games but there is a reason the Heat are such a small favorite here. The fact is that Miami is in a tough situational spot as they are coming off a big win at Indiana Wednesday. As for Brooklyn, they have been off since Tuesday so they hold the rest edge here. Adding to that rest edge is that the Nets were at home Tuesday while the Heat haven't played consecutive games in the same city the past two weeks and are on the road again here. The home team is a perfect 3-0 ATS the last 3 meetings between these teams. Also, Miami had lost 3 of 5 most recent road games prior to the big win over the Pacers Wednesday. The Heat are 1-5 SU this season when off an upset win as an underdog. Also, Miami is a long-term 3-11 SU when off an outright win by a double digit margin in a game in which they were an underdog. Brooklyn is 5-0 ATS this season as a home underdog and 4 of those wins have been outright wins. The Nets are also a perfect 6-0 in Friday games this season. Look for these trends to all continue here! 10* BROOKLYN

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #501 Thursday 10* Top Play Cleveland Cavaliers (+) @ Detroit Pistons @ 7:05 ET - The Cavaliers had a double digit lead going to the fourth quarter against the Pistons on Tuesday but ended up losing the game by a bucket. It is payback time now and I don't foresee Cleveland being denied at Detroit in this one. Yes the Pistons have the better record on the season but they certainly are a different team without Blake Griffin. Also, the Pistons are just 6-11 SU in their last 17 games and only 2 of those wins came by more than 7 points and 1 of those was by just 8 points. The point is that the likelihood of a blowout by a double digit margin here for Detroit is very slim. I like the big points with the Cavaliers as despite still enduring some losses they have been much more competitive of late. Cleveland is just 4-6 SU their last 10 games but 2 of their last 4 losses have been by a margin of 3 or less points. Upset alert here! But grab the points as added insurance. The Cavaliers are 6-3 ATS in games in which the posted total is 220 points or more this season. The Pistons are 1-7 SU and ATS after a game this season in which they scored 115 points or more. 10* CLEVELAND

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #574 Wednesday 10* Top Play Atlanta Hawks (+) vs Houston Rockets @ 7:35 ET - Russell Westbrook will miss this game as he rests up for a big game against his former team, Oklahoma City, tomorrow. That sets this one up well for a potential Hawks upset. I know Atlanta is off a home loss to Denver but they entered that game having gone 2-1 SU and 3-0 ATS their 3 prior games. They have a shot here against the Rockets whom already could be thinking a bit about tomorrow's game. As for the Hawks, they are sure to be fully focused. Atlanta got thoroughly embarrassed in a 158-111 shellacking at Houston earlier this season. Teams don't forget about a beating like that and you will see a VERY focused effort from the Hawks in this one. The Rockets numbers on defense are a lot worse when on the road while Atlanta's numbers on defense are much better when at home. The fact we're getting big points here in a game in which the home dog Hawks are absolutely going to be hell-bent on revenge has me elevating this play to my highest level. Grab the generous points. 10* ATLANTA

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #564 Wednesday 8* Charlotte Hornets (+) vs Toronto Raptors @ 7:05 ET - The Raptors are in a back to back spot and are coming off the type of loss which is tough to bounce back from. Toronto lost at home to the Trail Blazers last night in a game in which they were ahead at the end of every quarter but then got outscored by 11 in the 4th quarter including losing the game on an Anthony shot game-winner with just a few ticks left on the clock. Now the Raptors go on the round and face a Charlotte team that is off a home loss but that had won each of its last two games with outright upsets as underdogs. The set up here is perfect as the Hornets were off yesterday and also have revenge from getting blown out at Toronto by 36 points earlier this season. It is payback time here for the home team. 8* CHARLOTTE

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #555 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Brooklyn Nets vs Oklahoma City Thunder @ 7:35 ET - Both teams in a back to back spot and coming off losses yesterday. The Thunder gave up 120 points at Philadelphia but did score 113 and should get at least that here tonight. As for the Nets, they were at Orlando and struggled but I expect a bounce back tonight at home after being held to just 89 points by the Magic last night. This was an embarrassing effort for a Brooklyn team which has averaged 110 points per game this season. The Nets should get at least that tonight after last night's poor effort but the Thunder are favored here for a reason. In other words, based on simple math you can see why I am expecting this game to get well into the 220s. The over was 3-0 in the Nets last 3 games before last night's snooze-fest at Orlando. Now playing at home and facing a Thunder team that is also happy to play at a faster tempo, look for the pace of this game to be conducive to a high-scoring battle. 10* OVER the total in Brooklyn

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #552 Tuesday 10* Top Play Cleveland Cavaliers (+) vs Detroit Pistons @ 7:05 ET - Tough spot for the Pistons. They just came back east from a tough road trip out West including wrapping up a game Sunday night versus the Lakers in Los Angeles. Also, Blake Griffin has been announced as out for this game and might even end up choosing season ending knee surgery. I know the Cavs come into this one as losers of 4 straight games but they also have a road trip on deck that will mean Cleveland's next home game is almost two weeks away. Look for the Cavaliers to make the most of this home game. They also have revenge on their minds here as they got blasted by 33 points by the Pistons right here in Cleveland in their most recent meeting which was just last month. Detroit enters this game having lost 9 of their last 11 so, as much as the Cavs have struggled, I still like the home dog here when you consider how tough of a spot this is for the Pistons. The team is really down and out with Griffin now on the shelf. 10* CLEVELAND

NBA TV Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #540 Monday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) vs Oklahoma City Thunder @ 7:05 ET - No team in the NBA seems to need a home game as bad as the Sixers right now and I expect them to make the most of it. Philadelphia enters this game off of 4 straight losses - all on the road - and this included 2 by a single point. Keep in mind, the 76ers are now back home where they are 16-2 SU this season. I look for the hungry Sixers to bounce right back with a big win on their home floor and cover the number along the way in this one. Give the Thunder credit for sure as they have won 5 straight games but 4 of the victories were tight ones by slim margins and they are facing a truly tough road test in this one. Note that Oklahoma City's last 4 losses have come by an average margin of 9.5 points and only 1 of the 4 defeats came by a margin less than 7 points. The Sixers are hungry for revenge here as they lost at Oklahoma City in November despite outrebounding the Thunder by double digits and despite also attempting 14 more shots from the field than OKC did. It was simply "one of those nights" and now it is payback time for the 76ers. Lay the very fair number here with Philly and look for a home blowout in this one as the Thunder finally tire out. Oklahoma City is in the midst of a stretch that has them playing 6 of 7 games on the road and they are at Brooklyn tomorrow night for their 4th road game in 6 nights. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #533 Monday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Orlando Magic vs Brooklyn Nets @ 7:05 ET - This total's first move saw it drop a couple points from its opener and I feel too much weight is being given to Orlando by the betting markets. The fact is that, although the Magic tend to play lower-scoring grinder type games, the Nets "average" game this season totals 222.5 points this season. Also, Brooklyn enters this game having gone over the total in 3 straight games and 5 of their last 7. The Nets last 3 games have seen the totals average 221 points per contest (adjusted for OT in the Wolves game). Brooklyn has allowed 121 points or more in each of its past 2 games. Orlando is off B2B unders but that had a lot to do with facing Miami and Utah. Both these teams are better defensively than the Nets. I look for this game to be played with a better tempo and Brooklyn - losers of 5 straight - will be working hard to push the pace in this one. The over is 4-1 in Nets last 5 January games. 3 of the last 4 games between these teams totaled 215 or more and this one, given all of the above, should too. 10* OVER the total in Orlando

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #526 Sunday 10* Top Play Miami Heat (-) vs Portland Trail Blazers @ 6:05 ET - The Heat are 16-1 SU at home this season. They are coming off an ugly road loss by 20 points at Orlando. The Blazers are 7-12 SU on the road this season. They are coming off a big win at Washington Friday. Portland also covered that game but they previously were on an 0-5 SU and ATS run. Miami won both match-ups with the Trail Blazers last season and each win came by at least 9 points. I am happy to lay the short number here (early line of -5.5) because each of the Blazers last 9 games have been decided by 6 or more points. As for the Heat, they have had some tighter games of late but when off a loss by a margin of 9 or more points, they have won their next game by 8 or more points in each of the last 6 instances. Look for that record to improve to 7-0 here and, of course, a win by 8 or more points means we're cashing our ticket in this one. Miami is a perfect 9-0 SU this season when off a loss. Given that and give their 16-1 SU home record, you can see why I am happy to lay a small number and back the Heat in this one as they respond again off a loss with a big home win. 10* MIAMI

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #508 Saturday 10* Top Play Cleveland Cavaliers (+) vs Oklahoma City Thunder @ 7:35 ET - I like fading the Thunder off a big win at San Antonio Thursday. The Cavaliers have a bad record of course but they have actually been much more competitive of late. Cleveland is coming off a tight 3-point home loss to Charlotte on Thursday. I am aware of the Larry Nance injury but the Cavs still offer tremendous home dog value in this spot. Like I said, Cleveland has been more competitive of late and they are 3-3 SU in their last 6 home games with NONE of those 3 losses coming by more than 6 points! Overall the Cavs had won 3 straight home games prior to the loss to the Hornets Thursday. Also, though the Thunder have been winning games they have not been winning by big margins. Oklahoma City is 8-3 SU in their last 11 games. However, 7 of the 8 wins came by 6 or less points. That means if you had laid the current number (6.5) on this game in each of the past 11 games for the Thunder you would have won just ONCE in their past 11 games. Look for another close win for OKC here (ATS win here for Cleveland) or perhaps even another SU home win for Cavaliers as I would not be surprised to see them get the outright upset in this game. 10* CLEVELAND

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #569 Friday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (+) @ Houston Rockets @ 8:05 ET - This is the perfect spot to back the Sixers. They are off 3 straight losses. The first two defeats came by just a single point. The third one was an ugly one as Joel Embiid sat out with a sore knee and Philadelphia got blasted at Indiana. Embiid is expected back tonight and is no longer even listed on the injury report. The 76ers are catching the Rockets off a huge home win over Denver. Prior to that big victory for Houston, they had failed to cover 4 of their past 5 home games. The 76ers, despite the recent losses, have covered 4 of their past 5 games and had won 3 in a row straight up prior to the recent defeats. The Sixers have covered 4 of their last 5 games against Houston. The Rockets are 1-6 ATS last 7 January games and each of these teams is playing their first game of the new year. For Philly, this is their final game of a 4-game road trip and, after losing their first three, they are hell bent on getting the win here. Even if they do fall short of the SU win I would expect this one will go down to the wire in a very competitive game. I am expecting the outright upset but grabbing the points as added insurance here should the 76ers fall just short in their upset bid. 10* PHILADELPHIA

NBA TV Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #550 Thursday 10* Top Play Miami Heat (-) vs Toronto Raptors @ 7:35 ET - The Heat are a fantastic 15-1 SU at home this season. Miami enters this game off a SU loss at Washington. The Heat have been great when coming off a loss. The last 5 times the Heat are off a SU loss they have gone 4-1 ATS and a perfect 5-0 SU. I look for them to once again respond off a defeat and get the win here. Considering the current line on this game is only 5.5 the odds favor a SU win also equating to an ATS cover. The Raptors are off a big win but it came against a horrible Cleveland team. Prior to that Toronto had lost 3 of 4. Also, the Raptors continue to be without Siakam and also are now without Powell and Gasol too. The healthier team at home and in a strong situation is the play here. 10* MIAMI

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #525 Tuesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) @ Indiana Pacers @ 3:05 ET - The 76ers are off back to back heartbreaking 1 point losses. They have had two days off to stew about those defeats. They can't wait to get back on the floor and take care of business. Since this game is a road game against a respectable Pacers team we're getting line value in a situation that is a great spot to back the Sixers. Keep in mind, Philadelphia has won 3 straight games over Indiana by an average margin of 14.7 points per game and the 76ers are very hungry here. The Pacers are on a 1-3 SU and ATS run and have allowed 116 points per game during this stretch. The Sixers have been playing the better defense of these two teams and they won't be denied in this road contest as the 76ers knock off Indiana for the 4th straight time. Keep in mind the Pacers Macolm Brogdon is dealing with a hamstring injury and, of course, the Pacers still without Victor Oladipo too. That has been the case for months but they are simply not the same team without him. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Game of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #501 Sunday 10* Top Play Oklahoma City Thunder (+) @ Toronto Raptors @ 6:05 ET - The Thunder have a huge scheduling edge here. Oklahoma City was off yesterday while the Raptors were at Boston. Big upset win for Toronto yesterday as they beat the Celtics by double digits even though they were a sizable underdog. That said, this is the perfect spot to fade the Raptors. The Thunder are playing with confidence as they won again Friday. What was most impressive about that win from my standpoint is that OKC won the game despite making just 5 of 31 from 3-point land. That is an impressive feat. That was the 5th win for Oklahoma City in their past 8 games. Also, the Thunder have won 5 of their past 8 road games. Don't be surprised if they step up again here for a road win. The road team won both games between these teams last season and the Thunder have won consecutive visits to Toronto. The Raptors are off back to back big games with the Celtics and the win at Boston yesterday will leave Toronto very flat for this game. Grab the points! The Thunder are 8-4 ATS as a road dog this season. The Raptors are 1-2 ATS the last 3 times they've played the 2nd game of a back to back and the lone win was a SU loss! Upset alert! 10* OKLAHOMA CITY

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #563 Saturday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (+) @ Miami Heat @ 8:05 ET - Perfect set-up here. The 76ers are off a 1-point loss yesterday. The Heat are off a 1-point win yesterday. Philadelphia has revenge as the Heat handed the 76ers their first home loss of the season 10 days ago in Philly. It is payback time here. The Sixers had beaten Miami SU in 6 of their last 7 meetings that preceded the home loss a week and a half ago. The 76ers, prior to a blowout loss in their last visit to Miami, had gone 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games in South Florida. The Heat are 2-4 ATS the last 6 times they have been off a win by a margin of 11 or less points. The Sixers respond off yesterday's loss and get revenge. 10* PHILADELPHIA

NBA TV Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #547 Friday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) @ Orlando Magic @ 7:05 ET - At first glance this looks like a great spot to fade the Sixers. After all, the 76ers are off a huge win over the NBA-best Bucks on Christmas Day plus Philly has a revenge game on deck at Miami tomorrow night. However, upon closer inspection, there is really no way in the world you can pass up on this chance to take Philadelphia laying a small number at Orlando. Why? I say that because the 76ers also have revenge against the Magic. Yes, the Sixers lost at Orlando earlier this season and guess what ladies and gentlemen...that is the ONE AND ONLY time this season that the Magic have beaten a decent team. All their other wins this season came against teams that not only have a losing record on the season as of now...they are all teams that are well below .500 on the season! We're getting a short number with the 76ers here because of the Bucks - Heat sandwich that they are in. I won't hesitate to take advantage because the Magic have shown a consistent inability to beat good teams with one exception this season. The fact that the lone exception - in a season that is already 30 games in - came against the Sixers is what sweetens this spot even more. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #537 Thursday 10* Top Play New York Knicks (+) @ Brooklyn Nets @ 7:35 ET - The Nets are off a win and are the better team but look for the layoff to hurt them here. While the Knicks were in action on Monday, Brooklyn has not played since Saturday. Rest is a good thing generally but not when it is too much. Look for New York to be rested but look for the Nets to be rusty. That makes a difference here. There is a bit of a rivalry here between these two teams and I love having a sizable dog in a spot like this. Keep in mind each of the first two meetings between these teams this season have been decided by 4 or less points. Brooklyn has won 4 straight meetings SU and the Knicks are hell-bent on getting revenge here. While the Nets are off a win, New York has lost 3 straight SU and ATS but they faced some tough match-ups and plus this was preceded by a 4-0 ATS run for the Knicks. I look for them to come up with a huge game in this spot after falling just short against the Wizards. Keep in mind New York's two prior games were against tough teams - the Bucks and Heat. 10* NEW YORK

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #533 Thursday OVER the total in Detroit Pistons vs Washington Wizards @ 7:05 ET - The Pistons are mired in a 5-game losing streak both SU and ATS. During this 5 game stretch Detroit has allowed an average of 120.6 points per game. The Wizards have allowed 121.7 points per game on the season! That is why this total opened up at 233.5 (which still wasn't high enough in my opinion). Now with the total dropping to as low as 229.5 points early this morning, I won't hesitate to step in on the over in this one. The last two meetings between these teams in Detroit have both gone over the total and have averaged 242.5 points per game! Overall, the Wizards enter this game with the over having gone 5-1 in their last 6 games. The Pistons enter this home game with the over having gone 7-2 in their last 9 games as a host. With both teams in action on Monday, that means they come into this game rested but NOT rusty as they have had just 2 days off between games. Both teams will be ready to go here and I again expect a ton of points in this match-up. The over is an incredible 16-6 this season when the Wizards are an underdog. The over is 5-1 this season when the Pistons are at home and the posted total on their game is 220 or more. More of the same expected here. 10* OVER the total in Detroit

TV Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #526 Wednesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (+) vs Bucks @ 2:35 ET - The Bucks look like an easy choice here and, sure enough, after opening up at a -2 Milwaukee's line got driven higher. However, it was priced this way for a reason and I am grabbing the home dog. The Sixers had avoided a home loss all season before recent back to back losses. However, they have bounced back overall with back to back wins, one at home and one on the road and Philly is ready to go here in this "barometer test" game. The Sixers are anxious to see how they stack up with the NBA best Bucks and I am expecting a huge effort from Philadelphia at home in this one. Milwaukee is off a big win over the Pacers and they are 1-3 ATS this season when off a home win over a divisional foe. The Bucks are 1-3 ATS as a road favorite of 6 or less points. The 76ers are 4-2 ATS this season as an underdog. Philly is on a long-term 6-2 ATS run as a home dog. The Sixers lost to the Bucks in their most recent meeting and are hungry for revenge in this one. Milwaukee has allowed 111.2 points per game in its last 5 road games. The 76ers have allowed just 101 points per game at home this season. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #523 Wednesday 10* OVER the total in Toronto Raptors vs Boston Celtics @ 12:05 ET - The Celtics most recent road game stayed under the total by the slimmest of margins! Prior to that the over was a perfect 3-0 in Boston's 3 previous road games. The Raptors enter this game on a perfect 3-0 streak to the over. Toronto is 8-4 to the over in their past dozen home games. The Raptors last half dozen games have averaged 117 points per game. The Celtics last eleven games have averaged 112.6 points per game. I know in an Atlantic Division battle we should see a little more defense but you can see why I going with the over here based on the above. Also, the over is 4-1 this season when the Celtics are off a blowout win by a margin of 20 or more points. The over is 5-0 this season when Toronto is revenging a loss in which they allowed 110 or more points. With the Raptors having lost at Boston in October it is payback time here and I am looking for plenty of points. They score well at home (11-5 to the over this season) but won't be able to stop the Celtics. 10* OVER the total in Toronto

NBA TV Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #504 Monday 10* Top Play Indiana Pacers (-) vs Toronto Raptors @ 7:05 ET - Perfect set up  here. The Raptors are off a win that saw them rally from 30 points down with just 3 minutes left in the 3rd quarter! That huge comeback win at home last night was their largest comeback win in franchise history. It was also the biggest comeback win in the NBA this decade! Off a huge win like that on their home floor and now going on the road in a back to back spot (and already being a bit short-handed in terms of players) this is a horrible spot for Toronto. Making the situation even tougher is that they're taking on an angry Pacers team. Indiana got blown out in the 2nd half at Milwaukee yesterday. Now they come back home ready to respond off that ugly loss. Keep in mind, the Pacers had won 5 straight and 8 of their last 13 prior to yesterday's loss to the Bucks. Also, Indiana has won 8 of its past 9 home games. The Raptors won and covered their most recent road game but Toronto had entered that one a 1-4 ATS run in road games. The series between the Raptors and Pacers has been dominated by the home team and I love the situational edge here for the host in this one. 10* INDIANA

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #581 Sunday 10* Top Play Indiana Pacers (+) @ Milwaukee Bucks @ 7:05 ET - The Bucks, it goes without saying, have been the best team in the NBA this season. But this is a tough spot for Milwaukee and I happy to grab the rested, revenge-minded divisional dog in this one. The Bucks are in a back to back spot plus travel is involved as they were at New York last night. Additionally, that big win over the Knicks was preceded by a big showdown victory over LeBron James and the Lakers. Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo has been bothered with some back discomfort and this is a back to back spot so the Bucks may be careful with him. Either way I like the rested Pacers whom also got embarrassed by Milwaukee earlier this season. Yes Indiana held the Bucks to only 102 points in the game but they themselves scored only 83 points in that one. This was despite 100 shots from the field as the Pacers had one of their worst shooting nights of the season and hit only 32% from the field. Indiana will make up for that here and will prove to be the much hungrier team. The Pacers have a great shot at the outright upset and, should they fall short, look for it to be by only a bucket or two at the most. 10* INDIANA

East-West Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #541 Friday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Cleveland Cavaliers vs Memphis Grizzlies @ 7:05 ET - After opening up at a 224 we're going to see some downward movement on this total. The betting markets are wondering how the odds makers can "screw up" and set this total so high. But I will tell you why we have a big total here. Both the Grizz and the Cavs are having rough seasons but are playing with more confidence of late. Both teams are willing to push the tempo here and neither team is known for their defense. Look for a shootout in this one. The over is a perfect 4-0 in the Grizzlies last 4 games. Memphis is scoring an average of 117 points per game past 7 games. The Grizz have allowed 116 points per game their past 7 games. Memphis is off a loss but had won 4 of 5 prior to that defeat. The Cavaliers are off their 2nd win in 4 games and feeling a little more confident as a result. Though that victory stayed under the total it ended a 3-0 streak to the over for Cleveland. The Cavs have had one recent OT game (at San Antonio) but even subtracting out the OT points, the stats are impressive if you're looking for an over tonight! Cleveland has allowed an average of 118 points per game, not including OT points, in its past 7 games. The Cavaliers had averaged 108.5 points per game in their 4 games prior to the low-scoring win over Charlotte Wednesday. That game died late in terms of scoring. But this one won't...not with high-scoring Memphis in town. Non-conference battles have a tendency to be played with a little less defensive intensity and neither one of these teams likes to "D up" much anyway! 10* OVER the total in Cleveland

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #532 Thursday 10* Top Play Atlanta Hawks (+) vs Utah Jazz @ 7:35 ET - This is the perfect spot to back an ugly home dog. The Hawks are not a very good team of course but, after allowing 143 points on the road at New York, professional pride kicks in as they are back on their home floor for this one. After getting thoroughly embarrassed by the Knicks, look for a much stronger game from Atlanta in this one. They have won (SU and ATS) 3 of the last 4 meetings between these teams. The Jazz enter this game on a 3-game winning streak but that is a situation that has seen them go 1-3 (SU and ATS) this season. In non-conference games Utah is 2-6 ATS this season. The Hawks are 13-6 ATS when off a game in which they allowed 130 points or more. Atlanta is 3-1 ATS this season as a home dog of 6.5 to 12 points. Yes the Hawks are on a losing streak but they are 8-4 ATS this season when they enter a game on a losing streak of 3 or more games. This is the Hawks final home game until after Christmas. They are focused here. The Jazz have tougher road games coming up after this one as they face Charlotte and then Miami. Look for Utah to get caught sleep-walking a bit in this game. 10* ATLANTA

Total of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #517 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Cleveland Cavaliers vs Charlotte Hornets @ 7:05 ET - Two bad defenses matched up here and I like the value we're getting here with the total having dropped a little from its opener as well. The Hornets are in the 2nd game of a back to back and they are allowing 111 points per game this season while the Cavaliers are allowing 114 points per game this season. Cleveland has one OT win in recent games but other than that it has been nothing but losing. A big reason for that is the Cavs don't get defensive stops. Even removing the OT period from the equation, Cleveland has allowed 121.3 points per game its last 6 games! As for Charlotte, they had a recent ugly low-scoring win at Chicago but in their other half-dozen recent games the Hornets have gone 3-3 and allowed an average of 107 points per game. Given the season to date averages and recent averages in terms of the points these two teams have been allowing, you can see why I am expecting this game to get into the 220s. In terms of technical support for this play, the over is a perfect 3-0 the last 3 times Charlotte has played the 2nd game of a back to back. The over is 9-5 this season when the Hornets are a road dog. The over is 6-2 this season when Cleveland enters a game having allowed 105 points or more in 3 consecutive games. The Cavs are off an ugly loss and the over is 49-28 when the Cavaliers are off a game in which they allowed 115 points or more. With Charlotte having tired legs on defense after last night's upset home win, and the Cavs continued defensive ineptitude, this game should fly over the total. 10* OVER the total in Cleveland

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #501 Tuesday 10* Top Play Sacramento Kings (-) @ Charlotte Hornets @ 7:05 ET - The early line move was toward the Hornets here. Certainly I can understand the move as Charlotte is getting Marvin Williams back tonight most likely and they are coming off an ugly loss. The Kings are coming off a blowout win on the road at Golden State Sunday so now they go coast to coast. I can see what some are looking at here and why they're backing the home dog. However, in typical contrarian fashion I am on the other side of the line move but it is not without good reasoning. For one thing the Kings are also expected to get a key player back tonight. De'Aaron Fox is expected to be back in the lineup and the point guard will certainly help as Sacramento's win over the Warriors was an ugly one in terms of turnovers. Another reason I like the Kings here is they have won 3 straight road games and the other two wins came over Dallas and Houston! Sacramento has a lot of momentum right now and positive energy is evident with this team as recent wins pile up. Last but certainly not least, the Kings have revenge here as they lost at home to the Hornets in late October. It is time for payback here and we've got a great small number to work with in this one. The Hornets are struggling without PJ Washington and even could use the help of role player Nicolas Batum but he is doubtful for tonight's contest. The Hornets have been held to 85 points or less in their past two games. The Kings have averaged 110 points per game their past 5 road games. Charlotte won't be able to keep up here and the road favorite eventually pulls away to win comfortably. 10* SACRAMENTO

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #584 Monday 10* Top Play Memphis Grizzlies (+) vs Miami Heat @ 8:05 ET - When you look at this game it looks so easy to take Miami (19-7) over Memphis (9-17) based on their overall SU records this season. However, you know what usually happens when something looks easy! In typical contrarian fashion I am on the other side of public perception here. First off the Heat are off an OT win at Dallas. Not only do teams generally have a tendency to struggle after an OT road win like that, also note that the Mavericks lost star player Luka Doncic very early in the 1st quarter of that game. That certainly had a lot to do with the Heat victory. Speaking of injuries, Miami is without both Goran Dragic and Justise Winslow for this game Memphis will have both Ja Morant and Brandon Clarke on the floor for this one. They missed the only game recently that the Grizzlies have lost (to Milwaukee). In their last 3 games with both Morant and Clarke playing, Memphis is a perfect 3-0 SU and ATS. One of Miami's worst losses this season was by 27 points at Philadelphia. On deck for the Heat is another trip to Philly so they could be peeking ahead at that game for sure. As for Memphis, there is no way they are focused on anything but this game. One of their ugliest losses this season was on opening night at Miami when they lost by 19. Payback time here and if they do fall short look for it to be by just a single possession. I am grabbing the points here! 10* MEMPHIS

Divisional Dominator - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #570 Sunday 10* Top Play Brooklyn Nets (+) vs Philadelphia 76ers @ 6:05 ET - Playoff revenge game for Brooklyn. This is the first shot at the 76ers for the Nets since Philadelphia won 4 straight games to knock them out of the playoffs after Brooklyn scored the upset win in Game 1 of April's first round series. I know this is a back to back for the Nets but nobody played truly excessive minutes in yesterday's loss at Toronto. Also, the Sixers Horford is dealing with a hamstring injury. The 76ers are hot right now but they have been helped by a home heavy schedule of late. Philadelphia, in fact, has lost 7 of its past 10 road games SU. I am going to challenge the 76ers (most recent road game was a win at Boston) to actually win consecutive road games for the first time since the opening weeks of the season. I am fading the line move here too as Philly is attracting some betting action here. Keep in mind the Nets are off B2B losses but only one time this season have they lost 3 straight games. Prior to these B2B defeats the Nets had won 8 of 10 and I look for them to bounce back here with a strong effort. Philadelphia can't help but be peeking ahead at a much tougher match-up on deck as they host Miami on Wednesday. That said, the Nets are the more focused team for this match-up and if they fall short of avenging their playoff exit I do expect them to stay inside the number here in a game that they will play with a warrior-like mentality...desperate for a win. 10* BROOKLYN

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #549 Saturday 10* Top Play San Antonio Spurs (+) vs Phoenix Suns @ Mexico City, MX @ 5 ET - Both teams coming off disappointing losses but the Spurs, even with a weaker record, opened up as a 1.5 point favorite. The markets, as if telling the odds makers they don't know what their doing, have flipped the favorite here and now the Suns are a 2 point favorite. I like to play opposite of moves like this (in typical contrarian fashion) but only when the situation makes sense and, in this case, it certainly does. The last time these teams met in Mexico the Suns got the tight win behind a 39-point effort from Devin Booker. That is the same Booker whom is the leading scorer for the Suns this season. Also, the point guard is listed as questionable for this game with a wrist injury. While I do expect him to play I expect the wrist to continue to bother him. He had trouble with getting his shots to fall against Memphis and Booker did not even practice yesterday due to the wrist injury. Facing an angry Spurs defense won't help matters. They blew their game at home against Cleveland Thursday as they had a late lead and then went on to lose in OT. Unacceptable. While San Antonio certainly has fallen off this season they had entered that game off back to back wins. Look for them to respond big here as the Booker injury is not getting the respect it should. All signs are pointing to the best player on the court for Phoenix being much less than 100%. Fade the line move here. 10* SAN ANTONIO

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #535 Friday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Atlanta Hawks vs Indiana Pacers @ 7:35 ET - The Hawks have been an over machine. The over is 15-3 in their past 18 games. The Pacers are off a high-scoring win versus Boston. Off a big win against a strong team, this is the type of letdown game where you're likely to see Indiana lacking a bit in defensive intensity. The Pacers have allowed 108 points per game their last 11 games. You can see why, especially given the situation, I would not be surprised to see the Hawks put up 110 points here. Keep in mind, Atlanta is particularly hungry because they are playing at home for just the 3rd time in about a 3-week span. The issue for the Hawks, again, will be their defense, so the Pacers getting into the 120 range here certainly would not be a surprise in the least. That puts this one into the 230 range and I like the value here with this total in the low 220s. The over is 6-3 this season when the Pacers are off a home win and, again, that was a very satisfying one for Indiana. The over is perfect 13-0 this season when the Hawks enter a game after losing 5 or 6 of their past 7 games. Look for that trend to remain perfect here as plenty of points expected in this one. 10* OVER the total in Atlanta

TNT Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #523 Thursday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (+) @ Boston Celtics @ 8:05 ET - Boston is in a back to back spot here. Also, Kemba Walker scored 44 points last night at Indiana and the Celtics still lost the game! That doesn't bode well for what to expect tonight from Boston as Walker only scored 12 points and made just 4 of 18 shots when he faced the 76ers defense in the season opener. The Sixers have the rest edge here and the health edge too. The Celtics have been without Marcus Smart (eye) and now the recently activated Gordon Hayward might miss tonight's game after taking a shot to the head in last night's game against the Pacers. Philadelphia has won 7 of its past 8 games. The Celtics are undefeated at home but there is a reason this game is priced the way it is! Philly is playing some of its best basketball of the season and they are the healthier team here plus have the rest edge. Also, I am expecting a huge game from former Celtic Al Horford in his first game back at Boston since going to the Sixers. This is an early season battle for the top spot in the division and I love being a contrarian and going against a Celtics team that is 11-0 at home this season. Boston is favored by the slimmest of margins in this one with good reason. Upset time! 10* PHILADELPHIA

Early Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #502 Wednesday 10* Top Play Indiana Pacers (-) vs Boston Celtics @ 7:05 ET - Great set up here with the Pacers off a home loss to a tough Raptors team and the Celtics off a blowout home win over the hapless Cavaliers. Now Boston is in for a much tougher battle and it is on the road at Indiana. With the Pacers angry off the home loss plus seeking revenge from last season's first round playoff sweep at the hands of the Celtics, this is a fantastic situation. This line is right around a pick'em and the Pacers were 9-2 at home this season prior to that loss to Toronto. Also, the Celtics are only 7-5 on the road this season. While Indiana is seeking revenge here, Boston could get caught looking ahead to a revenge match-up on tap for tomorrow. The Celtics host the division rival 76ers tomorrow and that is the same Philadelphia team that handed them a season-opening loss back in October. The set up here for the Pacers is about as good as it gets and I am backing the home team large in this one. 10* INDIANA

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #576 Tuesday 10* Top Play Charlotte Hornets (+) vs Washington Wizards @ 7:05 ET - The Wizards are still without Isaiah Thomas. Another starter, Thomas Bryant, has been downgraded to out for this game. Also, in terms of depth off the bench, they were already without CJ Miles and this was already after being without star point guard John Wall. I know the Hornets are not a great team but their current situation is much better than that of the Wizards plus they are at home for this game. Now catching 2.5 points as a dog after opening up at a pick'em, I also like the added line value with Charlotte in this one. The Hornets got good news on PJ Washington (ankle) as he has been upgraded to probable for this game. I know Charlotte just got beaten badly at home by the Hawks but Atlanta got insanely hot in the 2nd half and ended up hitting 18 three-pointers. The Hornets lost because the Hawks outscored them by 21 points from beyond the arc and I look for Charlotte to bounce back here. The Hornets can (and will) take advantage of horrible defense (122.5 points per game) and a short-handed Wizards lineup. Charlotte lost the first meeting between these teams this season and this was after winning the final three meetings last season. It is payback time for the Hornets now and I look for them to improve to 4-1 SU in their last 5 meetings with division rival Washington. 10* CHARLOTTE

Early Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #557 Monday 10* Top Play Cleveland Cavaliers (+) @ Boston Celtics @ 7:35 ET - This is the ideal flat spot for the Celtics and, as a result, the perfect spot to back the "ugly dog" Cavaliers in this one. Boston is viewing this game as a reprieve from their schedule and a bit of a "warm up" game if you will. That is why Gordon Hayward has been upgraded to questionable for this game. They might even try to get Hayward some time on the floor to work off some rust and get back into game shape. The fact is that the Celtics are off back to back huge wins over good teams - the Heat and the Nuggets. On deck for Boston is three more quality opponents - the Pacers, 76ers and Mavericks. The point is that this game against the Cavaliers is not one that is going to bring about a lot of energy from the Celtics. They just want to win the game and move forward and that is why I expect this win to come by a single digit margin. The Cavs are struggling of course but off a blowout of epic proportions like they just suffered at Philadelphia, I fully expect professional pride to kick in and Cleveland will play much better tonight. Keep in mind, the Cavaliers are already 2-0 ATS this season when off a game in which they allowed more than 130 points. The Celtics are 0-3 ATS this season when they enter a game on an ATS winning streak of 3 games. They've not been able to make it 4 straight this season and I look for that pattern to continue here. Boston is 1-3 ATS when off a home win by a double digit margin and also 0-2 ATS when they enter a game having scored 105 points or more in 5 consecutive games. 10* CLEVELAND

Early Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #544 Sunday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) vs Toronto Raptors @ 6:05 ET - Even though the 76ers are in a back to back spot here they so completely crushed the Cavaliers yesterday that they were able to rest guys in that game. Also, Joel Embiid did not even play in that game as he rested his hip for tonight's game. Remember he made headlines for not scoring in the 76ers first meeting with the Raptors this season. Since that game Embiid has averaged 26.8 points per game his last 5 games. I am expecting a monster game from him here. Also, the home team has won 9 of the past 12 meetings between these teams. Keep in mind this is a playoff revenge game for the Sixers as they were eliminated from the post-season in that epic last-second Game 7 loss ("the shot" by Kawhi Leonard now with the Clippers) at Toronto last spring. The 76ers first shot at revenge this season saw them lose by just 5 points and that was even with Embiid not scoring a single point plus the game was at Toronto. Now Sunday's rematch is at Philly and a rested Embiid is ready to explode here plus the Sixers catch the Raptors reeling a bit off back to back losses. This one will be ALL Philly. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Total Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #533 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in New York Knicks vs Indiana Pacers @ 7:35 ET - After having to battle in a divisional match-up with a hard-nosed Pistons team yesterday, the Pacers will now take advantage of facing the porous defense of the Knicks in this one. Additionally, I look for New York to respond on the offensive end here after being held to just 92 points on their home floor by the Nuggets on Thursday which followed a similarly poor effort at home against the powerful Bucks too. That sets this one up well for plenty of points. New York has allowed an average of 130.5 points per game their past two games. The Pacers are allowing an average of 108 points per game in the first four games of this lengthy road trip. The over was on a 5-1 run in Indiana's last 6 games before their last two match-up stayed just under the total. This one makes up for those in a big way. 10* OVER the total in New York

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #511 Friday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Cleveland Cavaliers vs Orlando Magic @ 7:05 ET - The Cavs were held to just 94 points in their most recent game but, in typical contrarian fashion, I am playing their very next game to go over the total. Cleveland, prior to the ugly home loss to Detroit, had scored at least 100 points in 7 straight games and had averaged scoring 105 points per game during this stretch. The Cavaliers have allowed at least 100 points in 10 straight games. In fact they have allowed an average of 118.6 points per game during this rough stretch. Taking on a Magic team that scored 116 points against them last week won't help matters for the Cavs struggling defense. Also, Orlando scored 116 without Aaron Gordon in the lineup. He is back now from his ankle injury and Gordon scored 32 points in Wednesday's big win for Orlando over Phoenix. Now the Magic have won 4 of 5 games and have averaged 118 points per game in those 4 victories. The over is 9-3 in Orlando's last dozen games and I look for another high-scoring game here as the over improves to 6-3 in the Cavaliers last 9 games. Cavs will respond with stronger game tonight after being embarrassed and scoring just 94 points at home on Tuesday but they won't be able to stop the hot-shooting Magic as they are red hot from all the floor right now. 10* OVER the total in Cleveland

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #502 Thursday 10* Top Play Washington Wizards (+) vs Philadelphia 76ers @ 7:05 ET - The 76ers are getting plenty of attention here early on from the betting markets. After opening up at a 6 the line is all the way up to a 7.5 and possibly headed higher. Of course Philadelphia is the better team but certainly they have had their share of road struggles this season. Not only are the Sixers only 5-6 on the road this season, only one of those victories came by more than 6 points! That means that if you went against Philly in all their road games this season and had at least +6.5 you are 10-1 ATS so far! I like my chances here with the Wizards. I am well aware of the fact that the Wizards give up a ton of points but they're also fully capable of piling up a ton of points on the offensive end. I know they have some injury issues but the Wizards are 3-5 at home and 3 of those 5 losses came by 7 points or less. That means if you had Washington at +7.5 (the current line on this one) or more in all 8 of their home games this season you are 6-2 ATS. Again, you can see why I am liking the big points here with the home dog. The Wizards have lost 3 straight games for the 3rd time this season. The first two times it happened they ended the streak immediately in the 4th game. I expect that to again be the case here but will grab the points with the home dog as added insurance should they fall just short on the scoreboard. The Sixers go from facing a defensive-minded team at home to an offensive-minded team on the road. Don't be surprised if Philadelphia struggles some here and the home team is hungry to end their losing streak. 10* WASHINGTON

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #557 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Charlotte Hornets vs Golden State Warriors @ 7:05 ET - With the Warriors off a game in which they scored a season-low 79 points Monday and the Hornets off a game in which they were held to just 39 points in the first half Monday, it may seem enticing to take the under in this match-up. However, in typical contrarian fashion I am backing the over in this one as it is actually those low-scoring results that are leading to excellent value with this total. Both teams are determined to bounce back on the offensive end in this one and will be willing to push the pace all game long. Golden State was averaging 108 points per game their past 11 games on the road before that awful effort against the Hawks. Charlotte is averaging 109 points per game at home this season. The over is 9-5 this season when the Warriors enter a game having lost 3 of their last 4 games. The over is 6-3 this season when the Hornets enter a game on a losing streak of 2 or more games. Two teams hungry to bounce back here and you'll see that first-hand here with good tempo and plenty of scoring in this match-up. 10* OVER the total in Charlotte

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #541 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Washington Wizards vs Orlando Magic @ 7:05 ET - The Magic are off a rare win and the over is 5-1 the last 6 times when Orlando enters a game off a SU victory. Though known as a lower scoring team, the Magic saw their first meeting with Washington this season fly over the total as it reached 246 points! The Wizards enter this contest off allowing 150 points to the Clippers in Los Angeles over the weekend. Washington continues to ignore the importance of playing defense as they simply try to just outscore teams. That may work against the Magic but I am not playing the Wizards as I just can not trust them to get defensive stops. The value that is created here by the way this one should play out is the situational value that is clearly available with the total in Washington. The over is now 7-3 in the Wizards past 10 games. The over is also 4-1 in Orlando's last 5 road games. With the Magic off a rare win and trending over when in that situation this season, don't look for much defense in this match-up as the Wizards will simply try to again run and gun their way past Orlando. 10* OVER the total in Washington

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #540 Tuesday 10* Top Play Cleveland Cavaliers (+) vs Detroit Pistons @ 7:05 ET - Great home dog value here based on the situation. The Pistons are off a dominating win over the Spurs as they caught San Antonio at the perfect time to lay down a beating. That is because SA was off their big win over the Clippers and former Spur Kawhi Leonard. Give Detroit credit as they took care of business but that was a nice situation for the Pistons at home. Now Detroit is on the road and facing a Cavaliers team that has been playing better overall of late but just doesn't have the wins to show for it. The Cavs are off a home loss but it came against a Bucks team that is one of the best in the league. Now Cleveland will take advantage of facing a Detroit team that has lost 9 straight road games! Also, the Pistons have a huge game on deck with that same Milwaukee team tomorrow night. This is a bad situational spot for Detroit and Cleveland was 3-4 at home this season before getting tripped up recently including a loss to the Bucks by single digits and a lost by just a bucket versus Brooklyn. Look for the Cavaliers to get over the hump here and add to the Pistons season-long road futility. 10* CLEVELAND

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #527 Monday 10* Top Play Utah Jazz (+) @ Philadelphia 76ers @ 7:05 ET - Yes this is a back to back spot for the Jazz but yesterday their starters didn't play nearly as many minutes as they normally would have. That's because Utah got blasted at Toronto on Sunday. In fact, the Jazz were down by 40 points at halftime which is the largest halftime deficit in Utah's history! You know that Utah is going to respond tonight after an effort like that in the first half yesterday! That said, I love having a scrappy and defensive-minded, yesterday notwithstanding, Jazz team in bounce back mode for this one! Utah has struggled on the road this season but we're not asking them to win here although I do feel they have a great shot at the outright upset. We just need the Jazz to remain competitive in this game as the line is all the way up to a 5.5 as of very early game day morning. Expecting a team to be competitive after a franchise-worst performance is a good thing to bet on! This is particularly true when you can go against a 76ers team which is 9-0 SU at home but continues to see so many of those wins go down to the wire! The 3-point win over the Pacers on Saturday means that the Sixers have played in 4 straight games decided by 6 or less points. 5 of the 76ers last 7 wins have been tight wins decided by an average margin of 4.6 points per game. The last two meetings between these teams have been ATS wins for the road team and the one prior to that was a 6-point road loss for the Jazz at Philly. Again, look for Utah to be in this one all the way and I expect the points to be enough for the cover in a game quite possibly decided in the final minute. Prior to yesterday's ugly loss, the Jazz had seen 3 of their last 6 defeats decided by 4 or less points and, again, an outright upset certainly not out of the question here. This is a highly motivated road dog in this after what happened against the Raptors yesterday. 10* UTAH

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #518 Sunday 10* Top Play Detroit Pistons (-) vs San Antonio Spurs @ 5:05 ET - The Spurs just played their game of the year Friday and won it! They beat Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers in San Antonio. The Spurs wanted that game badly and got it. That will leave them flat here. Additionally, being without LaMarcus Aldridge here is going to hurt San Antonio as he is out with a thigh injury. The Pistons are off back to back losses to Charlotte in a home and home set with the Hornets. They are highly motivated here off consecutive losses as they had previously won 2 of 3 and appeared to be heading the right direction. Now they will take advantage of a Spurs team that is short-handed physically without Aldridge and mentally too after the big win over former Spur Leonard whom was booed every time he touched the ball in San Antonio Friday night. 10* DETROIT

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #504 Saturday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) vs Indiana Pacers @ 7:05 ET - Both teams were in action yesterday but the Pacers entire starting five played a ton of minutes as they had to go to overtime for the 1 point home win. Now Indiana takes to the road and takes on a 76ers team that is a perfect 8-0 at home this season. Even though Embiid may rest tonight because he was in action last night, Horford was rested last night and should be good to go here. The Sixers hold the edge coming back home for this one while the Pacers are on the road where they are just 3-4 on the season. The spread is small enough here that nearly any Sixers SU win is likely to also be an ATS cover and I like Philly laying the small number in this one as the set up favors them in this match-up. Look for the 76ers to improve to 9-0 on the season. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #561 Friday 10* Top Play OVER the total in New York Knicks vs Philadelphia 76ers @ 7:35 ET - The Knicks are off an ugly loss at Toronto where they were held to 98 points. New York head coach Fizdale was talking more about the lack of execution and hesitation on offense that was plaguing the Knicks in that game. In other words, it was not so much about the fact that New York gave up 126 points but the fact they scored just 98 points that has his attention. I am looking for a high-scoring game here. These teams put up 213 points when they recently met in Philly and the Knicks should score better here at home. We've got a low total to work with because of the market move here - first numbers globally posted on this game were in the 210.5 range. Particularly after the drop on this total I feel we have great value here. The Knicks are averaging 102 points per game this season and the 76ers are favored by as much as 8 points in this game as of early game day morning. A 110-102 Philly win gets us well above the posted total here. The over is a long-term 24-12 when the Sixers are a road favorite in a range of 6.5 to 12 points. The Knicks have trended under this season but there has been an over-adjustment on this total in my opinion and keep in mind New York's last 7 meetings with the Sixers have all totaled at least 208 points! 6 of the 7 totaled at least 213 points and this one should as well. 10* OVER the total in New York

Total of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #545 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in San Antonio Spurs vs Minnesota Timberwolves @ 8:35 ET - The over is a perfect 6-0 in the last 6 meetings between these teams. Also, each of the last 4 meetings in San Antonio have gone over the total. Minnesota has scored 120 points or more in 6 of its 8 road games this season! The Spurs are off a home game in which they were held to 104 points by the Lakers but consider that Los Angeles has been one of the best teams in the league this season and has already frustrated the Spurs twice this season at San Antonio. Against the rest of the NBA, the Spurs home games have seen them average 117 points per game. San Antonio is a small favorite in this game and there is reason to believe that each team will be in the 120 range in this one based on the above as well as their history of getting involved in shootouts. The Timberwolves have knocked down 14 or more threes in 3 of their last 4 games while the Spurs have knocked down 10 or more threes in 3 of their last 4 games. They hit 10 of 25 against the Lakers and had knocked down 12 in 2 of their 3 prior games - all on the road. With the Spurs at home and shooting better and the high-flying Wolves in town, this game should feature a ton of points. as the over goes to 7-0 the last 7 times these two teams have squared off. 10* OVER the total in San Antonio

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #532 Wednesday 8* Philadelphia 76ers (-) vs Sacramento Kings @ 7:05 ET - What happens when a team has a 5 point lead with 4 minutes to go but then doesn't score again and allows a 10-0 run the rest of the way? You're about to find out. Philadelphia is a very angry team here and they are back home where they are 7-0 on the season. After what happened at Toronto Monday, the 76ers aren't going to back off even when they have a big lead as this game goes on. The Sixers home wins have come by an average margin of 12.6 points per game and another blowout win at home comes by more than a dozen in this one! The Kings are 3-6 on the road this season and those 6 losses have come by an average margin of 14.5 points per game. 8* PHILADELPHIA

NBA TV Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #524 Tuesday 10* Top Play Dallas Mavericks (+) vs Los Angeles Clippers @ 8:35 ET - Much is made of "load management" when it comes to the star players and their minutes these days. Of course that has been a big key with Kawhi Leonard for quite some time now too. I firmly believe it is no coincidence that the Clippers are 0-3 SU this season when they are playing the front end of a back to back. That is the case here for Los Angeles. After facing Dallas tonight, the Clippers are at Memphis tomorrow. The Clips are 0-3 this season with the losses coming by an average margin of 9.3 points when they are playing the front end of a back to back. As for the Mavericks, they are in a very nice scheduling situation here as they have two off days after this game and then they begin a road trip. With two off days on deck the Mavs will go all out here. Dallas is 2-1 SU this season in games prior to a two day break in the schedule. I like the fact that the Mavericks have won 5 straight games both SU and ATS and have averaged 130 points per game during this winning streak. The Clippers have also won 5 straight games but have averaged 114 points per game in the last 4 games of that streak. With the home court edge and the situational edge and the fact that the Mavericks have been so hot with their shooting, I am grabbing the home dog in this match-up. The home teams has won and covered each of the last 4 meetings. More of the same here. 10* DALLAS

Game of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #507 Monday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) @ Toronto Raptors @ 7:35 ET - The Raptors are 6-0 at home this season. Toronto also has amazingly won 13 straight regular season home games over Philadelphia as well. That said this this line must be a huge mistake, right? Long-time followers know how I feel about "mistakes" by the odds makers. The point is don't be fooled by this line. The Sixers come in rolling off a huge win over a solid Miami team. That was the type of blowout home win that can spring a team to success in their very next game even if on the road. Of course this is a massive revenge game from last year's playoff loss for the 76ers against the Raptors when Kawhi Leonard hit that amazing game-ending shot to send Philly home for the summer. The fact is Leonard is now in LA with the Clippers, Serge Ibaka has been out and if he returns tonight would be less than 100 percent and rusty, and Kyle Lowry is still out for Toronto with an injury. Even though the Raptors have had a good start to this season this is still a team that is currently a shell of its former self. As for the Sixers, in terms of key players all hands are on deck and healthy. Only Furkan Korkmaz is questionable but Jason Richardson is back so that negates the impact of the Korkmaz injury. This is a payback game for the 76ers which has been circled in blood once the schedule came out. Look for a road rout in this one as you'll see probably the most determined effort so far this season from a hungry Sixers team here. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #569 Sunday 10* Top Play Sacramento Kings (+) @ Washington Wizards @ 6:05 ET - I am going to fade the line move here. Wizards opened up only favored by a bucket here but now are closer to two buckets and the fact is Washington had absolutely no business covering their game against Charlotte Friday night. That one handed me a 1/2 point ATS loss and I certainly haven't forgotten about it. The Wizards truly looked like they weren't even going to win the game let alone cover it. When a team wins a game like that it has no business winning it tends to mask issues. The fact is that Washington is a bad team defensively but they don't even realize they need to fix it because they get a fortunate win like that over the Hornets. Now here come the Kings whom, though dealing with injuries, are very scrappy and play much better defense. Prior to allowing 116 points in back to back games Sacramento had allowed less than 102 points in 5 of 7 games. Of course this was a key part of the reason the Kings had won 6 of 8 games prior to their ugly loss at Brooklyn Friday. They'll make up for that defeat here and I am expecting an outright win for a Kings team that will prove to be the much hungrier team in this match-up. They have tough games coming up at Boston and Philly and the Kings are smart enough to know this is the game they need to get. I expect them to do just that but am grabbing the points as added insurance. 10* SACRAMENTO

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #553 Saturday 10* Top Play Miami Heat (+) @ Philadelphia 76ers @ 7:35 ET - Both teams were in action last night and Philly does have the advantage of being at home for this one. However, this is a horrible spot for the 76ers because you know they can't help but look ahead. On deck for the Sixers is a huge game Monday which is their first crack at Toronto since the infamous Game 7 knockout blow on the last second shot from Kawhi Leonard sent the Raptors to the Eastern Conference finals and sent the 76ers home for the summer. That huge game is Monday at Toronto and the last team you want to be overlooking right now is Miami but that is the situation here and I fully expect the Heat to take advantage. Though Philly has won 3 straight, this was preceded by a 2-5 stretch for the Sixers. Miami has definitely been the hotter team as they have won 5 straight games and are 11-3 on the season. The Heat shoot better overall and particularly much better from three point land. They also defend much better and that includes from three point land as well. They are the better team at this point in the season and yet we get a handful of points because the Sixers are at home. That is the perceived edge for the 76ers here but again it is a bad situational spot for them and they aren't even the better team in this match-up at this point in the season. Additionally, back to backs always seem to put a strain on Philadelphia because of Joel Embiid's conditioning issues. 10* MIAMI

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #529 Friday 10* Top Play Charlotte Hornets (+) @ Washington Wizards @ 7:05 ET - The Wizards are what one could call a false favorite. What I mean by that is this: Washington is such a poor team that it is really hard to justify them being favored over anyone. Now certainly Charlotte has had its own share of struggles this season but they still have the better record in this match-up and the Hornets are catching the Wizards off an upset win over the Spurs. Washington is just 8-21 SU when coming off an outright upset win! The Wizards were 2 point dog against San Antonio but got the win and yet they were just 1-3 SU at home this season entering that game. The Hornets are very hungry here as they are off back to back losses both SU and ATS. On the season Charlotte has not had a 3-game ATS losing streak and I don't expect that to change here. In this divisional match-up the Hornets are going to battle hard and they are also 2-0 ATS this season when they enter a game off consecutive games in which they were held to 101 points or less. Their offensive production will see a big uptick here as the Wizards certainly are not known for defense. Charlotte has allowed 106 points or less in 3 of their last 4 games. Washington has allowed 121 points or more in 7 of its last 10 games. 10* CHARLOTTE

TNT Annihilation - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #524 Thursday 10* Top Play UNDER the total in Milwaukee Bucks vs Portland Trail Blazers @ 8:05 ET - The Blazers are so banged up right now that they are going to struggle to score well here. However, they got blasted and gave up 143 points in their last visit to Milwaukee. They have been reminded of that heading into this contest. I feel very strongly that the Trail Blazers are going to play some tough D in this one! The Bucks are off an easier than the final score looks 135-127 win last night at Atlanta. That means this is the 2nd night of a back to back plus travel is involved. Milwaukee absolutely should win this game handily but I don't see them wanting to turn this into a track meet given the situation. This is the Bucks 5th game in 8 nights. This is the Blazers 4th game in 6 nights. Given all of the above factors, this total is shaded too high in the 230 range! When the Trail Blazers enter a game having allowed 110 points or more in 4 straight games, the UNDER is PERFECT with 5 straight wins when in this situation. When the Bucks are off a game in which they scored 122 points or more this season, the UNDER has cashed in 4 of the last 5 times in this situation. 10* UNDER the total in Milwaukee

PA Insider - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #501 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Philadelphia 76ers vs New York Knicks @ 7:05 ET - The opening line on this game had Philly -13 with a total of 213. Assuming the odds makers are correct in their assessment that means the forecast here is Philadelphia 113, New York 100. Giving consideration to that, I love the over in this match-up. The reason is because I feel there is adequate support to believe the Knicks will do better than 100 points here and, at the same time, the Sixers are ready for an offensive explosion at home. Philadelphia has had a tough road-heavy schedule to begin this season so they are excited about this opportunity to finally play again at home and improve on their perfect 4-0 mark. First, about the Knicks, they have scored 102 points or more in 6 of their 7 road games this season! In those 6 games New York has averaged 105.3 points per game. The 76ers had averaged 112.7 points per game at home in their first 3 games before a rare dud in their 4th one. But they are also finally healthy again with all hands on deck for this one plus Tobias Harris is heating up. That means plenty of scoring options with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons in addition to two guys each averaging 15 points per game in Al Horford and Josh Richardson. Both the Knicks and Sixers enter this game having had yesterday off and also having tomorrow off as well. There will be no hesitation to run and gun here and I expect plenty of points. The 76ers were on a 6-2 run to the over before their most recent game stayed under the total. Look for the Knicks to get to 105 here which will put Philly at about 120 in this one. 10* OVER the total in Philadelphia

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #577 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Memphis Grizzlies vs Golden State Warriors @ 8:05 ET - I am aware of the Warriors injuries but lets not forget that Golden State is allowing 119 points per game this season and the Grizzlies are allowing 118.8 points per game this season. Neither one of these teams do a good job defending. The Warriors have allowed 48% shooting this season including 39% from beyond the arc! Memphis had one good defensive effort in their last 6 games (against defensive-minded Utah) but allowed 46.7% or more from the field in their other 5 games. In those five games the Grizzlies 122.6 points per game! The Warriors come into this one having stayed under the total in 3 straight games but this was preceded by a 5-0 run to the over. Golden State is off a low-scoring loss at New Orleans but the over is 4-1 this season when the Warriors are off a road loss. Both teams view this game as a winnable game and I see the Grizzlies young guns pushing the pace in this one and we see a back and forth high-scoring game in this one as a result. 10* OVER the total in Memphis

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #557 Monday 10* Top Play Cleveland Cavaliers (+) @ New York Knicks @ 7:05 ET - Yes the Cavaliers are in a back to back spot here but they got their doors blown off by the 76ers yesterday. When you're down 31 points in the 3rd quarter of a game you start resting guys the rest of the way and, of course, that is what Cleveland did yesterday. That means no one played more than 28 minutes in yesterday's loss and also the Cavs did have two days off prior to yesterday's game. In other words, they will be ready to go here and, keep in mind, they actually took more shots from the field than the 76ers did yesterday and also had more shots from the free throw line. So what happened? It was simply one of those nights (and we had Philly right here in this spot yesterday) because the 76ers were ultra hungry and everything was falling for them. For the Cavs, they couldn't get shots to fall and so it was a blowout loss. But, keep in mind, Cleveland had been playing a little better and they will respond here tonight after that ugly loss. I love grabbing the points and going against bad teams and this the case here with the Knicks. Not only is New York 3-10 on the season, they are off a very disheartening loss to the Hornets in their most recent game as New Orleans hit the game-winning three with just a couple seconds left. New York had really let that game get away from them and I fully expect a similar result tonight. 10* CLEVELAND

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #545 Sunday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) @ Cleveland Cavaliers @ 3:05 ET - The 76ers are healthy and they are angry after a 2nd straight loss, this one in OT, on Friday. The Cavaliers are struggling this season and are not healthy as Larry Nance exited their most recent game on Thursday in the 4th quarter. He could be limited here on Sunday, if he even plays. Philadelphia is desperate to get back on track as they have lost 5 of their last 7 games after beginning the season a perfect 5-0. The Sixers do not play again until Wednesday when they begin a 3-game homestand. In other words, the last thing Philly wants is to go into that homestand on a 3-game losing streak. They are going hard here and with two off days coming up they also won't hold back here and I see them winning this game by a double digit margin. The Cavaliers average margin of defeat this season is 10 points per game and I am expecting this defeat to come by at least a dozen. This one is all about the situational value and if the Cavs do get down big they will likely "pack it in" late in the game too and save it for a game at New York against the Knicks tomorrow night. Much better situation here and health factor for the road team in this one. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #533 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in New York Knicks vs Charlotte Hornets @ 7:35 ET - A helluva lot of defensive intensity in the 4th quarter led to New York getting the win Thursday over former Knicks star Kristaps Porzingis and Dallas as the Mavericks were in town. That game was practically like "winning it all" for the Knicks as they wanted that game against their former star and also got the win at Dallas earlier this season too. What that will lead to here is a very flat effort on the defensive end and that means the Hornets, in a back to back, will score plenty. I like taking the over (when the situation is right) in a back to back spot because it is tough to play solid defense back to back nights and Charlotte is off a hard-fought home win last night. Note that this total opened up at a 215.5 and then dropped a couple buckets from there and, in typical contrarian fashion, I am on the other side of the move and grabbing the over in this one. The over is 3-1 this season when Charlotte is a road underdog. The Hornets are allowing 113 points per game this season. New York is allowing 110 points per game this season. The Knicks have trended under this season but this is the right situation, off winning a huge home game that was practically like a championship game, for that trend to be reversed. 10* OVER the total in New York

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #515 Friday 10* Top Play San Antonio Spurs (+) @ Orlando Magic @ 7:05 ET - The Magic are off a 15 point Wednesday versus Philadelphia while the Spurs are off a 15 point loss the same night at Minnesota. However, Orlando actually trailed going to the 4th quarter of that game. How much will the Magic have left in the tank after that huge effort? As for San Antonio, they are outscored by 24 points from three point land. In other words, inside the arc the Spurs WON the game by NINE points. After shooting just 3 of 17 from the arc Wednesday and getting beat by the three-ball, SA comes into this game extra hungry as they want to put an end to a 3-game losing streak. That said, any points we are offered here is simply added value as I really do expect the Spurs to win outright and this line has moved from a 1 to a 3.5 as of early game day morning. Excellent value with the road dog here. I'll grab the points as the Spurs struggles are likely to end here and the Magic (just 4-7 on the season) are getting a little too much respect here after beating a Sixers team that is having some growing pains right now. In other words, that victory over the 76ers is not as impressive as it would seem on the surface. 10* SAN ANTONIO

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #502 Thursday 10* Top Play Cleveland Cavaliers (+) vs Miami Heat @ 6:05 ET - The Cavaliers are off a tough 1-point loss at Philadelphia but a win there would have been their third in a row. Cleveland is playing very competitive basketball right now and very hungry and I like the Cavs here at home to get the upset win. We'll grab the points as added insurance but the Heat could struggle here. They continue to be banged up and missing guys or guys trying to play through injuries. Give credit to Miami as they are off to a solid start this season but they are still just 3-3 on the road and the Cavaliers are 2-2 at home. In other words this is a great home dog spot considering the way the Cavs are playing right now and the fact they are off a 1-point loss that will add to the hunger factor here. Also, Miami may overlook them as the Heat got the 4-0 season sweep of Cleveland last season. But overlooking them will prove to be detrimental as all of Miami's injuries catch up with them here. 10* CLEVELAND

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #579 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Charlotte Hornets vs Memphis Grizzlies @ 7:05 ET - Perfect situation here. The Hornets are at home and hungry off a loss but can't play defense. The Grizzlies are on the road off a huge upset win and that sets this one up well to see very little defense. I had Memphis as a double digit dog when they upset the Spurs on Monday and now I want to make note of the fact that the Grizzlies are 6-2 to the over when off an outright upset win over a division rival. Charlotte has allowed an average of 114 points per game their past 4 games and that is not a huge surprise given the fact that the Hornets have allowed opponents to shoot 53% or better in 3 of those 4 games! As for the Grizzlies, they are allowing an incredible 119 points per game on the season! Charlotte enters this game having lost 3 straight games. The over is 13-7 when the Hornets enter a game on a losing streak of 3 or more consecutive games. More of the same expected here as, given the situation, this one should fly over the total with the defensive inefficiencies I am expecting in this one. 10* OVER the total in Charlotte

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #563 Tuesday 10* Top Play Oklahoma City Thunder (+) @ Indiana Pacers @ 7:05 ET - The Pacers have been without Victor Oladipo since the season started. Indiana also has seen Myles Turner and Jeremy Lamb also miss significant time with injuries (and both listed as questionable for this contest). So, how have the Pacers (winners of 6 of their last 7) done it? It has had a lot to do with an easy schedule! That is the key to why I like the Thunder in this match-up. Don't let the short line fool you. It looks so easy, of course, to take Indiana laying about 3 points at home, doesn't it? After all, Oklahoma City is 0-3 on the road this season and the Pacers are 4-1 at home on the season. Must be some kind of major "mistake" by the odds makers here, right? Long-time followers know how I feel about supposed "mistakes" by those making the lines. The fact is that OKC has played a tougher schedule this season and they enter this game hungry off a 2 point home loss to a strong Bucks team on Saturday. In other words, don't be surprised when the Thunder come out strong here and get the outright upset win. I am grabbing the points for added "insurance" in this one. This is a contrarian play and that is a big part of my handicapping repertoire and lets look to cash again here! 10* OKLAHOMA CITY

Divisional Dominator - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #553 Monday 10* Top Play Memphis Grizzlies (+) @ San Antonio Spurs @ 7:35 ET - Both teams off ugly losses but part of the reason that the Grizzlies got blasted was that they were in the 2nd night of a back to back. Memphis made the decision NOT to play their leading scorer Ja Morant AND also Brandon Clarke (back) did not play. Though Clarke's back has been an ongoing issue I really believe his absence was more of a maintenance thing than anything else and so I expect him back tonight even though he is listed as questionable. Of course Morant will for sure be back in action tonight. This Spurs team is nothing like the San Antonio teams of the past and for them to be favored by double digits here is a little aggressive in my opinion. They just haven't been consistent on the defensive end and LaMarcus Aldridge is coming off a horrible game. Again, both teams off ugly losses but the Spurs had just as many three pointers as Boston in San Antonio's Saturday loss. As for Memphis, they saw red hot Dallas have 6 more threes than them (18 points) in the 16 point loss. This is a stat I like to look at as sometimes hot 3 point shooting does teams in. Grizzlies won the rest of the game by 2 points even being down 2 players. The Spurs lost their game by 20 points inside the arc. Something to think about for sure and I don't see Memphis losing this game by anything more than single digits. I look for a hard-fought game with plenty of intensity from the Grizzlies as well. 10* MEMPHIS

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #538 Sunday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76ers (-) vs Charlotte Hornets @ 6:05 ET - The 76ers are off 3 straight losses but all were on the road and this included time without Joel Embiid too. Yes, Ben Simmons is out now but they were without him at Denver on Friday and still led that game by 21 points in the 4th quarter and yet lost. So what happens now? The fired up Sixers are back at home and hosting a Hornets team that they are fully capable of also building a 21-point lead against. The difference is that Charlotte is not Denver and plus this game is at Philly. Look for the 76ers to build that huge lead and then never take the foot off their gas here. Adding to the value is that the Hornets are in a back to back here as they were home against New Orleans last night. It was yet another loss too last night for a bad Charlotte team and the 76ers are in need of taking a team behind the woodshed for a beating. The Hornets should provide the perfect punching bag. This is just the 3rd home game of the season for the Sixers. They won the first two games by an average margin of 18 points per game. I look for this one to be decided by close to 20 points as well. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Total Dominator - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #525 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Charlotte Hornets vs New Orleans Pelicans @ 7:05 ET - Both these teams are coming off unders so immediately I was looking at potential for playing the over here as teams tend to bounce back off low-scoring losses. The Pelicans were held to just 104 points at home against the Raptors last night. The Hornets were held to an embarrassing 87 points at home versus Boston on Thursday. Now you have a situation where two bad teams are matched up and both of them are coming into this one looking to explode on offense after being bottled up by superior defenses in their most recent game. In terms of additional situational support here, the Hornets have yet to have consecutive unders this season. The Pelicans also have yet to have back to back unders this season and, in fact, the over was 6-1 in their 7 games that preceded last night's low-scoring defeat. New Orleans is allowing 126.5 points per game in road games and the Hornets are allowing 118.5 points per game in home games this season. Don't be surprised if this one indeed gets into the 240s. 10* OVER the total in Charlotte

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #504 Friday 10* Top Play UNDER the total in Washington Wizards vs Cleveland Cavaliers @ 7:05 ET - These teams each come in struggling and are off to 2-5 starts this season. That means each is viewing this game as an important game and a winnable game which means you're going to see some defensive intensity in this one. In fact, the Wizards come into this game talking about needing to get some stops and, lets face it, the Cavaliers are not exactly an offensive powerhouse. As for Cleveland, they want the same thing, they are a young team with guys trying to prove themselves and so they're willing to give strong effort on defense. With that said, lets also give credit to the odds makers as they are pretty damn sharp. That being said, I love the fact that this total opened as low as 226.5 and then shot up to as high as 232.5 and I am happy to grab the value on the other side of the move and play the under. The fact is that the Wizards had a 3 game stretch of some crazy games but their first two games this season and their most recent two games heading into this one have averaged a total of only 208 points per game. That is two dozen points below the number that is posted on this game as of mid-morning Friday. As for the Cavaliers, they have scored an average of just 97 points per game in their 3 road games. Keep in mind, young teams tend to struggle to score on the road. The Wizards are only favored by 4.5 here too. So that means a low-scoring home team win is quite likely and even if the game gets "a little crazy" at times I still would see it struggling to get over this big of a number. A lot of value here in my opinion as I forecast this game to stay below 220 so we've got a lot of cushion here. Cleveland games have stayed under in 17 of 29 when they are a road dog of less than 6.5 points. Wizards games against teams with a losing record (3 this season) have all stayed under the total. 10* UNDER the total in Washington

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #574 Thursday 10* Top Play San Antonio Spurs (-) vs Oklahoma City Thunder @ 8:35 ET - I see this is as a great value spot for backing the Spurs. From a situational standpoint it doesn't get much better than this and plus the line value is there. The Thunder enter this match-up having won 2 straight but they are 0-2 on the road this season. San Antonio enters this game having lost 2 straight but they are 3-1 at home this season. Based on this line dropping to a 4.5 after opening as a high as a 5.5 globally, the markets are basically saying these teams are very nearly equal and the only edge that SA has is home court. But hold that thought for a second as you carry on to the next point. Coming into this season Oklahoma City was projected by bookmakers to lose about 50 games and have a 32-50 season based on their win total projection by odds makers. The Spurs on the other hand were projected to finish about 10 games above .500 as they were projected to finish 46-36. In the span of just a couple weeks NOT that much has changed to justify this line. San Antonio is going to come out very hungry at home and I see them winning this game by close to double digits. Note that the Spurs are 20-12 ATS when they enter a game off 2 or more consecutive losses. Also, as a home fave of 6 or less points SA is 26-13 ATS! Lay it with the home team in this one as the host has covered 5 straight in this series and all signs point to that trend continuing here! 10* SAN ANTONIO

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #557 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Toronto Raptors vs Sacramento Kings @ 7:35 ET - The Kings are off a blowout win but it came against a bad Knicks team. It is a confidence-booster nonetheless because that followed an upset win for Sacramento over Utah. In fact the Kings have now played well on the offensive end in 3 straight games as they have shot 48% from the field in their last 3 contests. That is why I am projecting a high scoring game here because the Raptors are off a loss and rested here. Toronto won't take their foot off the gas in this one. Not including OT points of course, the Raptors are averaging 115 points per game at home this season where they are 3-0. Hungry for a bounce back win after losing at Milwaukee on Saturday, Toronto brings a huge effort in this one. Each team has another non-conference match-up on deck so the full focus is on this game and I like the way the Kings have been playing. The point is Sacramento will be able to hang around in this game better than they normally would and that means, with the Raptors scoring plenty in a spot like this, we're looking at a very high-scoring game. The over is 13-6 the past two seasons when Sacramento entered a game on a winning streak of 2 or more games. The over went 6-1 the past two seasons when Toronto was off a game they had trailed by 15 or more points at the half. The over also went a solid 8-4 the past two seasons when the Raptors were playing with 3 or more days of rest between games. 10* OVER the total in Toronto

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #541 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Cleveland Cavaliers vs Boston Celtics @ 7:05 ET - Contrarian here as Boston is known for defense. I don't see the Celtics D being too "amped up" about this game though as they face a downtrodden Cavaliers team that is much different than the Cleveland team they were facing in the LeBron James seasons here. That said, what I like about the over here is that I expect this game to play with a good pace. The Cavs are not a very good basketball team but they have gone 2-1 at home and they have averaged 112.7 points per game here. The Celtics are a good team and they enter this game on a 4 game winning streak in which Boston has averaged 112.5 points per game. If both teams simply hit their "average" performances this game should land double digits higher than the posted total. The fact is the Cavaliers are going to bring a strong effort after starting the season 2-0 at home but then getting blasted by 20 points in their most recent game. They will come out looking to push themselves to a much better performance and they will have to score plenty to hang around in this game. That's because the Celtics enter this game with fresh legs as they have not played since Friday. When they have played a game with no rest or with more than the usual 1 day of rest between games (so an atypical rest situation) they have scored 118 and 116, respectively. I am looking for another big game here as the over improves to 4-1 in the last 5 meetings between these teams. The over is 24-16 when Boston is off a divisional game and note that the last 36 times that the Celtics have been a road favorite of 6 points or less, only 13 of the 36 games have stayed under the total. After getting blasted in their last game you might expect some defense here but the over is 12-6 when the Cavs are off a game in which they allowed 130 points or more. Another high-scoring one here. 10* OVER the total in Cleveland

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #533 Monday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Minnesota Timberwolves vs Milwaukee Bucks @ 8:05 ET - This is contrarian because with Karl-Anthony Towns out for a 2nd straight game (suspension from fight with Joel Embiid) many might be looking under here because of his production on the offensive end. However, don't forget how important he is on the defensive end and now the Wolves go from facing one of the worst teams int the league (Wizards) to one of the best (Bucks). Don't be surprised if Milwaukee puts up a ton of points here. They have scored an average of 119 points per game this season. The issue for the Bucks could be a lack of defensive intensity in this one and that will open up things in the offensive end for Minnesota here. Milwaukee is coming off a huge revenge win over the Raptors (beat Bucks in Eastern Conference finals) and they dialed up the intensity for that one. The game stayed under the total but the Bucks have not been involved in back to back unders yet this season and I don't expect that streak to come to an end here either. The Timberwolves are averaging 118 points per game this season and coming off a confidence-boosting blowout win at Washington on Saturday. Both teams were off yesterday so we'll see rested legs in this one and both teams happy to play at a fast pace in this one. The Bucks should score plenty in the paint too with the Wolves missing Towns down low. As a road favorite of 6.5 to 12 points, Milwaukee is 10-5 to the over. Off an upset win as an underdog, Minnesota is 18-7 to the over. The Timberwolves are also 18-9 to the over as a home underdog. 10* OVER the total in Minnesota

Total Dominator - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #519 Sunday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Miami Heat vs Houston Rockets @ 6:05 ET - The Heat are expected to have Dion Waiters make his season debut in this one. He is a key contributor. I am aware of Miami's Jimmy Butler being listed as questionable on the injury report. He generally plays through injuries like the one he is currently dealing with and I expect him to play tonight. Even if he doesn't, keep in mind the Heat played the first 3 games of this season without him. I like taking the over here with the Rockets off a loss that stayed under the total. Houston had a rare poor game offensively on Friday at Brooklyn (we cashed the under here in that game) and I like coming back with the over after a game like that. Note that these teams both have been putting up big point totals early this season. Also, Miami's defense is going to be in "shock mode" as they try to adjust to the Rockets quick-firing offense after facing the struggling (and injured) Hawks in back to back games. I look for the Heat to struggle with the Houston attack here. The over is 8-4 when the Rockets enter a game after allowing 110 points or more in 4 straight games. Miami has not lost ATS in any of their games this season (one push) and the over is 6-1 when the Heat enter a game on an ATS undefeated streak of 4 or more games and they are now 4-0-1 ATS after covering versus Atlanta. The over is also 5-2 when the Heat enter a game having scored 105 or more points in 5 straight games. 10* OVER the total in Miami

NBA TV Smash Pass - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #505 Saturday 10* Top Play Denver Nuggets (-) @ Orlando Magic @ 7:05 ET - Perfect set up for a road rout. Both the Nuggets and Magic are coming off ugly losses but Orlando has been struggling to score points. As for Denver, I feel they are the much stronger team and so I like having them and laying just a short number here on the road. The fact is they are off back to back losses but that was after a 3-0 start to the season. After the embarrassment of being the Pelicans first victim this season (New Orleans had been 0-4 entering Thursday's game), coach Malone was extremely fired up. He'll have the Nuggets ready to go here after back to back losses. Orlando would love to respond too (after an ugly loss) but they are at a disadvantage here as they are without rest (played last night) and they simply are not as talented of a team as the Nuggets are. The road rout is on in this one. 10* DENVER

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #568 Friday 10* Top Play UNDER the total in Brooklyn Nets vs Houston Rockets @ 7:05 ET - This total is up in the 242 range which I fully understand based on the over-reaction of the market place after Houston's most recent game was a 159-158 win. Of course this crazy result in the Rockets win at Washington Wednesday has led to an over-adjustment in this game. Brooklyn has played 4 games so far this season and 2 of them went to overtime. Of course that holds some significance when looking at their numbers as half their games have had extra time. When you back out the overtime periods for the Nets, Brooklyn has not had a game total more than 240 this season. Also, the average of their 4 games in regulation time is 229.5 points scored. As for the Rockets, prior to their wild game against the Wizards, they had played 3 games and 2 of the 3 totaled 228 points. Even including the other game (a high scoring one) those 3 games averaged 235 points. Again, the point being that if these teams play their "average" game we're looking at a point total that is about 10 points below the current number posted on this game. As a result, I am going under the total in this one. After a close win (by a margin of less than 4 points), the Rockets have stayed under in 10 of 14 games. Also, in a game with a posted total of 230 or more, Houston has stayed under the total in 27 of 43 games. The Nets were favored in their most recent game and yet lost by a double digit margin! The last 5 times they are off a game like that, the under has cashed in 4 of 5 times! More of the same here. 10* UNDER the total in Brooklyn

Game of the Week (Eastern Conference) - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #562 Thursday 10* Top Play Atlanta Hawks (+) vs Miami Heat @ 7:05 ET - I am well aware of the Hawks injury situation. This includes the fact that Trae Young, Atlanta's young star and last week's NBA Player of the Week, is out for this game. However, he got hurt just 2 minutes into the game at Miami on Tuesday and yet the Hawks still hung around in that game. Now, at home in Atlanta, and with extra time to figure out game planning without Young available for this game, look for the Hawks to be ultra competitive tonight. They may again fall short to the Heat but, if they do, I would expect it to be only by a bucket or two. Atlanta has a lot of youth behind Young at point guard but it helps young players when they are at home. The fact we're getting more than a half dozen points here at home has me liking the Hawks plenty in this match-up. Miami is on a 4-15 ATS run when off a home win by a double digit margin. Also, the Heat are 1-5 ATS when off a divisional win by a double digit margin. Atlanta has 4 days off after this game so they're going to want to make the most of this opportunity. In other words, there is no holding back and the Hawks will leave it all on the floor in terms of their effort tonight. Keep in mind, prior to the road loss Tuesday, Atlanta was 2-1 this season and the only loss had come by two points! Again, I know the Hawks are without Young here but they are being undervalued in this spot based on the Tuesday results at Miami. Look for the home dog to improve to 26-18 when off a blowout loss by a margin of 15 or more points. Payback time. 10* ATLANTA

Game of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #542 Wednesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia 76'ers (-) vs Minnesota Timberwolves @ 7:05 ET - The 76'ers opened their season a week okay versus Boston at home. Philly has since been on the road for a pair of games and after this game the Sixers will not be home again until November 10th. That means, because of an upcoming 4 game road trip out west, the 76'ers only home game between October 23rd and November 10th is tonight on Wednesday. You can bet (literally!) that they're going to make the most of it. I have had my eyes on this situation for awhile and everything set up perfectly and that is why I am going with a big play here. The Timberwolves remain undefeated on the season courtesy of a huge comeback win against the Heat on Sunday. The Wolves were actually down 7 points heading to the 4th quarter of that game and yet miraculously won the game by 7 points. It was a miracle cover for those whom had Minnesota -6.5 as the game was tied with just a couple minutes to go and the Timberwolves trailed for plenty of the 3rd and 4th quarters. In any event it sets this one up nicely because Minnesota is over-valued right now. They are 3-0 on the season but their road wins came at Brooklyn and Charlotte. The Nets and Hornets are a combined 2-5 on the young season. The fact is that Minnesota came into this season projected to win about 35 games while Philly came into this season projected to win about 55 games. The Sixers won their only other home game of the season by 14 against the Celtics and they can win this game by double digits too. The point is that, given the above, this line should be in the double digit range but it is well short of that and I am all over the value here in going against a Wolves team whose luck runs out tonight. The Sixers know how to dial up the defense, particularly when at home, and Minnesota won't find the openings they did late in their win over Miami on Sunday. That one burned us as we have the Heat +7 in that game and had no business being handed a tough push. Today we get payback as the Sixers make the most of their lone home game in about a 3-week stretch. They are going to give a tremendous effort at home tonight. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #533 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Miami Heat vs Atlanta Hawks @ 7:35 ET - The Hawks game had 128 points at halftime last night and yet still went under the total. That's because Atlanta allowed the game to slow down in the second half and the 76ers took it to them and got the win. The Hawks won't make the same mistake here at Miami and that means we should see plenty of run and gun in this one. Speaking of mistakes, the Heat led by 7 going to the 4th quarter at Minnesota Sunday and then allowed the Wolves to outscore them by 14 points in the final stanza and Miami lost by 7. The Heat won't make the same mistake here as they know they need to keep their foot on the gas when they get a lead like that. As a result of the types of games both these teams are off of as well as the fact this total has dropped about a bucket to 223 as of early game day morning, I am going with the over in this match-up. Look for the over to improve to a perfect 4-0 on the season in Heat games. As for the Hawks, the over was a perfect 2-0 in their two visits to Miami last season. Also, the over is 16-7 when the Heat are installed as a home favorite of 6.5 to 12 points. The line is in that range for this one and I look for both teams to favor a fast tempo in this game per the above reasoning. 10* OVER the total in Miami

Total of the Month - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #513 Monday 10* Top Play OVER the total in New York Knicks vs Chicago Bulls @ 7:05 ET - Both these teams are off embarrassing low-scoring performances in their home openers. Each team faced a tough foe though and now, after that ugliness, each team is ready for a breakout game offensively and will take advantage of facing a weak foe that struggles on the defensive end. That is going to lead to an absolutely shootout here in New York in my opinion. Keep in mind, the Bulls are 18-7 to the over when off a game in which they scored 90 or less points. The Knicks are off back to back losses to divisional foes and I look for the over to improve to 3-0 when in this situation (off B2B losses to Atlantic teams). Note that New York's only game against a non-divisional foe this season totaled 231 points and flew over the total. The Knicks are allowing an average of 117 points per game this season. As for Chicago, they are allowing an average of 112 points per game this season. Prior to getting stifled by Toronto, the Bulls did average 117.5 points per game in their first two games. The Chicago offensive production bounces right back here but the Knicks answer them bucket for bucket in a game that goes down to the wire as both teams respond well after each having had a very poor shooting performance in their prior game. 10* OVER the total in New York

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #505 Sunday 10* Top Play Miami Heat (+) @ Minnesota Timberwlves @ 7:05 ET - I am very well aware of the old "rule" about never playing a team off an OT win in a back to back spot but there is simply too much value to ignore in this one. I also like the fact that it is early in the season and also yesterday's game was an early game for Miami and then it was a short flight from Milwaukee to Minneapolis. That being said, we're getting some extra value (+7) here because of the situation and I feel the Timberwolves are being given far too much respect. Keep in mind that this is a team that came into the season projected to win about 35 games while the Heat came into this season projected to win about 45 games. What I like about Miami here is their resiliency. They were down big on the road against the Bucks, an NBA title contender, and then came roaring all the way back for the eventual overtime win. That is a confidence booster to say the least. It also means that even if the Heat get down to the Wolves in this one by a sizable margin, which not be a total surprise given this is Minnesota's home opener, one can fully expect the high-powered Heat to battle back and get right back into the game. Miami has been putting up a ton of points early this season and that makes them a dangerous dog in a spot like this. This one is all about the situational value and, even though the Wolves are 2-0, they played one very bad team and won their other game in OT by a single point. Lets not get carried away with Minnesota's 2-0 start. So another way to look at this is we have a Heat team projected to be a 45-win team this season getting a full +7 against a Minnesota team projected to be a 35-win team this season. I understand the situational edge for the home team here but this line could easily be much closer to a pick'em! Give me the big points! 10* MIAMI

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #555 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in New York Knicks vs Boston Celtics @ 7:35 ET - Both teams are already playing their 3rd game of the young season and it is a back to back for both clubs as each was in action last night. That said, I don't expect much defensive intensity for either team here as the Celtics are off huge divisional match-ups with the 76ers and Raptors. As for the Knicks, they failed to score in the final 3:41 of their loss to Brooklyn last night. With that type of late game failure on the offensive end, you know where New York's focus is heading into this game. Also, both teams have injuries to big men. This means each team is lacking some interior defense and, as a result, there will be more scoring opportunities in the paint that what you would typically see. With this total also dropping from as high as a 215.5 to a 212, the value is clearly with the over in this one. The over is 11-6 when Boston is off a home win against a divisional rival. The most recent game between these teams stayed under the total but, prior to that, Knicks games against Celtics were on a 3-1 run to the over. That type of trending resumes here. 10* OVER the total in New York

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #534 Friday 10* Top Play Boston Celtics (-) vs Toronto Raptors @ 7:05 ET - The Celtics ran into a buzzsaw in the form of a determined and hungry 76ers team in Philly on Wednesday. The Sixers had long been the punching bag of Boston and wanted to prove they are ready to live up to their lofty expectations this season. Now the Celtics get a much better match-up in Game 2 of their season and in what is Boston's home opener. The Raptors are coming to down. Of course Toronto's expectations are down quite far this season as Kawhi Leonard is now wearing a Clippers jersey! Also, the Raptors handed me an early candidate for "bad beat of the year" with their OT win (and inexplicable cover!) in their overtime 8 point win over the Pelicans on opening night on Tuesday. That said, I already had my eyes on this match-up ever since that game and things set up perfectly after the Celtics were throttled in Philadelphia on Wednesday. Boston was held in check thanks to stifling defense of the 76ers and now the Celtics will enjoy a lot more open court and open looks in this match-up against the Raptors. After shooting poorly from the field (including from beyond the arc) and also shooting poorly at the foul line, the Celtics will turn in a much stronger performance on their home floor on Friday evening. Look for the host to win this one in an absolute rout. 10* BOSTON

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NBA Rotation #527 Thursday 10* Top Play Atlanta Hawks (+) @ Detroit Pistsons @ 7:05 ET - Give credit to the Pistons as they went on the road, sans Blake Griffin, and beat a solid Indiana team last night. However, a look inside the numbers shows why some struggles are to be expected tonight. An early season back to back is tough as teams aren't use to that yet this early in the season. Also, Detroit knocked down 46% of their 3-pointers and also 56% from inside the arc. That hot shooting is unlikely to be repeated against a hungry Hawks team that will be flying all over the floor looking to win their season opener. Also, with Griffin out, Andre Drummond is the most important player on the floor for the Pistons and he played 41 minutes last night. That is going to be tough on the big man for tonight as, no matter how well-conditioned you are, a back to back is particularly tough on a big man. Drummond was key to the win last night and his minutes could be limited tonight. Grab the fresher team as the trend we saw toward road covers in yesterday's first big card of NBA action continues in this one Thursday as the home teams are a little over-valued early in the season when a lot of these games are "anybody's game" and, given the rest edge for the Hawks here, I look for the road team to pull away late. 10* ATLANTA