NBA Odds: Tuesday, April 15, 2014 Opening Line Report and Handicapping
by Alan Matthews - 4/14/2014
Take your mind off Tax Day in the U.S. by making a little money off the final TNT doubleheader of the regular season on Tuesday night. They are the only two games on the schedule, and here's a look at both.
Knicks at Nets (TBA)
This game frankly doesn't mean anything in the grand scheme of things. New York was eliminated from the playoff chase over the weekend, and big changes will be coming to that franchise. Mike Woodson? Goner. Carmelo Anthony? Maybe gone too, at least if he cares about winning more than money. Melo has been playing through a shoulder injury and will have an MRI in the next few days. He's supposed to suit up here although really it makes little sense to do so. Woodson suggested on Monday that Toure Murry (who?!?!) and Jeremy Tyler will play rotation minutes in the final two games of the regular season. These are your New York Knicks folks!
The Nets are going to finish fifth in the East and visit either Toronto or Chicago in the first round of the playoffs. This is Brooklyn's regular-season home finale, where it had won 15 straight before being upset by Atlanta on Friday when Deron Williams and Shaun Livingston sat out. The Nets bounced back with a 97-88 home victory over Orlando on Sunday with Williams back, but Livingston will remain out. The Nets also play Wednesday, so perhaps Kevin Garnett sits out one of the two.
The Knicks lead the season series 2-1. Carmelo is averaging 22.7 points and 10.7 rebounds in the three.
Key trends: The Nets are 0-4 ATS in their past four against teams with a losing record. The under is 4-1 in the past five meetings.
Early lean: This should be ugly in terms of points, so jump on the under regardless of the number.
Nuggets at Clippers (TBA)
Los Angeles is going to be the third seed in the West and likely host Golden State in its opening-round series. That's going to be must-see TV. On Saturday, L.A. beat Sacramento 117-101 for its franchise-record 56th victory. It also improved Los Angeles to 33-7 at home, the franchise mark for home wins. Jamal Crawford returned against the Kings after missing five straight games. Coach Doc Rivers sounded like he didn't want to mess around in the final two regular-season games, so don't be surprised to see some guys sit or at least play very limited minutes.
Denver has won three straight, including victories over playoff clubs Houston and Golden State. Wilson Chandler returned to the lineup on Saturday after missing the previous 10 games. Kenneth Faried was in full Manimal form against the Jazz with 24 points and 21 rebounds. Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson missed his fourth straight game with a sprained left ankle and it's unlikely he comes back.
The Nuggets lead the season series 2-1 but have lost three straight at the Clippers. Blake Griffin is averaging 28.7 points and 13.0 rebounds against Denver this season. Faried averages 16.0 points and 9.0 rebounds vs. L.A.
Key trends: The home team is 6-0 ATS in the past six meetings. The under is 4-1 in the past five.
Early lean: This should be the opposite of the slogging Knicks-Nets pace, so I'd lean big on the over regardless of the number; it will be high.
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