NBA Handicapping Articles

NBA Trade Deadline Player Props and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 3/7/2012

The shape of the rest of the NBA season should come more into focus by a little after 3 p.m. Eastern next Thursday when the trade deadline passes. For most of the good teams the immediate future is the biggest concern, and they will be looking to fill holes for a playoff run. Others are looking more at the big picture, and they'll be looking for young talent, salary-cap flexibility and other franchise-building assets.

NBA Handicapping: Weekly Look at Key Betting Statistics
by David Schwab - 3/7/2012

Given that the NBA regular season is already half over, we have a wealth of information and statistics on all 30 teams that we can easily access when it comes to handicapping matchups. The problem with trying to process too much information is that it becomes extremely easy to bog yourself down by trying to factor in every possible measure known to mankind. Sometimes it is the simple things in this game that can provide the most important insight to correctly predicting the actual outcome of a game.

NBA Betting and Handicapping: Scouting The Week Ahead
by Alan Matthews - 3/5/2012

First off, I want to give myself props here for essentially calling that Miami Heat loss in Utah on Friday night after the Heat had won nine straight games, all by at least 12 points (it was in the Heat-Blazers TNT Thursday preview).

Friday NBA Betting Report: Schedule Handicapping Breakdown
by Aaron Smith - 3/2/2012

The all-star break was a chance for players to get a break from the daily grind. However, it’s back to work now for the entire league. The Oklahoma City Thunder and Miami Heat top the Western and Eastern Conference, respectively, at the halfway point. There are still plenty of teams in contention in both leagues, and the trade deadline is only two weeks away.

NBA Picks Thursday TNT: Heat at Blazers Odds and Betting Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 2/29/2012

It’s the second week in a row I go with a Miami Heat game for the TNT Thursday doubleheader game of the night preview. But how can you not go with the Heat? They covered for me last week in beating the Knicks, and they are beating everyone into submission right now and also are a cover machine. However, Portland’s Rose Garden has always been one of the toughest places to win in the NBA.

NBA Handicapping: Weekly Look at Key Betting Statistics
by David Schwab - 2/29/2012

The first half of the NBA regular season is in the books so there is now a wealth of information readily available for all 30 teams for all you stat junkies out there. When it comes to NBA betting, sometimes it is best to stick with the simple measures that often times provide the most important insight in helping you successfully predict the outcome of a particular matchup.

NBA Post All-Star Break Futures Updates and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 2/27/2012

Back on Dec. 15 at Doc’s, my NBA player props season preview story was posted. And with the Association in its final day off before resuming post-all-star break, let’s take an updated look at the MVP odds as well as the futures odds of some championship contenders.

NBA Betting and Handicapping: Scouting The Week Ahead
by Alan Matthews - 2/27/2012

How cramped has the first half of the 2011-12 NBA season been? It has been a little more than 11 weeks since the launch of training camps after the lockout. In any other year, the 11th week would find most teams having played 25 games of an 82-game schedule. This season, most clubs have played 35 games of their 66-game NBA schedule.

NBA Picks Thursday TNT: Knicks at Heat Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 2/22/2012

Thursday is the final night of NBA basketball – outside of the All-Star Game and its activities – until next Tuesday, and the NBA on TNT doubleheader features two terrific matchups: Knicks at Heat and Lakers at Thunder. As much as I hate to do it, I have to go Knicks-Heat for this week’s preview because of the whole J.R. Smith hysteria!

2012 NBA Slam Dunk Contest Odds Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 2/22/2012

Dominique Wilkins. Michael Jordan. Kobe Bryant. Dwight Howard. Two Hall of Famers and two more who will be. Vince Carter. Blake Griffin. Perennial all-stars, with Carter having a perhaps Hall of Fame-caliber career (iffy) and Griffin starting his young career strong and maybe on his way to Springfield.

Handicapping the NBA Division Leaders
by T.O. Whenham - 2/22/2012

We’re only about halfway through the NBA season, but there are four divisional leaders that have opened up a comfortable lead in their division so far. The 76ers are up by four games in the Atlantic Division, and the Bulls, the Heat, and the Thunder are up by more than that.

NBA Handicapping: Spurs Hottest Team in NBA
by T.O. Whenham - 2/21/2012

The San Antonio Spurs were a pretty easy team to write off heading into the season. They are getting older and they haven’t made a splashy move in a while, so it was easy to think they had fallen a step behind the big guns in the West.

NBA Handicapping: Weekly Look at Key Betting Statistics
by David Schwab - 2/21/2012

This weekend’s all-star break in the NBA marks the halfway point of an abbreviated 66-game regular season schedule. With a wealth of information on all 30 teams covering every possible aspect and statistical measure known to mankind, it is very easy to bog yourself down to the point of overload when it comes to handicapping the games. Sometimes it is the simple things in the game of basketball that can provide the best insight into predicting the correct outcome of a particular matchup.

NBA Betting and Handicapping: Scouting The Week Ahead
by Alan Matthews - 2/20/2012

OK, this time I mean it: Nothing about Jeremy Lin in this week’s NBA week ahead preview. I’m frankly fed up with it all and if the guy played in say, Portland, instead of New York we wouldn’t even be talking about him. Blame ESPN and its Northeast bias.

NBA Handicapping: Checking in on the Clippers
by T.O. Whenham - 2/17/2012

In the lead up to this NBA season all of the buzz was with the Los Angeles Clippers. They had stolen Chris Paul out of the hands of other teams desperate to get him. That, combined with the emergence of Blake Griffin and the offseason road bumps of their rivals from across the hall, had optimism and excitement at higher levels around the team in a long, long time — probably ever.

Friday NBA Betting Report: Schedule Handicapping Breakdown
by Aaron Smith - 2/17/2012

Isn’t it hard to believe that we are almost half way through the NBA’s regular season? Most teams have played about 30 games, and the shortened regular season will consist of 66 games. In the past week, the league has been hit by Lin Mania as Jeremy Lin has led the Knicks to seven straight wins. The All-Star Game is just a week away, and every team is looking to go into the break with some momentum.

Will Jeremy Lin Continue To Make Knicks a Strong Bet?
by T.O. Whenham - 2/16/2012

I have to admit — I have come down with a case of Linsanity. I always try to be a skeptic in these situations (not that we have seen a situation quite like this one before), but Jeremy Lin won me over on Tuesday night. In the first three quarters against the lowly Raptors he was pretty underwhelming. His play in the fourth quarter as he led his team back to tie with less than a minute left, though, was impressive. Where he really got me, though, was with his three pointer to win it all. That was freaking ridiculous.

NBA Handicapping: Weekly Look at Key Betting Statistics
by David Schwab - 2/15/2012

As the abbreviated 66-game NBA regular season approaches the halfway point, we now have a wealth of information and statistics on all 30 teams. One of the problems to having easy access to all this information is that it can actually bog you down if you try and study every possible statistical measure known to mankind. Many times you will find that it is the simple things in the game of basketball that can provide the best insight into predicting the correct outcome of a particular matchup.

NBA Betting and Handicapping: Scouting The Week Ahead
by Alan Matthews - 2/13/2012

I absolutely refuse to mention any headline variation of Jeremy Lin-sanity in this week’s NBA preview. Dang! Yeah, the last thing I wanted to do was lead with the Knicks again and the media sensation that Lin has become in leading New York to five straight wins. Actually, the Knicks were at one point one of the worst teams to back in the NBA but have covered an amazing eight straight games to improve to 13-15 overall ATS entering Tuesday’s matchup at Toronto.

NBA Betting and Handicapping: Impact of Abbreviated Schedule
by T.O. Whenham - 2/10/2012

The biggest impact of the ridiculous NBA Lockout last year is the significantly compacted schedule. There are only 66 games this year, and they are played in much less time than they would in normal circumstances. It only makes sense that we look at the impacts that this situation is having on NBA betting, and what it could have going forward. Let’s start by looking at something that was surprising to me: