NBA Handicapping Articles

Thursday TNT NBA Picks: Orlando Magic at Portland Trail Blazers Odds and Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 12/9/2010

Not a great doubleheader on TNT on Thursday night with two Eastern Conference powers – Boston and Orlando – facing two below-.500 teams in the Philadelphia 76ers and the Portland Trail Blazers, respectively. The Celtics-Sixers matchup looks like a blowout, so we’ll focus on the Magic-Blazers game.

NBA Futures Odds: MVP Award Predictions
by T.O. Whenham - 12/7/2010

We’re about a quarter of the way through the NBA season. It’s way too early to know how things will turn out, but we’ve had a good sense already of which players are standing out from the crowd. There are NBA MVP futures odds to bet on, so looking at who stands out from the crowd can be both interesting and profitable. Here’s a look t how the race shapes up (NBA odds are from Sportsbook.com):

NBA Picks: Miami Heat at Cleveland Cavaliers Betting Odds
by Alan Matthews - 12/2/2010

With college football season winding down, we start our weekly preview of the marquee Thursday night NBA game on TNT this week with possibly the most anticipated NBA regular-season game ever tonight when LeBron James returns to Cleveland for the first time since his “Decision” rocked the Cavaliers franchise and most of Northeast Ohio.

NBA Rookie Of the Year Betting Odds and Predictions - Will Blake Griffin Dominate?
by T.O. Whenham - 12/2/2010

We are not quite a quarter of the way through the NBA season, but the Rookie of the Year race is already pretty clear - there are two guys and then the rest of the field far behind. Really, there is one guy far ahead of a second guy, with both of them far ahead of everyone else. Here’s how it breaks down, with my NBA Rookie of the Year predictions and betting odds from Sportsbook.com:

NBA Picks: Spurs at Clippers Predictions and Betting Odds
by Aaron Smith - 12/1/2010

The San Antonio Spurs were basically left for dead last year when they struggled through the season and limped into the Western Conference playoffs. They beat the Mavericks in their opening series, but then fell to the Suns in the second round. The pickup of Richard Jefferson simply didn’t work out at all last year.

NBA Betting Trends: Hot and Cold Teams Against the Point Spread
by Aaron Smith - 11/29/2010

The NBA season is a long one, and that leads to many hot and cold streaks for teams during the course of one year. If you are able to get ahead of the oddsmakers and catch a team that is streaking or slumping, you are likely to do very well betting on the NBA. Let’s take a closer look at which teams have been hot and cold in the last two weeks. Note that the statistics used are for games between Nov. 15 and Nov. 28.

Free NBA Picks on TNT: Suns at Magic; Nuggets at Blazers
by Alan Matthews - 11/18/2010

The Suns have the misfortune of doing the tough Florida swing on back-to-back nights. Phoenix had won three in a row and five of six before getting walloped in Miami on Wednesday night, 123-96. Orlando will be plenty rested, having been off since beating Memphis on Monday, 89-72, for it second win in a row.

NBA Betting: Top Point Guards Causing Trouble for Miami Heat
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 11/16/2010

The Miami Heat are not going to finish the NBA season 82-0. They have lost four of their first 10 games and the so-called Miami ‘dream team’ is in third place in the Southeast Division. How can this be happening with all that talent down there in South Beach?

NBA Betting: Biggest Surprises
by T.O. Whenham - 11/16/2010

We’re about 10 games into the NBA season. A lot will change between now and the end of the season, but we’ve seen enough action already to have at least a sense of what teams have to offer this year. Some things have happened pretty much as we would have expected them to, while others have been a total surprise.

NBA Betting Trends: Hot and Cold Teams Against the Point Spread
by Aaron Smith - 11/15/2010

Successful NBA handicapping always starts with catching onto current relevant NBA betting trends. Streaks and slumps occur on a constant basis in the NBA, and they should not be ignored. The point of this article will be to let you see which teams are streaking and which are slumping over the span of the last two weeks.

2010-11 Michigan State Spartans College Basketball Picks with Futures Odds and Betting Prtedictions
by Alan Matthews - 11/9/2010

In a sense, a torn Achilles’ tendon suffered early in last season’s NCAA Tournament by 2008-09 Big Ten Player of the Year Kalin Lucas was a good thing for the Michigan State Spartans. Why is that? Because Sparty made it to its second consecutive Final Four even without their star point guard, and the injury pretty much assured the Lucas wouldn’t leave for the NBA after last season.

NBA Picks: Lakers at Kings Predictions and Betting Odds
by Aaron Smith - 11/3/2010

The Los Angeles Lakers are still the team to beat in the NBA this season, and that is exactly how they want it. The Lakers outlasted the Celtics in a terrific seven-game series in the NBA Finals last year. However, the Miami Heat received all the attention throughout the offseason even though many around the NBA know that the Lakers won’t be easy to dethrone.

NBA Futures Props Betting: MVP Award Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 10/27/2010

The NBA season tipped off on Tuesday night, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still be on most NBA futures props. And one I’d like to address today seems like a no-brainer: the regular-season NBA MVP award. The Association is a completely star-driven league, and that has been borne out when looking at previous MVP winners.

2010-11 Orlando Magic NBA Picks, Predictions and Futures Odds
by Alan Matthews - 10/26/2010

All Dwight Howard and Co. have done is win 59 regular-season games and reach the Eastern Finals the past two years, but it’s almost like they don’t exist in experts’ eyes – even the few who didn’t pick Miami to win the East seem to be picking Boston and not Orlando.

NBA Picks: Miami Heat at Boston Celtics Predictions and Betting Odds
by Nicholas Tolomeo - 10/26/2010

In case the opening of the NBA regular season did not come with enough fanfare the NBA schedule makers have aligned two publicity machines, the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics, to collide Tuesday night at Boston at 7:30 p.m. ET in a game that may be even more highly anticipated than LeBron James unfortunate one-hour ESPN special “The Decision.”

2010-11 Miami Heat NBA Picks, Predictions and Futures Betting Odds
by Alan Matthews - 10/19/2010

Seriously, do I even need to write much in the way of previewing the 2010-11 Miami Heat? This is only the most-hyped team since Michael Jordan’s Bulls, with some even expecting the Heat to break Chicago’s record of 72 regular-season wins. Former coach and current NBA analyst Jeff Van Gundy has said he thinks the Heat will get the record, but most experts believe the NBA is simply too deep and that the Heat will have too much of a bull’s-eye to even reach 70 victories.

2010-11 Washington Wizards NBA Picks, Predictions and Futures Betting Odds
by Alan Matthews - 10/19/2010

It seems rather amusing to even say right now, but remember that heading into last season the Washington Wizards actually thought they might be Eastern Conference contenders by adding Mike Miller and Randy Foye – for the fifth overall pick in the 2009 draft – to their “Big 3” of Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler?

2010-11 Charlotte Bobcats NBA Picks, Predictions and Futures Odds
by Alan Matthews - 10/16/2010

Considering the franchise we are talking about, it was a very successful 2009-10 season for the Charlotte Bobcats. After all, they won 44 games (finishing seventh in the East, fourth in the Southeast) and reached the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. There the Bobcats were no match for the Orlando Magic, getting swept pretty easily.

2010-11 Chicago Bulls NBA Picks with Futures Odds and Betting Preview
by Aaron Smith - 10/13/2010

The Chicago Bulls edged their way into the playoffs last year by finishing 41-41. They were beaten in the first round by the Cleveland Cavaliers. While the Miami Heat received all the attention this offseason, the Bulls were also busy bringing in some high-quality talent. The young nucleus of the team is still intact, but they have added some pieces that should definitely make them a threat in the Eastern Conference this year. Expectations are high, and the Bulls appear ready to take a large step forward in 2010-11.

NBA Picks: Cleveland Cavaliers Predictions with Futures Odds and Betting Preview
by Aaron Smith - 10/12/2010

The summer of 2010 was the huge NBA free agent period, and I think it is fair to say that Cleveland was the biggest loser during this offseason. LeBron James packed his bags and went to Miami, which left a whole lot of angry Cleveland fans. The team has lost its star, and they must somehow move on, though I have a feeling that might take quite a while. The guy who wore No. 23 for this team last year did everything for this team, and this year’s squad will have a whole new look.