Unders to get the money in Chicago and Portland on TNT
Thursday, October 29, 2009
By: "Reload" Joe Freda | reload.mysbrforum.com
TNT features an NBA doubleheader tonight with the Chicago Bulls hosting the San Antonio Spurs and the Denver Nuggets traveling to meet the Portland Trail Blazers.
Both the Spurs and Nuggets are coming off high-scoring victories last night at home, and this handicapper feels they will face tougher opposition and defense tonight on the road. Bookmakers have hung the totals a bit too high with this television action and the value in each game will be backing the under.
Revamped Bulls look to win with defense against the loaded 1-0 Spurs
San Antonio got off to a winning start this season last night crushing the New Orleans Hornets 113-96 at home and will look for another win tonight in Chicago. With the game being out of reach for the Hornets in the second half, the Spurs should have something left in the tank for tonight but I have found betting any road favorite in a back to back spot is generally a losing proposition. We saw the Cleveland Cavaliers visit the Toronto Raptors last night as high as 7-point road favorites in a back to back spot with many thinking Lebron James and Shaquille O’Neal could not lose two in a row, but they crumbled down the stretch.
The Spurs showcased every weapon on the roster Wednesday and that some depth is what will get them through stretches like this on the schedule. Although Richard Jefferson had a poor debut in a Spurs uniform, it was the bench that really picked up the slack. Manu Ginobili, Roger Mason, and rookie DeJuan Blair all scored in double figures with Blair really stealing the show with 11 rebounds as well.
As a whole, the Spurs shot 52% from the field and as stacked as they are, I cannot see that happening again tonight in Chicago. I feel San Antonio will try to keep the game at a slower pace and grind out a victory which will once again involve interjecting talent from the bench to show what they have got on the road tonight.
In the offseason, Chicago lost leading scorer Ben Gordon and the team really has not done anything to fill the kind of shoes he had. It will likely mean Derrick Rose and Kirk Hinrich having to step it up a notch compared to last season, but I feel it will not make up entirely for what a player like Gordon brought to the court. The playoff team we saw last season who took the Boston Celtics to the absolute limit will not be here this year and is one reason they are starting the season as underdogs tonight.
For the Bulls to keep it close, they will have to play some tight defense and hope the Spurs have a few tired legs from last night. They will also have to rely on rebounds from Joakim Noah and Brad Miller up the middle so that second chances off the rim and glass will not happen for the Spurs. I could see some scoring droughts happening on both ends at points during the game and it could look as ugly as a Chicago Enforcers game from the world of XFL football use to be.
BookMaker opened the total for this game at 194 and it did not take long for a drop to 193 which is where it resides at press time. I am agreeing with the early steam here, but feel you could see the total go up again by tip time so be sure to keep an eye on line services like SBRodds.com to get the best number on taking the under.
Blazers and Nuggets look to cool off each other in Western Conference nightcap
With Portland and Denver each starting off the season with a win, something will have to give tonight as only one team will have their winning streak continue. The Nuggets won last night at home 114-105 against the Utah Jazz while the Blazers come into tonight with an extra day of rest after defeating the Houston Rockets on Tuesday 96-87.
The situational edge in this game would be with the Blazers as they have enjoyed a generally solid home court advantage when hosting opponents and get a second home game in a row on a day of rest. However, laying seven points could be too much here even with Denver in a back-to-back spot and I felt focusing on the total would be best to find some better value.
The Blazers turned the ball over 26 times on Tuesday night, but still managed to win thanks to 51 rebounds and 12 blocked shots. With Travis Outlaw ending up being Portland’s leading scorer for the game off the bench, it shows that this season Portland will have to win with defense and I would count on another lower scoring clash tonight in trying to beat Denver.
With the Nuggets putting up a lot of points last night, it will look tempting for bettors to back the over here just one night later. However, we all know that games in Denver will have more scoring due to the altitude and I doubt you will see 30 points from Carmelo Anthony again tonight.
Nene showed he is back for Denver this season with two blocked shots and Kenyon Martin took in 11 rebounds for a double-double to start the year strong. It seemed the Nuggets could have had an NBA Finals hangover and I would have been slow to back them last night, but the winning attitude was there for sure. The only difference with tonight is that you can expect a slower pace in Portland – especially with all four matchups between these teams last season going under the total.
Several bookmakers opened this total at 199 likely trying to lure some action in on the over before it goes up in the 200’s like most Nuggets totals, but the steam has actually pushed it downward. At press time, 198½ is still available out there and I suggest grabbing it as the Blazers are in a good spot to shut down Denver here with the same solid defense and rebounding as they carried out Tuesday.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
By: "Reload" Joe Freda | reload.mysbrforum.com
TNT features an NBA doubleheader tonight with the Chicago Bulls hosting the San Antonio Spurs and the Denver Nuggets traveling to meet the Portland Trail Blazers.
Both the Spurs and Nuggets are coming off high-scoring victories last night at home, and this handicapper feels they will face tougher opposition and defense tonight on the road. Bookmakers have hung the totals a bit too high with this television action and the value in each game will be backing the under.
Revamped Bulls look to win with defense against the loaded 1-0 Spurs
San Antonio got off to a winning start this season last night crushing the New Orleans Hornets 113-96 at home and will look for another win tonight in Chicago. With the game being out of reach for the Hornets in the second half, the Spurs should have something left in the tank for tonight but I have found betting any road favorite in a back to back spot is generally a losing proposition. We saw the Cleveland Cavaliers visit the Toronto Raptors last night as high as 7-point road favorites in a back to back spot with many thinking Lebron James and Shaquille O’Neal could not lose two in a row, but they crumbled down the stretch.
The Spurs showcased every weapon on the roster Wednesday and that some depth is what will get them through stretches like this on the schedule. Although Richard Jefferson had a poor debut in a Spurs uniform, it was the bench that really picked up the slack. Manu Ginobili, Roger Mason, and rookie DeJuan Blair all scored in double figures with Blair really stealing the show with 11 rebounds as well.
As a whole, the Spurs shot 52% from the field and as stacked as they are, I cannot see that happening again tonight in Chicago. I feel San Antonio will try to keep the game at a slower pace and grind out a victory which will once again involve interjecting talent from the bench to show what they have got on the road tonight.
In the offseason, Chicago lost leading scorer Ben Gordon and the team really has not done anything to fill the kind of shoes he had. It will likely mean Derrick Rose and Kirk Hinrich having to step it up a notch compared to last season, but I feel it will not make up entirely for what a player like Gordon brought to the court. The playoff team we saw last season who took the Boston Celtics to the absolute limit will not be here this year and is one reason they are starting the season as underdogs tonight.
For the Bulls to keep it close, they will have to play some tight defense and hope the Spurs have a few tired legs from last night. They will also have to rely on rebounds from Joakim Noah and Brad Miller up the middle so that second chances off the rim and glass will not happen for the Spurs. I could see some scoring droughts happening on both ends at points during the game and it could look as ugly as a Chicago Enforcers game from the world of XFL football use to be.
BookMaker opened the total for this game at 194 and it did not take long for a drop to 193 which is where it resides at press time. I am agreeing with the early steam here, but feel you could see the total go up again by tip time so be sure to keep an eye on line services like SBRodds.com to get the best number on taking the under.
Blazers and Nuggets look to cool off each other in Western Conference nightcap
With Portland and Denver each starting off the season with a win, something will have to give tonight as only one team will have their winning streak continue. The Nuggets won last night at home 114-105 against the Utah Jazz while the Blazers come into tonight with an extra day of rest after defeating the Houston Rockets on Tuesday 96-87.
The situational edge in this game would be with the Blazers as they have enjoyed a generally solid home court advantage when hosting opponents and get a second home game in a row on a day of rest. However, laying seven points could be too much here even with Denver in a back-to-back spot and I felt focusing on the total would be best to find some better value.
The Blazers turned the ball over 26 times on Tuesday night, but still managed to win thanks to 51 rebounds and 12 blocked shots. With Travis Outlaw ending up being Portland’s leading scorer for the game off the bench, it shows that this season Portland will have to win with defense and I would count on another lower scoring clash tonight in trying to beat Denver.
With the Nuggets putting up a lot of points last night, it will look tempting for bettors to back the over here just one night later. However, we all know that games in Denver will have more scoring due to the altitude and I doubt you will see 30 points from Carmelo Anthony again tonight.
Nene showed he is back for Denver this season with two blocked shots and Kenyon Martin took in 11 rebounds for a double-double to start the year strong. It seemed the Nuggets could have had an NBA Finals hangover and I would have been slow to back them last night, but the winning attitude was there for sure. The only difference with tonight is that you can expect a slower pace in Portland – especially with all four matchups between these teams last season going under the total.
Several bookmakers opened this total at 199 likely trying to lure some action in on the over before it goes up in the 200’s like most Nuggets totals, but the steam has actually pushed it downward. At press time, 198½ is still available out there and I suggest grabbing it as the Blazers are in a good spot to shut down Denver here with the same solid defense and rebounding as they carried out Tuesday.
