With the NBA crossing the halfway point of the regular season, trends are starting to emerge throughout the league. The Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors have the best records in the NBA, but the power teams in the Western Conference are making plenty of noise in their own right.
The power balance in the NBA continues to shift because of injuries and a variety of roster moves, and staying ahead of the curve can allow for profitable betting conditions on any given night. With a big slate of games every Wednesday, we've asked a few of our NBA experts -- Doug Kezirian, Jordan Schultz and Andre Snellings -- to give their best bets for the night.
Lines displayed are from Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook on Wednesday afternoon. As always, shop around for the best price. Toronto Raptors at Indiana Pacers (-6)
Total: 218 Snellings: The Raptors will be without franchise player Kawhi Leonard on Wednesday, are on the second half of a back-to-back and they're playing on the road. These are the big reasons that the Pacers are such generous favorites over a team that is within percentage points of having the best record in the league.
However, a few things to consider. The Raptors have been resting Leonard consistently all season, and in the 13 games that Leonard has missed the team is 11-2 with a plus-11.7 scoring margin, including wins over the Golden State Warriors and a 16-point win over these Pacers earlier this month. The Raptors are arguably the deepest team in the NBA even without Leonard, which minimizes the effect of back-to-backs. On Tuesday, they had 10 players play between 12 and 34 minutes, which helped spread the load. Plus, the Raptors are excellent on the road, with a 15-9 record that is top three in the NBA. The Pacers are a strong team, at 10-3 with a plus-3.6 average margin over their past 13 games, but 5.5 points is a lot to give against the Raptors, even without Leonard.
Pick: Raptors +6 Kezirian: Leonard is out, but this is too many points for one of the league's premier teams. Toronto barely broke a sweat in beating Sacramento by double digits on Tuesday and their superior depth should be enough to keep this within the number. Plus, the Raptors are 8-1 SU and 7-2 ATS when playing the second game of back-to-back situations this season. Indiana wants this game and should bring maximum effort, but I still like the underdog in this spot.
Total: 226 Snellings: The Knicks are 1-14 with an average scoring margin of minus-12.9 in their past 15 games. Over the same stretch, the Rockets are 10-5 with a plus-3.3 scoring margin. The Rockets have a weakness in the middle that has been exacerbated with Clint Capela injured, and each of their past five losses have come with dominant opposing efforts in the paint. While Enes Kanter is a strong scorer and Mitchell Robinson is an up-and-coming defender, it would not appear that the Knicks have either the dominant interior presence or the overall firepower to challenge the Rockets.
Total: 221 Schultz: No Anthony Davis means no offense. The Pelicans run everything through their All-NBA power forward, and their entire defensive scheme focuses on Davis' ability to alter and block shots (he averages 2.5 blocks per 36 minutes). Don't focus on New Orleans' impressive 105-85 road victory over Memphis on Monday night. Instead, focus on the fact that Davis' absence will ensure Blake Griffin -- averaging a career-high 26 PPG -- feels ultra-comfortable operating in the paint without the shot-blocking prowess of AD.
Total: 223.5 Snellings: The Bulls have the second-worst record and the second-worst scoring margins in the NBA this season. They have won only one of their past 11 games, and that win came against the Cleveland Cavaliers -- the only team in the NBA that has been worse than the Bulls all season. The Bulls' average scoring margin during those 11 games was minus-14.2 PPG, worsened only by the Cavaliers' 1-16 mark and minus-16.8 PPG scoring margin in recent games.
The Hawks haven't been great, but they are 3-8 with a minus-6 average scoring margin during their past 11 games. The Bulls should essentially only be favored against the Cavaliers at this point in the season, and the Hawks should be better than either of those two teams.
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Best bets for Wednesday's NBA games 🏀
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