Covid-19 is widespread thought out the league and coupled with back to back games, so be sure to check the injury report as this article was written the night before and picks are subject to change!
Miami Heat at Toronto Raptors
This game isn’t really a home game for the Toronto Raptors as it will be played in Tampa Bay, making it more of a home game for the Heat. The Raptors losing home-court advantage appears to have an effect on their play as they start with a 5-8 record. A severe downturn from last year despite their team being healthy and maintaining their core.
The Raptors have pieced together a three-game winning streak and are now 5-5 on their last ten games. The Raptors have appeared to go back to their normal form. Their pace has frantically increased and they are now ranked 10th in the league in this category. However, they appear to have trouble on the boards and finding the open teammate. They are ranked 20th in rebounds and 18th in assists which are both instrumental when the game is on the line.
Siakam has seen a downturn in his play from last season in PPG, APG, and RPG. The breakout forward has hit a wall this season and it’s hard to say why. He’s currently averaging 18.9 PPG, 4.9 APG, and 7.8 RPG. He has plenty of time to pick up his play so the Raptors can to return the playoffs, but it can lead to a first-round exit or missing the playoffs all together if doesn’t pick up his play.
They have six players scoring in double-digits but none of them are averaging more than 20.0 PPG. Van Fleet and Lowry are the leading scorers averaging around 19.0 PPG. Outside these top six players scoring in double-digits, the rest of the team has struggled to score. This puts extra pressure on the starters to carry them every game allowing opposing teams to focus their defensive efforts on their starters.
The Heat is riddled with injuries and Covid-19. The Heat are a far cry from their championship run last year starting this season 5-7. They are struggling to get wins and are 4-6 in their last 10 coming into this game after a close game with the league-worst Pistons.
The Heat will be missing their superstar Butler along with Bradley and Leonard. Butler is the heart and soul of this team, relying on him to rally the troops. His presence will almost certainly be missed on both sides of the ball.
The injury report shows Dragic and Herro as game-time decisions which will also have an impact on the offensive end as both of these guys are averaging around 15.0 PPG if even one of these guys misses the game.
Although the Heat are at the top of the league in assists and field goal percentage, they are struggling even more on the boards than the Raptors and sit second to last in the league.
The Raptors are the -3.5 favorite coming into this game. The injuries will be the main difference-maker in this matchup. The Raptors are healthy and have the momentum, making the Raptors -3.5 the play.
Phoenix Suns at Houston Rockets
The rockets have been struggling all season, even before the Harden trade. The Rockets now appear to be on the same page with all players paddling in the same direction. However, the Rockets are still lacking in talent. This will be a rebuilding year and the focus is on the future.
The rebuild will not be a lengthy one as the Rockets still boast some talent in Wall, Wood and Oladipo. Wood is having a breakout season providing scoring down low, a problem that has plagued the Rockets in the past. Wood is the leading scorer and averaging a double-double on 23.8 PPG, 1.4 APG, and 10.7 RPG. He is certainly in the running for most improved player which is worth a wager.
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Oladipo had an impressive first game with the Rockets dropping 32 points, 9 assists and 5 rebounds shooting over 50% and hitting 4/9 from deep even though the Rockets still lost the game. Oladipo has been injury-prone throughout his career but if he keeps this up and avoids injury, the Rockets will have effectively replaced Harden and get a slough of draft picks to build on.
The rockets have not had an issue scoring, but do have issues on defense, turnovers, assists, and rebounds. These problems are a direct cause to their 4-8 start.
The Rockets will be without Wall, Exum and House. Oladipo and Wood will need to step-up even more to get the win as the Suns have the matchup and talent advantage.
The Suns are hitting a rough patch as they have lost their past two games and are 6-4 in their last two games. The Suns have had trouble scoring this season and are ranked second to last in pace which can be attributed to their new-look team.
Their new look has caused some chemistry issues mainly affecting Ayton who has seen a drop in scoring from 12.9 PPG this season compared to 18.2 PPG last season. However, he is still averaging a double-double.
Injuries will be the main difference-maker in this game as well, the Suns will only be without Saric. The Suns have the matchup advantage and can dominate this game by limiting the scoring of Oladipo and Wood. The Suns are the -5.5 favorite on the road and will look to turn their scoring woes around as they face a bad Rockets defensive team plagued by injures making the Suns -5.5 the play.
Brooklyn Nets at Cleveland Cavaliers
The Nets are one of the hottest teams in the league right now and are seeing excellent chemistry between newly reunited Harden and Durant. Irving is expected to come back for the Nets after his hiatus from the team.
Harden appears to love his new team and giving them maximum effort making this team a top contender in the East. The Nets are on a 4-game winning streak and are 6-4 in their last 10 games.
The Nets are solid on the offensive end and rank 5th in pace and 1st in field goal percentage. The Nets take the sixth most threes and hit at a 40% clip. Playing defense on this team means limiting their scoring rather than stopping them altogether. Their offensive rating is ranked 4th and their defensive rating is ranked 19th in the league.
The Cavaliers are struck with the injury bug with most of the players on the bench out. They will be missing Love, Delladova, Wilder, and Porter. They could also be without their guard tandem of Garland and Sexton, or nicknamed Sexland who are game-time decisions. If Sexland is a no show, the Cavaliers stand no chance of winning this game even though Drummond is having a monster season. Sexland are their top scorers with Sexton leading the way dropping around 25.0 PPG.
Drummond is certainly having a banner season averaging a double-double. He is averaging 19.3 PPG, 2.9 APG, and 15.8 RPG. Drummond has found new life this season on the offensive end, and has even stepped up his board game.
The Cavaliers do have the advantage down low as the Nets will have a hard time matching up against all of their “trees”. However, if Sexland sits or even one of them does sit, the Nets will have no problem winning this game and covering the -9.5 on the road.
Raptors -3.5
Suns -5.5
Nets -9.5
Parley of the Day
Raptors ML
Suns ML
Sixers ML
Clippers ML
Nets ML
Odds: +354
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