THE NBA is just about to enter the stretch run, with teams jostling for position in the conference standings, some holding on for dear life and others clawing to claim that bottom end playoff spot.
The Charlotte Hornets tip off Thursday on a road tip to Cleveland to take on Lebron James and the Cavaliers, and the New York Knicks share the 11am AEDT start at the Indiana Pacers.
A trio of matches begin half an hour, headlined by the dominant Golden State Warriors at the Miami Heat. The Minnesota Timberwolves visit the Toronto Raptors and the rejuvenated Detroit Pistons fresh of a strong trade period, welcome the lowly Philadelphia 76ers.
The Washington Wizards head to Chicago for a noon game with the Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers land in Memphis for a tip off at the same time with Memphis.
The Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks go head to head at 12.30, before the late games tip off at 2.30pm.
In those, the Denver Nuggets take on the Los Angeles Clippers in LA and the San Antonio Spurs also head to California for a date with Boogie Cousins and the Sacramento Kings.
We’ve run our eye over the big slate of games in the hopes of picking a couple of winners that can help out our multis.
Indiana Pacers at the line -8 vs. New York Knicks ($1.91)
Detroit Pistons at the line -11 vs. Philadelphia 76ers ($1.91)
Miami Heat at the line +8.5 vs. Golden State Warriors ($1.91)
Toronto Raptors at the line -9.5 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves ($1.91)
Multi total: $13.50 @ Sportsbet.com.au
New York Knicks at Indiana Pacers
Our tip: Indiana Pacers at the line -8 vs. New York Knicks ($1.91)
The Pacers have enjoyed a quietly good season, working their way into fifth in the east on the back of some superb play from team leader Paul George, as well as the emergence of giant rookie Myles Turner. Turner looks like he could be one of the big steals of the draft, after he had a late start to the season due to injury. The Pacers had won two in a row, including a strong win over west title contender Oklahoma City, but that was soured a little by a last start loss to the Miami Heat, 101-93 in over time. George had 31-11, but it wasn’t enough to lead them to victory. The Kristaps Porzingis novelty is starting to wear off a little in New York as the losses pile up. But there’s no doubt the kid is the future. The Knicks recently snapped a seven game losing streak by beating the Minnesota Timberwolves, but backed that up with a last start loss at the hands of the Toronto Raptors – a 122-95 smashing. Star Carmelo Anthony had 23 points and 11 boards, Robin Lopez had 21 and 13 and Porzinigis had 17, but they had absolutely no help in the back court as Kyle Lowry racked up a triple double for Toronto. What it all spells is a win to the Pacers, a side that is trying to make up some spots in the east standings, with the Knicks now probably looking to next season.
Philadelphia 76ers at Detroit Pistons
Our tip: Detroit Pistons at the line -11 vs. Philadelphia 76ers ($1.91)
The Pistons enjoyed a productive trade period, farewelling Brandon Jennings and Irsan Ilyasova, but welcoming in gun Orlando Magic forward Tobias Harris. Harris is a nice fit with big monster Andre Drummond and point guard whizz Reggis Jackson and should be the missing piece of the puzzle to help the Pistons stitch up a playoff spot. They are breathing down the necks of both Chicago and Charlotte for the seventh and eighth spot and, after copping five losses in a row, they managed to knock over the east leading Cleveland Cavaliers. Losing is a pastime for the 76ers, they’ve only won eight games and still need a couple of Ws to avoid the worst record of all time. It won’t be coming here.
Golden State Warriors at Miami Heat
Our tip: Miami Heat at the line +8.5 vs. Golden State Warriors ($1.91)
The Warriors have had a sluggish start since the all star break, knocked over by the Portland Trailblazers, thanks to a 50 point effort from Damien Lillard, and then enduring scares against the Los Angeles Clippers and the Atlanta Hawks. Things haven’t exactly clicked since the break, with All Stars Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green taking their time to get back in the swing of it. The Heat, despite missing Chris Bosh, have won three in a row, including knocking over Indiana yesterday and they will be keen to ensure they pin down a playoff spot. They pushed the Warriors all the way last time out, without Hassan Whiteside in the middle and his return should put pressure on the Warriors bigs. He’s one of the best rebounders in the game and has been putting up some strong offensive numbers in recent matches without Bosh. It would be stupid to bet against the Warriors, who still managed to hold the Hawks off, 102-92, with MVP favourite Curry dropping another 36 points to continue to lead the league in scoring. But we think the Heat can stick with them and should be able to push them hard on their home floor. Wade and company will want to make a dent in the playoffs and they can put the win up their eastern conference rivals by giving the league leading Warriors every thing they can handle.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Toronto Raptors
Our tip: Toronto Raptors at the line -9.5 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves ($1.91)
The Raptors are putting together a fantastic season behind the stellar play of gun back court duo Kyle Lowry and Demar DeRozan. Lowry was a monster last time out against the Knicks, scorching them for 22 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in the 27 point victory. Derozan also had 22 and he became the club’s all time win leader – he’s played in more wins for Toronto than any other Raptor – but he could be out the door in the off season, with some of the big clubs circling for his signature. The Timberwolves have plenty of bright spots from their young players, like Karl Anthony-Towns and Andrew Wiggins, but that has not translated to wins on the board. These are two teams at opposite ends of the spectrum, but that didn’t seem to matter when they met just before the All Star break, the Raptors putting in a dog of a performance to go down in a remarkable match, 117-112. The Raps squandered an 18 point lead in that one, with Towns absolutely going off for a career high 35 points and 11 rebounds. Every starter was in double figures for the Wolves as Wiggins had 26 and point guard Rubio had 19 points, eight assists and eight rebounds. The Raptors got 35 points out of DeRozan, but not much else as there were too few players standing up in a game they might have thought was going to be a walk over. We don’t think they will make the same mistake this time and the Wolves are in trouble.