Mavericks Edge Out 76ers for NBA Favoritism
Mavericks vs 76ers Preview
The Dallas Mavericks have the slight edge with NBA odds ahead of their clash with the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday.
Our Mavericks vs 76ers preview looks at which team has the edge on the court, and it could be tough for the 76ers without Joel Embiid.
Dallas gets Luka Doncic back, and he could have the biggest impact on this game.
Mavericks vs 76ers 
Date, time:
Location: Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain
Streaming: Live Sports Stream
Doncic Leading the Way
After missing one game, the MVP candidate returned with a 40-point performance against the Milwaukee Bucks.
The problem for the Mavericks is that it still resulted in a 129-117 loss, and that’s the Mavericks’ biggest problem.
They have slipped to 26-23 following consecutive losses to the Bucks and Timberwolves. They scored only 87 points without Doncic against the Timberwolves, which shows how important he is.
NBA scores today are much higher than they used to be, so scoring 87 points is a worrying sign for the -1.5 favorites.
However, playing the 76ers without Embiid should give them the edge, which is why they are favored to win.
Doncic is almost averaging a triple-double, so if he’s anywhere near his best, they could be too good on the road.
Dallas is 24-25 against the spread overall, which improves to 13-9 ATS on the road. That’s a good sign for favorite bettors.
Embiid’s Omission Makes it Tough
We aren’t fans of betting on the 76ers when Embiid isn’t playing.
They might have beaten the Utah Jazz 127-124 without Embiid, but they came back to earth with a 126-121 loss to the Brooklyn Nets, which came at home.
Tyrese Maxey had 51 points in the win over Utah, which was a massive effort.
“Blessed!” Maxey said. “It’s been a wonderful day. I keep saying I’m just happy we got to win. It wouldn’t have mattered if we lost as we would have been sitting there sad on this long flight to Philly.
“We needed this emotionally after Big Fella went down and the four games we lost on this trip.”
He’s a massive loss for the home side, who are 29-19 ATS and 16-8 ATS at home. It’s tough to overlook those statistics with our NBA predictions, but the number falls off considerably when Embiid is out.
They will also be without Nicolas Batum, so there is a lack of inside-the-paint presence, and the Mavericks could take advantage.
Scoring in the paint won’t be difficult, and that could allow the Mavericks to stop taking mostly outside shots and get into the paint more.
Comfortable Bet with Mavericks
Our Mavericks vs 76ers preview has the Mavericks winning comfortably at Wells Fargo Center.
NBA standings suggest the 76ers are the better team, but without their leader and MVP Embiid, life will be tough.
Maxey would need another massive performance to keep Doncic and the Mavericks at bay, and we don’t think he will.
Getting -1.5 is a generous line, and we’re also including over 243, in what could be a high-scoring an open contest with little defense being played.
