NBA Monday Results: Jokic Edges Closer to MVP
Favorites Perform Well in Market
Nuggets Secure Another Marquee Win
Nikola Jokic added another memorable performance on national television to his MVP argument as the Denver Nuggets took care of a shorthanded Philadelphia 76ers team. Let’s take a look at the NBA Monday Results and see how the markets performed around the league.
Joel Embiid sat out of his team’s 116-111 loss in Denver as the much-hyped showdown between the MVP frontrunners wasn’t to be in a game that would’ve weighed heavily on voters minds. Embiid hasn’t played in Denver since 2019 and came under heavy criticism on social media following his earlier interview where he was campaigning for himself to win the award.
James Harden also sat out of this one as the Sixers continue to deal with high-profile NBA injuries, but they did manage to cover the spread in this one thanks to a 20-6 run in the final 4:11 minutes of the game after both sets of starters were pulled.
The late night television action saw the LA Clippers bounce back with a 124-112 win over the Chicago Bulls.
The Bulls were playing the second night of a back-to-back in LA and while their defense wasn’t it’s usual self in the absence of Alex Caruso there was simply not stopping a scorching hot Clipper offense that shot 20-for-40 (50%) from beyond the arc.
The Clippers remain in the #5 seed in the log-jammed Western Conference NBA standings and are still just 2.0 games ahead of the #10 seed. Chicago is now just 10-16-1 (37%) ATS against Western Conference opponents this season.
Mavs Respond, T Wolves Play Spoiler
The Dallas Mavericks responded from their embarrassing week with a comfortable 127-104 blowout win at the Indiana Pacers.
The Pacers were without Tyrese Haliburton or Myles Turner and their offense simply couldn’t keep up as a result, with Dallas getting a well-balanced scoring output as six players finished in double figures.
Dallas closed as 8.0 point favorites for this one after the markets had opened as a PK initially. Luka Doncic was meant to miss this game due to suspension but was made available after the league rescinded his technical foul in the teams loss to Charlotte.
That moved them to 4.5-point favorites before the market again pushed in their favor on the back of the Turner and Haliburton news.
The Mavs remain 0.5 games outside the play-in picture in the West but will hope to carry some momentum with them on the remainder of this five-game East coast road trip.
Meanwhile, the Minnesota Timberwolves are up into the #6 seed as they won their fourth straight game.
The Timberwolves stopped the Sacramento Kings from officially clinching a playoff spot in their 119-115 win and in doing so comfortably covered the +5.5 point spread. Minnesota also clinched the season-series against the Kings 3-1, with their only loss being in OT.
Bucks, Knicks Win Big, Blazers Tank Job Continues
The Milwaukee Bucks earned a 126-117 win over the Detroit Pistons despite being without Giannis Antetokounmpo or Jrue Holiday.
Even without their two All-Stars the Bucks still closed as 11.5 point favorites but couldn’t do enough to cover the spread as the Pistons did enough to stay inside the number.
The New York Knicks did manage to cover their large spread as they ran out 137-115 winners as 13-point favorites.
Jalen Brunson sat out once again for the Knicks but their offense didn’t miss a beat as they finished the night shooting 58.1% from the field, including 44% from 3-point range.
One game that didn’t go anywhere near clearing their full game total was in Portland as the Trail Blazers were downed 124-90 by the visiting New Orleans Pelicans.
The Blazers were playing the second of a back-to-back without their starters again and they managed just 35 points in the opening 24 minutes of basketball.
New Orleans closed as 12.0-point favorites and made light work of the spread as they opened up a 20 point lead after the 1Q and never looked back from there. The Pelicans are now up to the #8 seed in the West and face a tough battle in Golden State on their second night of a back-to-back.
Overall, favorites went 5-3 (62.5%) ATS while totals went 5-3 (62.5%) in favor of Unders bettors once again.
That’s all for our NBA Monday Scores recap. Be sure to check back tomorrow as we continue to recap the NBA markets as we approach the final weeks of the regular season.
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