NBA Tuesday Betting Preview: All Eyes on Battle of LA
Eastern Conference Finals Rematch in Miami
Plenty of Rivalries on Show Tonight
It’s another big night in the NBA with two huge marquee games taking place in Miami and LA. Let’s dive into out NBA Tuesday Betting Preview to see what’s in store.
The Miami Heat will play host to the Boston Celtics in an Eastern Conference Finals rematch from last season. The Heat have opened as 1.5-point favorites as they look to take advantage of a weakened Boston team that is playing the second of a road back-to-back.
Al Horford is expected to sit out for the Celtics, while Malcolm Brogdon remains questionable after missing the teams loss in Orlando due to personal reasons. The team will also be without starting point guard Marcus Smart, but should hopefully get Rob Williams back in the rotation for this matchup.
The Heat are finally starting to get their full assortment of players back and haven’t listed any of their main rotation guys on the injury report. This will be the final regular season meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics currently leading the series 2-1.
The Lakers and Clippers will provide the after dark fireworks on the slate as the LA rivals get set for battle. The Clippers opened as 3.5-point favorites but were quickly bet out to -4.0 points across the board.
The Clippers finally have their superstar duo in Kawhi Leonard and Paul George back in the lineup together and the team has shown signs of becoming the team we all thought they’d be coming into the season. Despite things not quite clicking so far they still sit in the sixth seed in the Western Conference and are 2.5 games ahead of their cross-city rivals.
The Clippers have won nine straight meetings between these teams, including both showdowns so far this season. In fact, coach Ty Lue has not lost to the Lakers since taking over the reigns in Clipper town. The total for this game is currently at 232.5 points – a number that has only been eclipsed once in the past five meetings.
Knicks, Pelicans Look to Stop Skid
The New York Knicks will try to snap a four-game losing streak when they welcome the Cleveland Cavaliers to Madison Square Garden.
The Cavs have opened as 3.0-point road favorites, with news that All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell is likely to make his return to the lineup tonight. That should mean a fully healthy rotation for JB Bickerstaff and the Cavaliers who will look to push themselves back into the top four spots in the Eastern Conference.
The Knicks are 8-14-2 ATS at home this season, with their 36% cover rate ranking 28th in the league for home teams this season – only Charlotte and Miami are have worse cover rates at home.
The New Orleans Pelicans play host to the Denver Nuggets as they try to put an end to their four-game tailspin that has seen them almost slip out of the top four in the Western Conference.
The Pelicans are currently sitting as 1.5-point favorites but a lot could change when we get some concrete information regarding key personnel for Denver.
The Nuggets currently have Nikola Jokic, Michael Porter Jr and Bones Hyland listed as questionable for tonight. Jokic has missed the last couple games with hamstring tightness while Porter Jr sat out last game due to personal reasons.
If either player is ruled in that could be enough to swing the current NBA odds and see Denver move to road favourites, which is a role they haven’t played particularly well this season. The Nuggets are 5-9 ATS as road favorites this season, with a -6.0 point average differential on the closing line.
Mavs, Wiz the Best of the Rest
The Dallas Mavericks will look to pull out of their recent slump as they welcome the Washington Wizards to town.
The Mavs are currently 7.5-point favorites against a Washington team that won’t be able to count on the services of former Maverick Kristaps Porzingis due to injury.
Dallas is an NBA-worst 16-30-2 ATS this season and failed to cover the spread in 113-105 loss at Washington where they were 6.0-point favorites.
The Indiana Pacers will try for their first win since losing Tyrese Haliburton as they play host to the Chicago Bulls.
The Pacers are currently 1.5-point underdogs and come into this one having lost seven straight games. This may be their best opportunity for a win from a schedule-advantage standpoint given the Bulls are on the second night of a back-to-back having only returned home from Europe a few nights ago.
The Phoenix Suns will look to start stacking up some wins now that they have some key pieces back in their rotation. Chris Paul and Cam Johnson have both recently returned and the team is 6.5-point home favorites tonight against the struggling Charlotte Hornets.
The Hornets have still listed LaMelo Ball as questionable and if he makes his return this could be an inflated number on the road team that can put up points in a hurry against any defense.
That’s all for our NBA Tuesday Betting Preview. Be sure to check back again tomorrow for more NBA predictions as we analyze the marketplace across the league.
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