NBA Wednesday Games Recap: Kings Light the Beam in LA
Road Teams Dominate Non-Conference Matchups
Eastern Conference Shines Brightest
The Eastern Conference took home some bragging rights as they covered the spread in four of the five non-conference matchups across the league. Let’s dive into the NBA Wednesday Games recap piece to see how the markets performed on a busy night of action.
Four of the five non-conference games also went Over their respective full game totals, with the showdown between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers the only one to fall shy of the closing number.
The Atlanta Hawks were 130-122 winners in Dallas for the first time since Trae Young and Luka Doncic traded places on draft night in 2018.
Atlanta led for almost the entirety of the first half, but a big third quarter push from the Mavs saw them trail by as many as 10 points before rallying back to assume control down the stretch. The Hawks closed as 2.5-point underdogs and received strong market support close to tip-off as they continued to shorten after opening at +3.5 points.
The Miami Heat were also big winners on the road as they took down the Pelicans 124-98 as 2.5-point favorites. Erik Spoelstra was able to welcome back Kyle Lowry and Caleb Martin into the rotation as the Heat enjoyed a comfortable wire-to-wire win.
The Charlotte Hornets were also winners out west as they left Houston with a 122-117 victory. The Hornets closed as -3.0 point favorites – just the fourth time they’ve been listed as road favorites this season in the market.
The Cleveland Cavaliers blew a late lead as the Memphis Grizzlies managed to steal a 115-114 win to extend their current streak to 11 games. The Cavs failed to inbound the ball after a timeout and were called for a 5 second violation that resulted in the Grizzlies taking control of the basketball down one.
A Steven Adams tip-in sealed the win for Memphis, with that final bucket also pushing this game over the 227.5 point total. Cleveland did cover the 7.5-point spread, but will be disappointed to have lost a game they seemingly controlled down the stretch.
The Thunder made it four straight wins as they assumed control of the eight seed in the West with a 126-106 win over the Indiana Pacers. The home side took a lot of market support, closing as high as -4.5 points in most places and rewarded bettors with a comfortable wire-to-wire win.
Bad Night for LA Teams
The Clippers were 126-103 losers in Salt Lake City as the Utah Jazz continue to demonstrate why they own one of the best home records in the NBA.
The road team were shorthanded on the second night of a back-to-back and closed as 8.5-point underdogs once it was confirmed that they would be without Kawhi Leonard or Paul George. Lauri Markkanen returned for the Jazz and dropped 34 points as he continues his chase for the Most Improved Player award.
‘Lakers opened as 3.5-point underdogs at home, but once LeBron James was upgraded to available and the Kings unexpectedly had Domantas Sabonis ruled out with illness the market shifted to LA -2.5 points.’
The LA Lakers hosted division rivals Sacramento in a game that saw huge market action in the lead up to tip-off. The Lakers opened as 3.5-point underdogs at home, but once LeBron James was upgraded to available and the Kings unexpectedly had Domantas Sabonis ruled out with illness the market shifted to LA -2.5 points.
The home side raced out to a 14-point lead in the first half but were chased down by a Sacramento offense that continued to impress in the absence of their All-Star candidate forward. This game had the highest total of the night, but never looked like going Over the 245.0 point total set by the market.
Nuggets Unstoppable, Knicks Unpredictable
The Denver Nuggets managed to claw out another home win as they closed out on a 9-0 run to steal a 122-118 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Timberwolves were held scoreless for the final 2:50 of the game as they dropped back-to-back division games in the final minute. Rudy Gobert was ruled out before tip-off as the line ballooned to +9.0 and while the loss was tough to take the spread was never in doubt for Minnesota who never fell outside the number.
That win also ensured they remained a half game ahead of Memphis in the NBA west standings.
The New York Knicks dropped their second straight game at home as they fell 116-105 to the Washington Wizards.
The Wizards opened as 6.0-point underdogs but welcomed back Bradley Beal before eventually closing at +5.0 in most places. Washington were wire-to-wire winners and never trailed as they again showed their potential when their starting five is available together.
That’s all for the NBA Wednesday games recap. Be sure to check back again for our NBA scores review piece to see how the market performed across the league.
Follow us on Twitter
