The Australian Monday sports slate is typically dominated by the NFL, however 7 enticing games makes for another exciting day of NBA action. Ben Simmons leads Philadelphia into Brooklyn to face the Nets in an intriguing Eastern Conference matchup. In what is the marquee game of the day, King Kawhi leads the Raptors into Los Angeles to face LeBron and the struggling Lakers. Both of these games and more are featured in our daily NBA preview, as we analyse our 3 best spread bets and identify another profitable multi opportunity.
Brooklyn Nets
The Nets enter this one at 3-6 after a competitive loss against Houston on Saturday. Young Shooting Guard Caris LeVert continued his strong start to the campaign with 29 points and 4 rebounds, however the Nets defence simply couldn’t contain Chris Paul. They also struggled mightily against young Rockets Center Clint Capela, which doesn’t bode well coming up against Joel Embiid here. Reserve Guards Spencer Dinwiddie and Shabazz Napier have continued to put up points off the bench, whilst the shooting of Forward Joe Harris has helped boost the starting lineup.
Philadelphia 76ers
The 6-4 76ers travel to Brooklyn after yesterday’s home win over Detroit. Joel Embiid stole the show with an incredible 39 points and 17 boards, flexing on Pistons big man Andre Drummond as he did so. JJ Redick and Mike Muscala added some much-needed bench scoring, combining for 30 points and 4 threes on the afternoon. It was a bit of a quiet one for Aussie Ben Simmons, as he registered only 9 points and 5 assists. He’ll be looking to capitalise on his matchup advantage here against a smaller Brooklyn back-court.
Prediction: 76ers -4
The Nets have struggled as low underdogs so far this season and I expect this trend to continue here. Even off a back-to-back, I think the Sixers are the far superior team in this contest. Brooklyn simply can’t match up with either Simmons or Embiid in this one, which will ultimately prove the difference.
Phoenix Suns
The 1-7 Suns enter this one off the back of 7 straight losses, having already bought out Center Tyson Chandler. The return of star Shooting Guard Devin Booker offered a boost against Toronto, but it wasn’t enough to see Phoenix bring home a win. A promising sign for Phoenix so far has been the strong play of Rookie Center DeAndre Ayton, who is currently averaging over 16 points and 11 rebounds. Shooting an impressive 62% from the field and 75% from the line, Ayton looks like he can compliment Booker well in the next strong Phoenix side.
Memphis Grizzlies
The 5-2 Grizzlies have impressed a lot of people so far this season with 2 strong road wins over the Utah Jazz. Point Guard Mike Conley continues to lead this team well, averaging 20 points, 6 assists and 4 rebounds on the campaign. Center Marc Gasol has also continued his good form, putting up averages of 15 points, 8 boards and 4 assists. Rookie big man Jaren Jackson has looked like a solid pickup for Memphis, whilst veterans Garrett Temple and Shelvin Mack round out the rotation nicely.
Prediction: Over 210 Points
This Phoenix offence is noticeably better with focal point Devin Booker back in the fold. A matchup between these two teams without Booker eclipsed this total and I believe it’s about 5-10 points too short here. The Phoenix defence has remained terrible all season and I expect a relatively high-scoring one here.
Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers return home after a late one in Portland last night. Few would’ve predicted that they’d have a losing record after 9 games, but it’s the exact position they find themselves in. LeBron James has been far from the problem so far, averaging an impressive 28 points, 8 boards and 8 assists on the campaign. Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram and JaVale McGee have all proven to be solid complementary pieces, however none of them have consistently stepped up. With Kawhi and the Raptors coming to town, I expect another tough night for LA here.
Toronto Raptors
The Raptors continue their West Coast road trip at 8-1, undefeated when Kawhi Leonard plays. Leonard is averaging 26 points and 7 boards this season without even playing at his best. The consistency of Point Guard Kyle Lowry has been on display again this season, with averages of 17 points and an impressive 11 assists per game. This excellent Raptors bench unit has continued their strong performances from last season, with Fred VanVleet, CJ Miles and OG Anunoby only improving on the leads built by their starters.
Prediction: Raptors -3.5
Having to travel back from Portland on minimal rest, this definitely won’t be easy for the Lakers. Toronto has firmly established themselves as one of the premier teams in the NBA and I expect them to put on a show here. Note that Kawhi is in doubt for this one with an ankle injury. If he’s fit and firing, this is very much a play at this relatively low number.
We’ve had some strong NBA multis in recent days and there’s another excellent one on the cards here today. Despite Sacramento’s strong form of late, I expect the 7-1 Bucks to build on their 5-0 home start to the season. Similarly, the Spurs coaching and talent advantage should prove too much against Orlando, who look like one of the worst teams in the league this season. The Wizards are a bit of a question mark given their recent form, but their inclusion really beefs up the price and I expect their talent advantage to win out against the Knicks.