NBA Picks: Atlanta Hawks at Orlando Magic

The Atlanta Hawks are coming off one of their most convincing upsets of the season Saturday and tonight in Orlando, it’s the Magic who are on the ropes as they look to even this series at one game apiece.

Online sportsbook have listed the hometown Magic as an 8.5-point favorite and given the Magic’s ATS record as big chalk, it’s no surprise to see more than 70-percent early action on the underdog. Including Saturday’s loss, where the Magic were also laying -8.5, Orlando has lost eight-straight games ATS when laying -7 points or more.

Brian Taylor, manager at Sportsbetting.com, stated “the sports betting public haven’t warmed up to Orlando in this one. After that straight up loss as a big favorite stung bettors the other night, they’re reluctant to back this Magic team as big favorite again. We’re currently sitting with 71% of the action on the underdog Hawks”.

The Hawks stumbled into the postseason, losing six in a row straight-up (1-5 ATS) but with five-straight ATS covers against the Magic it seems Atlanta couldn’t have asked for a better first round opponent.

Atlanta shot an impressive 51.4-percent (38-for-74) in the opener and held the Magic to just 6-of-22 from beyond the arc. Turnovers, which plagued the Magic throughout the season, once again caused nightmares for Dwight Howard as Orlando handed the ball over 18 times – the most of all 16 playoff teams.

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San Antonio Spurs at Chicago Bulls

Tonight’s contest between the Spurs and Bulls is one of the final two games before the NBA All-Star break. San Antonio (46-9) lead the NBA with a .836 win percentage while the Bulls (37-16), listed by sportsbooks as a -1.5 point favorite, are first in the Central division by 13 games over the Indiana Pacers.

The Spurs have a 6-2 SU/ATS record through the first eight games of their infamous rodeo tour and have been off since Monday’s 17-point win at New Jersey. Leading scorer Manu Ginobili (17.9 ppg) was good for 22 points vs. the Nets and that came on the heels of HC Gregg Popovich’s move to rest his superstar at Washington.

Chicago’s most recent game was Tuesday’s 106-94 SU/ATS win against Charlotte and the Bulls have an 18-7 ATS record off one-day’s rest. Chicago caught the Bobcats off a monstrous upset win the previous night against the Los Angeles Lakers and was able to out-rebound Charlotte 11-6 in the offensive zone. The Bobcats’ downfall, though, was going 2-11 (18.2 percent) from three-point land.

San Antonio is second best in the league with a .396 shooting percentage from outside the arc while the Bulls (.365) rank 11th. Chicago has been playing without leading rebounder Joakim Noah since Dec. 15 but they’ve done a fantastic job. If anything, the physical game may be what suffers most for the Spurs as they play their ninth road game in a row.

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NBA Betting: Tuesday NBA Picks

NBA Betting: Not one of the seven matchups Tuesday features two teams that each have a win-loss record above .500 but this Western Conference rivalry between the Suns and Trailblazers is a close as it gets.

Portland started last season at 12-8 before going on to win 50 games but the Trailblazers are 2-6-1 ATS vs. teams with a winning record. Sportsbook have the home side favored.

Phoenix (11-9) at Portland (9-11)
Line: Trailblazers -3
Over/Under: 204
Portland started the season 6-3 but fell into six-game spiral that sent their fans into a tizzy.

The Blazers led at half-time in three of the six losses and three were by four points or less, but was Sunday’s win against the Clippers a turning point or an aberration?

Strong play in the defensive zone will a key for Portland but the Suns (109.8 ppg) lead the league in scoring and for seven-straight games have notched 105-plus points per game. Look for the Trailblazers to fall behind in the second-half and for this game to finish with a margin of less than three.
Pick: Take the Suns

Washington (6-13) at L.A. Lakers (14-6)
Line: Lakers -13
Over/Under: 206.5
The Lakers won their first game in over a week Friday, beating Sacramento 113-80 SU/ATS. It was LA’s most convincing win of the season, covering the spread by more than 20 points, and after a three-day layoff t... [More]