The preseason action was very kind to us but now it’s time to move on to the regular season. There are three games on the radar for opening night on Tuesday and we’ll handicap all of them. Let's get the season started!
NBA Betting: Tuesday Picks
Normally for this article, I pick three games when there is a pick of the litter; on Tuesday, there is only three games so I’ll examine all of them and give leans or picks for each game based on the NBA odds.
Washington Wizards at Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavaliers opened up as a six-point favorite in this contest but the line now currently sits at 5.5. There are some key injuries for this contest, which are going to affect the outcome of this game.
This is a matchup of two of the worst teams in the league but it’s hard to like the Wizards when they are missing two of their key contributors. John Wall and Nene are out, which removes the team’s starting point guard and center from the lineup. Also, I’m of the opinion that Wall is the only All Star-caliber player on this roster.
I kind of like Cleveland to take a step forward this season. I think they are doing a good job of composing their roster and while they won’t compete for a playoff spot, I think they’ll prove that the right foundation is in place.
I don’t want to lay six with Cleveland but without Wall and Nene, I can’t take the points with Washington on the road – where they were horrible last season – in this spot. Lean with the Cavs.
Pick: Cavaliers -5.5 +++
Boston Celtics at Miami Heat
Expect there to be some bad blood as the Celtics and Heat meet on opening night. The Heat will be raising their banner in front of their rivals and they’ll also show off Ray Allen in his new colors.
The line for this game opened at seven and his dipped to 6.5. That makes sense as the Heat were a dud in the preseason (not that they really cared), losing their last two home games to Washington and New Orleans.
I see this being a close contest all the way through. Boston will be jacked up to test themselves against the champs and while they still lack the elite players to compete up front, I think they still have more depth to keep this close.
Miami wins but it should be right around the spread, so I’ll take the points.
Pick: Celtics +6.5 ---
Dallas Mavericks at Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers went through the entire preseason and didn’t get a win. Now they’ll try to prove to all of us that this was just the preseason and they weren’t really trying.
That might be the case but it’s a whole other thing to cover nine points in their season-opener. They have a lot of new players trying to get accustomed to a new environment and it hasn’t looked good so far.
In most other cases, I would take their opponent with the points but the problem is that Dallas is in a similar boat. There’s no Dirk Nowitzki tonight and with Jason Kidd and Jason Terry gone, they also have a slew of new faces trying to acclimatize themselves to their new roles.
If push came to shove, I would take the Mavs and the points. Instead, I would rather look to the under as the offenses should be a bit sluggish.
Pick: Under 187.5 ---
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