NBA betting tips: Chicago Bulls to trample Boston Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder to strike LA Lakers
NBA action continues as the Chicago Bulls prepare to welcome the Boston Celtics and the Oklahoma City Thunder make the trip to face the Los Angeles Lakers.
On a positive note, the Raptors covered the +3.5 spread nicely on Wednesday night, battering the poor Pelicans 119-93, while the Nets showed some fighting spirit in beating the Suns 127-117 as +8.5 underdogs.
Thanksgiving then meant a day of rest from the hardcourt action, allowing us to get a head start on Friday night’s fun and frolics.
Sports News Blitz writer George Dempsey is here with the latest set of NBA betting tips.
Boston Celtics at Chicago Bulls
The Celtics and the Bulls are currently neck-and-neck at the top of the NBA Cup standings, separated by just a single point in the scoring differentials.
As a result, the saying ‘every point counts’ has never been truer than it is for Friday night’s matchup at the United Center.
Chicago got into the Thanksgiving spirit early this year, conceding 133 points against the Magic, 142 against the Grizzlies, and 122 against the Bucks over the last week.
On the other hand, they did beat the Wizards 127-108, the Hawks 136-122, and the Pistons 122-112.
Injuries have been a factor in their patchy form, but that has not stopped them from scoring well, which is something they will need to do in order to keep pace with the Celtics this weekend.
In addition, the Celtics could only produce a +7 points differential from their four most recent home games, which saw them face the Cavaliers, Hawks, Raptors, and Timberwolves. They simply are not putting teams away as consistently as last season.
Chicago will also be highly motivated to continue their solid NBA Cup form.
In the end, this bet fits into a nice pattern: Since the start of the 2018-19 season, NBA teams coming off back-to-back losses in which they scored 115 points offensively have bounced back extremely well in the next outing, covering the spread nearly 62% of the time. That sounds good to us.
Suggested bet: Chicago Bulls +9.5
READ MORE: NFL betting tips: Kansas City Chiefs to rout Raiders, Cleveland’s luck to run out
Oklahoma City Thunder at Los Angeles Lakers
As things stand, the Lakers sit third in their NBA Cup group with a 2-1 record, one game ahead of their visitors. Their -16 point differential could, however, prove to be costly in the final standings.
For the Thunder, this will be their third game in the competition and a healthy win could see them top the group.
Although most teams appear highly motivated to perform in the NBA Cup, the team from LA have only just squeezed past the Spurs and the Jazz before being scorched by the Suns. Clearly, the Lakers have other priorities.
On the court, the clash will see the Lakers’ ageing duo of Anthony Davis and LeBron James up against the hunger of the Thunder’s youthful core, led by top scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (29.5ppg).
We are going to do the obvious thing here and bet on the better team. There is no need for complicated systems or overthinking — both teams are healthy enough and rested, and one team is simply better than the other.
Suggested bet: Oklahoma City Thunder -1
