The BetDeluxe basketball team has its eyes firmly set on the best bets ahead of Thursday NBA action.
It all begins with Cleveland welcoming Chicago to Rocket Mortage Fieldhouse.
Chicago @ Cleveland
December 9th 11:00am
Chicago packs its bags and heads to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for an Eastern Conference battle against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Bulls trekked along to 17-8 in the East after a 109-97 win over Denver.
Chicago has now nestled itself into second spot in the Eastern Conference, while Cleveland, after a fast start to the season, finds itself back in the middle of the pack with a 13-12 overall record.
The Cavaliers have spilt their last four fixtures with two wins and two losses.
The most recent of those results was a 112-104 defeat against last season’s championship winner Milwaukee which highlighted the Cavaliers ability to match it with the best in the NBA.
Chicago will represent a tough challenge with a host of contributors on its roster making it hard for opposition to nail down and stop its flow on the court.
Zach LaVine has been sensational for the Bulls in the month of December, alongside centre Nikola Vucevic, but the omission of DeMar DeRozan (H&S protocols) for this clash is going to be enormous.
Cleveland has a winning 12-3 record against the spread after a day break as well as an undefeated against the spread record when starting favourite at home.
Suggested Bets: Cleveland Cavaliers -2.5 at $1.91
Suggested Same Game Multi:
Leg 1: Cleveland Cavaliers -2.5
Leg 2: Total points under 209.5
Leg 3: D. Garland over 17.5 points
Leg 4: D. Garland 2+ three-pointers
Combined odds = $6
washington @ detroit
december 9th 11:00am
Washington is on the road and trekking up North to face the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena.
The Wizards (14-11) have dropped three straight games and are currently tied with Miami for fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Pistons, meanwhile, continue their rebuilding era and head into this contest with a 4-19 record following a disappointing loss at home against Oklahoma City.
Detroit was outscored by 22 points during the fourth quarter of the 114-103 result.
The match shapes a big chance for the Wizards to rebound into winning ways and the opportunity for Bradley Beal to continue his return to form.
The Wizards will likely pack a little bit too much for the Pistons on offence, especially with Beal coming off a 34-point performance against the Pacers.
Suggested Bet: Washington Wizards -5.5 at $1.90
Suggested Same Game Multi:
Leg 1: Washington Wizards -5.5
Leg 2: B. Beal over 24.5
Leg 3: Total points over 208.5
Combined odds = $6.25
Oklahoma City @ Toronto
december 9th 11:30am
Toronto opens the doors to Scotiabank Arena as we get set for a fixture between the Raptors and Oklahoma City Thunder.
The rebuilding Thunder would have been buoyed by the announcement of Josh Giddey receiving the rookie of the month award and cracking the top five on the rookie ladder this season.
His form has been pivotal in nearly all of the Thunder’s seven wins this season and he notched up a solid 12 points and five assists in the 114-103 win over Detroit on Tuesday.
Toronto, however, will prove a far bigger test than the battling Pistons.
Despite sitting 12th in the Eastern Conference, the Raptors managed to knock off Milwaukee and Washington in their two most recent fixtures.
The Thunder will show what the bright future holds for them in patches during this contest, but the Raptors are just too big and too strong.
Pascal Siakim and co are going to prove a headache for the inexperience Thunder defence.
Suggested Bet: Toronto Raptors -6.5 at $1.91
denver @ new orleans
december 9th 12:00pm
The embattled Denver Nuggets will try to find a way to regroup and regather their season when they travel to New Orleans to take on the Pelicans.
The Nuggets have lost 8 of their last 10 games to fall below .500 and now come up against the last place Pelicans, losers of two from their last three games.
It has been a tough stint for the Nuggets who now play their seventh road game in eight fixtures.
The Pelicans, too, have struggled for form without the impact of Zion Wiliamson who continues to battle a foot injury and well-publicised weight issues.
The Pelicans now face a team struggling more than they are recently in the Denver Nuggets.
They will have to contain reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic – who recently overtook Larry Bird on career triple-doubles – in order to give themselves the best chance to win.
Denver does have a very good record against the weaker teams in the league from a spread perspective.
Nuggets are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of less than .400.
Suggested Bet: Denver -1.5 at $1.89
