Friday NBA means the BetDeluxe basketball crew are a bunch of busy bees heading into a big weekend NBA.
Atlanta and Chicago get the show on the road, while Grizzlies look to continue their impressive run.
chicago @ atlanta
march 4th 11:00am
State Farm Arena is where we head for this battle between Atlanta and Chicago.
The Bulls sit 39-23 and come into this game after losing to the Miami Heat, while the Hawks are entering this game after blowing a 17 point lead to the Boston Celtics.
It has been a struggle for the Hawks this season and having to deal with the Bulls’ DeMar DeRozan is probably the last thing they wanted after that disappointing loss to Boston.
DeRozan has been in MVP form this season and will be eager, as will his team, to fire one back and gain ground on Miami who top the Eastern Conference by 1.5 games on the Bulls.
DeRozan has had plenty of help from his team mates this season with the likes of Nikola Vucevic and Zach Lavine, whereas the same cannot be said for star Hawks guard Trae Young.
Young has had to bear too much of the load this season and the Hawks have suffered on the win-loss column.
Chicago already had a 3-0 series lead in the season over the Hawks and we expect nothing to change here.
Suggested Bet: Chicago -4.5 at $1.90
memphis @ boston
march 4th 11:30am
Boston Celtics will be without Jaylen Brown against the Ja Morant-led Memphis Grizzlies in this inter-conference clash on the hardwood of TD Garden.
Brown sprained his right ankle in Boston’s 107-98 victory over the Hawks, while the Grizzlies hit the road to TD Garden after coming off a 118-105 home win over San Antonio in their most recent contest.
Ja Morant put up huge numbers yet again with a career-high 52 points from 22/30 shooting as he raises his hand sky-high for an MVP title.
Boston’s chances of winning this contest arguably went down the drain when Brown was ruled out with the sprained ankle.
He and Jayson Tatum are amongst the deadliest duo’s in the league and without one and other, there is cause for concern offensively and defensively for the Celtics.
Predicting the white-hot Morant to slice his way through the Celtics defence on his way to another big night.
Suggested Bet: Memphis Grizzlies -2.5 at $1.90
la lakers @ la clippers
march 4th 2:00pm
After opening their four-game home stint with a win over Utah, the Los Angeles Lakers lost the next four games and now suffered six defeats in the past seven games.
The Los Angeles Clippers are entering this city derby in a whole different mood having won six of the last seven and are on a four-game winning streak.
The Clippers won each of the first three and are looking to do the season sweep over the Lakers for the second season in a row.
With Anthony Davis going down to injury yet again, the Lakers have really struggled on defence.
LeBron James and Russell Westbrook are well past their prime and the Clippers are playing much better team-orientated basketball than their neighbours.
Clippers to make it 4-0 as they resign the Lakers further away from the playoffs.
Suggested Bet: LA Clippers -2.5 at $1.90
golden state @ dallas
march 4th 12:30pm
Golden State Warriors head on the road to meet with the Dallas Mavericks on Friday in a bid to get their mojo back.
The Warriors were dealt a road loss by the Timberwolves on Wednesday as they continue to struggle without the influence of Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.
The Mavericks, meanwhile, tallied a road win against the Lakers as Luka Doncic came up clutch.
This looks an opportunity for the Mavericks to capitalize on their winning form.
Dallas has fared exceptionally well against Golden State this season and lead the season series 2-1 including a 107-101 road win last weekend.
The Warriors are only 5-5 in their last 10 games overall and have dropped two out of their last three road bouts, but interestingly, they are still the -2.5 favourites for this clash.
The Warriors have been loose on the defensive end since Green’s injury and are conceding an average of 113 points in their last five games.
Mavericks look the value.
Suggested Bet: Dallas Mavericks +2.5 at $1.91
