Four fixtures, four big games and four best bets.
That is the modus operandi heading into this weekend’s NBA BetDeluxe preview.
cleveland @ philadelphia
march 5th 11:00am
The Eastern Conference reaches boiling point when Cleveland heads over to Wells Fargo for an important clash against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Playoffs will be on the mind of both teams, but it is 76ers who are hot to trot at the moment.
Four wins in a row for the Joel Embiid-led 76ers have put them in the prime position to attack this back half of the regular season with a healthy roster.
Cleveland, meanwhile, has hit a serious road bump having lost its last two matches in disappointing fashion.
The Cavs failed to fire on offence against a resurgent Hornets team on Thursday and now face an ever tougher task on Saturday.
With James Harden being added to the fold, the 76ers look on track to make it five wins in a row.
Suggested Bet: Philadelphia -6.5 at $1.91
indiana @ detroit
march 5th 11:00am
Indiana and Detroit return to the court when the pair face off at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday morning.
The Pacers have won two of three games and three of five.
They are coming off a 122-114 overtime win over Orlando on the road, while the Pistons scored a big win over Toronto on Friday.
These teams have met twice this season with Detroit beating the Pacers 97-89 on November 17 and the Pacers downed the Pistons 122-113 on December 16.
With playoffs out of the question for both teams, motivation will be a key factor here.
The Pistons have a host freakishly talented players, but can be prone to conceding big scores.
Indiana has toiled away, but they will have issues in the frontcourt with Myles Turner likely to miss this game.
That’s where Detroit can take advantage; by getting in the lane and getting the ball to Isaiah Stewart.
The Pistons have covered five straight games as they beat the likes of Boston on the road and Cleveland at home.
Suggested Bet: Detroit Pistons head to head at $2.47
utah @ new orleans
march 5th 12:00pm
A pair of teams from the Western Conference take the floor looking to pick up a win in the Big Easy.
The Utah Jazz are on the road as they make the trip to face the New Orleans Pelicans Friday night.
Utah comes in off a 132-127 overtime win on the road over Houston Wednesday night in their most recent contest.
New Orleans rolled to an easy 125-95 home victory over Sacramento Wednesday night in their previous game.
Nine wins in their last 10 games has the Jazz poised to make a big run towards playoffs, but this is a tricky road trip.
The Pelicans have made amends since their horrendous 1-12 start to the season, and have since put themselves into a play-in position.
Donovan Mitchell and Ruby Gobert have really rejuvenated this Jazz team, but the Pelicans are playing good enough basketball to pinch a result.
Suggested Bet: New Orleans Pelicans +3.5 at $1.90
houston @ denver
march 5th 1:00pm
Rank underdog Houston travels over to the Mile-High City for a meeting with Denver.
The Houston Rockets snapped a four-game losing skid with a surprising win over Cleveland, but then returned to losing ways and have lost their last 11 games.
They have the worst record in the West and it’ll likely remain that way when the season ends.
The Denver Nuggets were on a six-game winning streak before losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder at home, one of the biggest surprises of late.
But they have shown more than enough to shown they can bounce back.
The Nuggets will be filthy with how they started their four-game home stretch and expect them to batter this hapless Rockets team.
Suggested Bet: Denver Nuggets -13.5 at $1.91
