Toss These 2 NBA Bets On Top Of Your Monday Night Football Action
The chicken-s*** NBA only scheduled five games because it's afraid to go against the NFL's Monday Night Football. If I sound bitter, it's because I am. My NBA record and bankroll took another hit Sunday when two of my three bets lost.
Frankly, I can live with New York's loss. But, losing with the Atlanta Hawks led by my least favorite player in the NBA (Trae Young) is a bit maddening. That said, I do my best gambling when I'm angry and my back is against the wall.
Let's get this week started right with these ...
NBA Monday 'Locks'
New Orleans Pelicans (-5) at Utah Jazz, 9 p.m. ET tip-off
This is the second of a Pelicans-Jazz back-to-back (B2B) and Utah won the first Saturday 105-100. The Jazz have won and covered four straight meetings with New Orleans dating back to last season. So if Utah beats NOLA Monday, I'll feel stupid.
However, the Pelicans gave Zion Williamson a rest night Saturday because they were on the second of a B2B. Zion is New Orleans's 2nd-leading scorer at 23.2 points per game (PPG) and he averaged 27.3 PPG in three meetings vs. the Jazz last season.
New Orleans Pelicans PF Zion Williamson drives past Jazz big Walker Kessler at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)
Also, NOLA had a double-digit lead over Utah entering the 4th quarter Saturday. But, the Jazz got 30 points from their bench and stole that game. Obviously, the Pelicans were fatigued playing on no rest and should have a more complete effort Monday.
Lastly, New Orleans is +9.4 over Utah in Basketball Reference's "Simple Rating System", which blends scoring margin with strength of schedule. With home-court advantage, the Jazz should still be +6.5 or higher in this spot.
My prediction: Pelicans 119, Jazz 112
UNDER 220.5 in Nuggets-Clippers, 10:30 p.m. ET tip-off
The crew chief, James Williams, in Nuggets-Clippers has a 3-8 Over/Under (O/U) record this season. Games Williams officiates finish with an average total of 217.5 as well. Referees dictate the flow of games by calling fouls. Denver has the lowest offensive FT/FGA rate in the NBA.
Furthermore, both teams runs a lot of half-court offense. The Clippers are 20th in Pace and the Nuggets are 26th. According to CleaningTheGlass.com (CTG), Denver is 10th in half-court defensive efficiency and LAC ranks 2nd.
Nuggets C Nikola Jokic tries to keep the ball away from Los Clippers wings Terance Mann and Kawhi Leonard at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. (Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
The Clippers are still tinkering with their offense since acquiring James Harden and the Nuggets struggle without PG Jamal Murray. Over the past two weeks, LAC is 21st in non-garbage time offensive efficiency and Denver is 24th, per CTG.
Finally, Nuggets-Clippers trends point to this being a low-scoring affair. Denver is 2-7 O/U on the road (-4.9 O/U margin), LAC is 4-10-1 O/U (-7.3 O/U margin), and the Nuggets-Clippers have gone Under the total in four of their last five meetings.