Get ready for a wild night of hoops action, as the NBA serves up a pair of explosive games guaranteed to take you on a roller coaster ride.
Our first game features Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks opening up a brief two-game road trip at the Air Canada Centre, where they will face off with Kyle Lowry and the Atlantic Division-leading Toronto Raptors. Following shortly, the Kobe Bryant tour resumes in Colorado as the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets battle it out with one another.
Read on below for a quick breakdown of these two matchups. And if you’re also into the football as well, check out our NFL Week 16 Picks and Predictions piece.
[sc:NBAArticles ]Dallas Mavericks vs. Toronto Raptors (7:30 PM ET)
Line: Dallas Mavericks vs. Toronto Raptors – view all NBA lines
[sc:NBA240banner ]Following a 107-81 loss at Indiana, the Dallas Mavericks quickly put themselves back on track with a much-needed 11-point win against the visiting Memphis Grizzlies Friday night. Starring in that game was none other than Dirk Nowitzki, who scored a team-best of 20 points along with five rebounds to help his team capture its 15th win of the season. He’ll look to replicate this performance and hopefully garner the same results against the Toronto Raptors.
Meanwhile, the Raptors will be trying to shake off their recent funk. They’ve lost three of their past four games with the latest one opposite the Kings, 104-94, last Sunday. Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, who are averaging 21.3 and 22.4 points per game respectively, will strive to put their club back into the winning column versus a Dallas defense that’s allowing 100.4 points per game this season.
Dallas is 3-2 SU and ATS in its previous five road games. Toronto, on the other hand, is 4-1 SU and 2-3 ATS in its past five contests at home.
Click here for a comprehensive preview of this match.
Writer’s Prediction
Toronto wins, 105-97.
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Denver Nuggets (9:00 PM ET)
Line: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Denver Nuggets – view all NBA lines
Winning has been something very hard to come by for the Los Angeles Lakers. They’ve lost six of their last seven games by an average margin of 20.2 points. As a result, they continue to cement themselves as the worst team in the Western Conference with a 4-23 win-loss record. But despite their embarrassing setbacks, Kobe Bryant has been displaying some remnants of his old self lately.
Bryant, who started off the season very poorly, has been the most efficient player in a purple and gold jersey heading into their matchup with the Denver Nuggets. The 20-year veteran is posting 18.8 PPG, 5.5 RPG and 4.0 APG while shooting the rock at a rate of 48.9 percent in his past six games.
As for the Nuggets, they’ll be trying to stop a two-game slide and will be relying on forward Danilo Gallinari to lead them in doing so. Gallinari, the team’s top scorer (17.3 PPG), is bound to get his way later versus a Lakers defense that’s allowing 107.2 points per game this year, which is the third-highest in the league.
Los Angeles is 0-5 SU and 2-3 ATS in its previous five games on the road. Denver, meanwhile, is 4-6 SU and 3-6-1 ATS in its last 10 home games.
Writer’s Prediction
Lakers win a thriller, 97-93. Create a betting account now, and don’t miss to bet on these two big-time matchups.
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