Miami Heat vs. Golden State Warriors Betting Preview
Where: Oracle Arena, Oakland, CA
When: Tuesday, January 10, 2017, 10:30 PM ET
Line: Miami Heat (+15.5) at Golden State Warriors (-15.5); total: 218.0 – view all NBA lines
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Betting on the Miami Heat (11-28)
Point Spread: +15.5
Even with the return of staring center Hassan Whiteside, the Miami Heat still fell to the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday, 98-86. That’s their third loss in four games during their current six-game road trip and eight in their last nine overall. They’ll now face an even tougher challenge in the Warriors on Tuesday to round out their visits to all five teams in the Pacific.
Whiteside, who had been sidelined for the past four games with an eye injury, returned to action and had a solid outing with 15 points and 13 rebounds against the Clippers. Meanwhile, Goran Dragic led the Heat with 24 points that evening. But that’s where the praises start and end, as Dragic and Whiteside were the only Miami starters to score in double digits on Monday.
The Heat, who are the second-worst scoring team in the NBA at a mere 98 points per contest, still cannot buy any buckets with so many banged-up bodies on their roster. They shot a miserable 37 percent from the field against Los Angeles, and also saw another player in guard Josh Richardson (sprained left foot) get added to the team’s injury list.
Miami even committed three technical fouls on Sunday, which goes to show that the unrest for this squad is reaching a critical point. Considering that the team has Golden State on tap next and that it has lost 10 of its last 11 road games, you can hardly make a sound case as for how coach Erik Spoelstra and his boys will pull off a massive upset in Oracle.
On the other hand, the Heat have actually gone 5-6 against the spread in those 11 games away from The Keys, so at least there’s a silver lining to be had for us bettors simply looking to bet against the top-heavy Warriors.
Betting on the Golden State Warriors (32-6)
Point Spread: -15.5
For the 13th-consecutive time on Sunday, the Golden State Warriors got the better of the Sacramento Kings, 117-106.
For a moment there, it appeared as if the Kings were about to stun their division rivals. But the Warriors clawed out of a 16-point, first-half deficit and avoided suffering their first back-to-back loss since the start of the 2014-15 season. Golden State recovered rather nicely from their humiliating fourth-quarter meltdown against the Grizzlies last Friday and have now secured their second victory this season wherein they’ve climbed back from an opponent’s lead of 15 points or more.
You really don’t want to mess with the Dubs’ superstars fresh off a brutal defeat. Kevin Durant filled his stat sheet to the brim on Sunday with 28 points, seven boards, six assists and four blocks; Stephen Curry had a team-high 30 points with five three-pointers; and Draymond Green dished out 10 dimes for the third time in four outings, giving him 12 double-digit assist games this season.
Speaking of assists, the Warriors had 30 of them in the victory, marking the 26th time this season they’ve accomplished that feat of 30 or more helpers in a contest. The highest-scoring and assisting team in the NBA hasn’t taken their feet of the pedal just yet, even if they’ve faltered against some of the league’s better ball clubs like the Cavs, Spurs, Rockets and *gasp* Grizzlies (twice!).
However, the Heat are no contenders for the NBA title this season let alone a winning record, so Golden State should be able to bag another easy victory this Tuesday, especially since the team has won five of its last six meetings against Miami, with its only loss being a one-point thriller back Februay 2014.
Then again, the Warriors went just 2-3-1 against the spread in those contests, which further reinforces our notion from earlier that a win for the underdogs odds-wise is highly possible despite another inevitable victory for the Dubs.
Writer’s Prediction
The Warriors easily prevail over the Heat, 114-102, but Miami manages to cover +15.5.
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