Portland Trailblazers vs. Dallas Mavericks Betting Preview
Where: American Airlines Center — Dallas, TX
When: Friday, November 4, 2016, 8:30 PM ET
Line: Portland Trailblazers (-1.5) vs. Dallas Mavericks (+1.5); total: 206.0– view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: CSNW / FSSW / C+ D
Writer’s Prediction: Portland Trailblazers (-1.5)
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Betting on the Portland Trailblazers (-1.5)
Five games into the new season, Portland’s only won two games thus far. Tonight’s road game against the winless Mavs is going to be pretty crucial, as the Trail Blazers hope to snap a two-game slide and forget about Eric Bledsoe’s game-winner yesterday.
Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum have been beyond productive for the team, averaging more than 50 points combined. Lillard, though, has carried most of the scoring load (32.6), while also adding 6.0 rebounds and 4.6 assists. Dallas, which has given up more than a hundred points in all but one of its games this year, will need a collective effort in stopping those two.
Portland clearly has the advantage on offense in this matchup, but that’s not going to matter if it can’t play good defense for 48 minutes. In particular, the third quarter has been a nightmare for the Trail Blazers, who are being outscored by 40 points across five third periods this season.
Rip City is 2-3 SU and 1-4 ATS in its last five meetings with the Mavericks.
Betting on the Dallas Mavericks (+1.5)
Deron Williams is still dealing with a strained right abductor, so his status for this evening’s game with Portland is uncertain. If he can’t suit up, it’ll be a big blow for the Mavs because the former Nets point guard dominated the Trail Blazers in three games last year, putting up 24.3 points and 11.7 assists.
Dallas will continue relying on Harrison Barnes to do the dirty work offensively. The former Warriors forward has done a solid job in doing so, leading the team in scoring with a career-high 18.5 points per contest. Unfortunately, his efforts have yet to give him and the Mavs a win this season.
You can blame the defense for that. Rick Carlisle’s group is allowing an average of 106.5 points to opponents, among the most in the league. But it was nice to see them hold their last two opponents (Jazz and Rockets) below 100 points even though they weren’t able to secure a victory.
Dallas is 4-0 SU and ATS in its last five home games versus the Trail Blazers.
Writer’s Prediction
Portland (-1.5) wins it, 105-99.
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