San Antonio Spurs vs. Brooklyn Nets Betting Preview
Where: Barclays Center, Brooklyn, NY
When: Monday, January 23, 2017, 7:30 PM ET
Line: San Antonio Spurs (-12) at Brooklyn Nets (+12); total: 217.0 – view all NBA lines
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Betting on the San Antonio Spurs (34-9)
Point Spread: -12
Even when they’re not at full strength, the San Antonio Spurs have proven yet again why they’re the one of the most-feared franchises in the NBA’s modern era. The Spurs escaped from Cleveland with a 118-115 overtime win over the Cavaliers on Saturday, extending their current win streak to three games.
With no Tony Parker (foot) and Pau Gasol (left hand) in the starting rotation, San Antonio still gave the Eastern Conference’s best team all it could handle and more. Kawhi Leonard was simply sensational as he scored a career-high 41 points on Saturday. He’s now averaged 34.7 points on 60.2-percent field-goal shooting over the last six games, showing just how capable he is in leading the Spurs’ offense when some of his team’s biggest stars aren’t around.
We all know the Spurs can play defense, as they’re currently the second-best team in the league at just 98.9 points allowed per contest this season. But what’s surprising about this 2016-17 corps is that it’s getting much more production on the offensive end. San Antonio has hit the 118-point mark in each of their last three victories and team has scored at least 100 points in 20-consecutive outings as well.
Parker and Gasol will both be out of action yet again this Monday in Brooklyn, but the Spurs have enough depth to make up for those two key cogs in their well-oiled machine. LaMarcus Aldridge (16 points and 12 rebounds) and backup big David Lee (14 points, 11 boards) both got double-doubles against the Cavs and will be huge factors down low in New York.
And regardless of how thin the Spurs’ lineup will be heading into the Barclays Center, there’s really no reason to shy away from going all in on them versus the Nets. They’ve beaten Brooklyn in eight of their last 10 meetings (SU/ATS), with the Nets’ last victory dating back to December of 2014 by a mere two-point margin.
Betting on the Brooklyn Nets (9-34)
Point Spread: +12
Just when we thought that the Brooklyn Nets turned a huge corner last Friday, they fall flat on their face the day after with a 115-105 defeat to the Charlotte Hornets. Saturday’s contest bore no semblance to Brooklyn’s 143-point explosion in the win over the pelicans at new Orleans on Friday, and we really should’ve expected less from the team to begin with.
The Nets have now lost 11 of their last 12 games, mainly because nobody else other than Brook Lopez has emerged as another solid option on both ends of the floor. Lopez scored a team-high 24 points against the Hornets and has at least 20 points in seven of his last eight outings, but even his output has been generally underwhelming. The former highly-touted center secured just five boards on Saturday and has not had a double-double game since November 15. In fact, he only has one double-digit rebounding performance this entire season.
It’s quite a surprise that the Nets have the 11th-best offense in the league this season (106.2 points per contest). Then again, a lot of things have to go their way to make that matter, and that’s hardly the case on a nightly basis. They’re merely 23rd in the NBA with a 44.2-percent field-goal percentage and 26th in 34.2-percent three-point shooting percentage, as they constantly relying on volume over efficiency. The team shot 42.7 percent from the floor and 17-of-41 from downtown against the Hornets, and we all know how that affair turned out.
Not only that, but Brooklyn is also the worst defensive team in the league, having allowed nearly 115 points per contest to the opposition. San Antonio’s offense is clicking right now, making a blowout in favor of the visiting team almost inevitable.
To make matters worse, the Nets have lost seven-straight home games as well (1-6 ATS). That being said, we should expect to hear more groans from the densest borough of the Big Apple after the night is through.
Writer’s Prediction
The Spurs (-12) crush the Nets, 121-102.
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