The calendar has flipped again, and thus, another night of gambling awaits. There are some early opening lines that have been released for a few of the NBA regular season matchups, and right away there are some games that are intriguing.
The Houston Rockets are looking to lock up the No. 3 seed heading into the Western Conference playoffs, but don’t have the easiest game as they hit the road to face off against the Sacramento Kings. Even though Sacramento has been eliminated from playoff contention, it has a talented young core and is still hoping to finish the season positively.
The early line on this matchup is intriguing, and it is one of a few opening line options that are worthy of consideration in NBA wagering.
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Odds Analysis
The Rockets have the superior record on the season and have a superstar in James Harden, but the Kings do get this one at home. The scoring total has been placed at minus-5 for the Rockets, who would love to cover and cruise out of town with a victory. It’s not going to be that easy, though. It’s been a long season and all of the travel will catch up to the Rockets in this one. The Kings are going to push this one down to the wire. Harden will hit enough big shots down the stretch to give the Rockets the win, but it will only be by a couple of points. The Kings are the choice to cover the spread, which is a touch high on the opening line. The scoring total for this game is listed at 227 points. Both sides can certainly fill it up, but legs are a little heavy this time of year. The “under” is the pick as the shooting from the field is not going to be as crisp as expected.
Another interesting game features the Golden State Warriors at home against the Denver Nuggets. Only one game separates these two teams in the standings, and Denver could pull back to even with the upset win. Even though the teams are close to each other record-wise, the talent gulf is pretty big. The Warriors are big favorites to win another NBA title, and they are going to want to enter the postseason with the No. 1 seed in the West. It’s no surprise that Golden State has been listed as an eight-point favorite to claim this matchup. Even though that number is pretty high, everyone knows the talent Golden State possesses. The Warriors are the pick to cover this spread by picking up a double-digit victory. The scoring total is listed at 221.5 points, and even though Denver plays pretty good defense, the total is much too low. The “over” is the easy pick as the Warriors are going to explode offensively in this showdown.
Free NBA ATS Picks
The opening line that deserves the most attention is the spread listed for the matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder. Los Angeles no longer has LeBron James as he has been shut down for the rest of the season, but it wasn’t a problem as the rest of the guys looked really good in New Orleans.
However, Oklahoma City badly needs this win as it is trying to avoid facing the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs. The Thunder is not going to mess around in this matchup. Oklahoma City is a comfortable 12.5-point favorite, but even so, it is the choice to cover this spread. Look for the Lakers to be undermanned in every area and get blown out badly in NBA wagering.
NBA ATS Pick: Oklahoma City Thunder to cover the spread against the Los Angeles Lakers
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