Happy Tuesday, basketball fans! Nick Marro here, providing you with my best bets for today’s (12/27) NBA slate. I plan to provide these ‘Nick’s Picks’ articles about twice a week for the entirety of the 2022-2023 season. I don’t like playing heavy juice, so all of my picks will be priced at line of (-150) or better. Feel free to reach out to me on Twitter with any questions.
We went a neutral 1-1-1 last time out, so we fell to 15-20-1 on the young season. As we head into the new year, I’m confident our luck will improve as the season progresses and we get more data. We have a solid slate of NBA action tonight, so I’m eager to see if we can build some momentum heading into the new year.
MLB Season Record: (57-51)
NBA Season Record: (15-20-1)
Overall 2022 Bets Record: (72-71-2)
Philadelphia 76ers @ Washington Wizards @ 7:00 EST
Nick’s Pick: Philadelphia 76ers, ATS -4 (-110)
The Washington Wizards are just 13-8-3 Against the Spread (ATS) this season. The Philadelphia 76ers are 19-2-1. The 76ers rank 5th in the NBA in Adj. Defensive Rating and the Wizards rank just 22nd. There’s a clear discrepancy between the talent of these two teams, regardless of who is playing at Home and who is playing on the Road.
I like the 76ers to cover the spread as favorites on the Road in this spot, -4 (-110).
Los Angeles Lakers @ Orlando Magic @ 7:00 EST
Nick’s Pick: Game Total OVER, 235.5 (-110)
The Lakers have seen their game totals hit the Over in 60.6% of their games played so far this season. The Magic have seen their Game totals hit the Over in 53.1% of games plays.
The Lakers are still without their best defender in Anthony Davis, and they rank 2nd in the NBA in PACE. The Lakers rank 22nd in the NBA in Adj Defensive Rating and the Orlando Magic rank 21st. I fully expect this game to favor the offenses. I like the Over on the game total here, 235.5 (-110).
Houston Rockets @ Boston Celtics @ 7:30 EST
Nick’s Pick: Boston Celtics, ATS -14.5 (-110)
The Houston Rockets are 1-3 ATS on back-to-backs so far this season. The Boston Celtics are an NBA best 13-4-1 ATS at Home. The Celtics rank 1st in the NBA in Adj. Net Rating. They also rank 1st in Adj. Offensive Rating, 2nd in True Shooting Percentage, and 8th in Adj. Defensive Rating.
The Houston Rockets rank 27th in the NBA in Adj. Net Rating. They also have the 2nd worst Turnover Ratio in the NBA. This is a seemingly wide spread at 14.5 points, but I like the Celtics to cover as favorites at Home.
-Nick Marro
Twitter: @NickMarroDFS