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It’s only the first week of March, but the Boston Celtics have already set an NBA record for most wins by at least 50 points in a season. On Sunday, they routed the Golden State Warriors, 140-88, to notch the franchise’s third-largest margin of victory ever. That gave the Celtics 11 straight wins. The average margin of victory in this streak is 22.1 – the highest differential in any winning streak of 10 or more games in one season in the history of the league. Over the last six games, the Celtics have outscored the opposition by 29.8 points per game, including two wins by at least 50. This is the best six-game point differential ever, topping the +28.3 margin that the 1971-72 Lakers managed in a season that would feature a then-record 69 wins. As we head into this week, let’s look at a pair of NBA betting picks from the Association.
2024 NBA Week 19 Top Betting Games, March 4
L.A. Clippers at Milwaukee Bucks
When: 8:00 pm ET
TV / Streaming: NBA TV
The Clippers will face the Bucks on the second night of a back-to-back without Russell Westbrook, as the one-time MVP is on the shelf with a fractured hand. The Clippers have gotten contributions all year long from Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, and the duo helped the Clippers get through the West-leading Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday, riding a salty defense to an 89-88 road win. Leonard led the Clippers with 32 points. In the second game of back-to-backs, the Clippers have a 6-3 record so far this season and currently have a four-game winning streak in that scenario. Their scoring offense is ninth, and their ball security ranks ninth in fewest turnovers per game.
The Bucks had struggled out of the gate under new head coach Doc Rivers, but now they have a five-game winning streak going after a 113-97 win at Chicago on Saturday. Giannis Antetokounmpo was the top scorer with 46 points, and he also pulled down 16 boards. He is now the winningest Buck ever with 489 victories (including the postseason). Rivers now has an 8-7 record in Milwaukee; the Bucks’ scoring offense ranks second, but they are just 19th in scoring defense, an area in which the team still needs to improve. Bucks to win and cover.
Clippers vs Bucks Betting Lines to Win Today
Oklahoma City Thunder at L.A. Lakers
When: 10:30 pm ET
TV / Streaming: NBA TV
The Thunder visit the Lakers for their fourth and final matchup in the 2023-24 regular season. The Thunder won the first game, but the Lakers have picked up the last two wins. The Thunder bounced back from an ugly loss in San Antonio, which ended a six-game winning streak, with an eight-point win in Phoenix on Sunday night. Now they head to Los Angeles to finish up a back-to-back. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 35 points on a night when Oklahoma City built up a 24-point lead, squandered it, and then fought back for the win. Despite 31 rebounds from Phoenix center Jusuf Nurkic, the Thunder recovered to control the fourth quarter, and all five starters hit double figures.
The Lakers lost to the Denver Nuggets, 124-114, on Saturday night, ending a two-game winning streak. They had built up an 11-point lead in the first half, but that evaporated, and the Nuggets won the fourth quarter by 10. The Lakers ultimately had no answer for Nikola Jokic, who dropped 35 points on the Lakers and also pulled down 10 boards. LeBron James put up 26 points and nine assists and became the first 40,000-point scorer in NBA history, but the Nuggets ruined his special night as the Lakers cling tenuously to the tenth and final potential playoff spot in the Western Conference. Because this makes four games in six days for the Thunder (in addition to this game finishing a back-to-back for them), the Lakers should have enough to take this spread. Lakers to cover.
Thunder vs Lakers Betting Lines to Win Today
Conferences Winners at NBA Week 18
Eastern Conference
| Boston Celtics -110 |
| Milwaukee Bucks +285 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers +1025 |
| Miami Heat +1075 |
| New York Knicks +1125 |
| Philadelphia 76ers +1175 |
| Indiana Pacers +3400 |
| Orlando Magic +8000 |
| Atlanta Hawks +26000 |
| Chicago Bulls +44000 |
| Brooklyn Nets +55000 |
| Toronto Raptors +65000 |
| Detroit Pistons +70000 |
| Charlotte Hornets +70000 |
| Washington Wizards +75000 |
| Bet on the Eastern Conference |
Western Conference
| Denver Nuggets +212 |
| LA Clippers +250 |
| Oklahoma City Thunder +840 |
| Phoenix Suns +850 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves +890 |
| Dallas Mavericks +1525 |
| Los Angeles Lakers +1800 |
| Golden State Warriors +2000 |
| New Orleans Pelicans +3000 |
| Sacramento Kings +3200 |
| Houston Rockets +55000 |
| Utah Jazz +60000 |
| Memphis Grizzlies +65000 |
| San Antonio Spurs +75000 |
| Portland Trail Blazers +75000 |
| Bet on the Western Conference |
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2024 NBA Week 18 Best Games
2024 NBA Week 18 Top Betting Games, February 26
NBA Week 18: On Saturday night, the Boston Celtics won their eighth straight game, setting a season-high winning streak, when they stopped the New York Knicks, 116-102, at Madison Square Garden. The Celtics now have an eight-game lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers at the top of the Eastern Conference standings. Even so, the Celtics believe they can still play better. In a post-game interview Saturday, Boston center Al Horford said, “We’re really trying to play the right way…[t]his is the stretch of the season where we can really take it to another level, and that’s what we’re trying to do.” Heading into this week, don’t miss our top two online NBA betting picks from pro hoops.
Toronto Raptors at Indiana Pacers
When: 7:00 pm ET
TV / Streaming: NBA TV
Toronto (21-36) meets Indiana (32-25) for the third time in 2023-24. Both teams have beaten each other on the road this season; Toronto beat Atlanta down in Georgia on Friday, while the Pacers beat Detroit on Thursday and Dallas on Sunday. The Raptors have won three out of four, including a 24-point home rout of Brooklyn on Thursday, followed by that two-point win over the Hawks on Friday. They beat the Hawks without R.J. Barrett (knee), and he remains questionable. Since coming over from the Knicks in December, he has put up 19 points and 5.4 boards per game. Scottie Barnes scored 20 points on Friday and has made at least half of his shots in four of his last five games. In two games against the Pacers, he has scored a combined 49 points. The road has been a tricky place for the Raptors, though, as they have dropped three of five outside Canada.
The Pacers ended a seven-game winning streak for the Mavericks, rolling 133-111. The Pacers continue to feature the league’s best offense. Tyrese Haliburton had 12 points and seven assists in the first half alone, and Myles Turner was the leader at the break with 15 points and five rebounds. He made it to 30 with five minutes left in the third quarter as the Pacers had little difficulty against what should be a revamped Dallas defense; Turner was 10 of 15 on the day and finished with 33 points, his best game since February 23, when he hit 40. Ben Sheppard came off the bench to go five of five from downtown. Can the Pacers keep this scoring up? Pacers to win and cover.
Miami Heat at Sacramento Kings
When: 10:00 pm ET
TV / Streaming: NBA TV
The Miami Heat (31-25) look to complete the season sweep of the Sacramento Kings (32-23) when they face off in northern California on Monday night. The Heat would make it three wins in a row over the Kings if they can pull off the victory. They have won five of their last six, with the only setback coming at home to Boston on February 11. They have won three straight on the road, including Milwaukee by 26, Philadelphia by five and New Orleans by 11, with the last game coming last Friday when the Heat limited the Pelicans to 37.5% shooting from the floor. The HEat shot 46.3% and went 13 of 29 from downtown. Bam Adebayo was the leading scorer with 24, adding seven boards, and Jimmy Butler contributed 23 points, nine boards and six assists – and only played 27 minutes before earning an ejection. Miami has moved to the eighth seed in the East, five games ahead of the 9-seed Chicago Bulls. Their defense is eighth in the NBA, permitting just 113.4 points per 100 possessions, a number that has dropped to 106.2 per 100 in their last ten games. Butler will miss this game with a suspension, though, and Tyler Herro (knee) is questionable.
The Sacramento Kings walloped the L.A. Clippers, 123-109, and now welcome the Heat on the second night of a back-to-back. The Kings have won three straight after also beating Denver by four and the Spurs by five. De’Aaron Fox dropped 33 on the Clippers, and Domantas Sabonis had his 20th triple-double of the season, a league high. Harrison Barnes chipped in 22, and Sabonis had 17 points, 12 boards and 12 assists. The Clippers did get within five early in the fourth quarter but the Kings responded and got the lead back up to double digits. Can that offense keep going against the Heat one night later? Kings to cover.
2024 NBA Week 17 Best Games
Must-Bet Games in NBA Week 17: Thunder at Magic and Kings at Knicks
If you’re still wondering why the Milwaukee Bucks brought in Doc Rivers in January to take over as head coach, the improvements the team has shown on defense show that, at least for now, the move paid off. Rivers has become notorious for having his teams bow out early in the playoffs, but he did lead Boston to a title in 2006, and the way the Bucks were (and were not) playing defense, a long playoff run was looking doubtful. On Monday, the Bucks routed the defending champion Denver Nuggets, 112-95, the second straight game in which the Bucks held a team under 100 points. They hadn’t done that in back-to-back regular-season games since November 2021. Going into Tuesday night’s action, don’t miss these NBA Week 17 betting picks.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Orlando Magic
NBA Lines: Oklahoma City (-2.5) at Orlando (O/U 223.5)
When: 7:30 pm ET
TV / Streaming: TNT
The Thunder (36-17) followed up a 35-point loss in Dallas on Saturday with a 127-113 thumping of the Sacramento Kings on Sunday. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 38 points, and Jalen Williams had a big day of his own with 32. They combined for 38 in the first half as the Thunder went into the locker room at the break up by ten. Lu Dort added 17 points and nine rebounds, and Chet Holmgren chipped in 14 points. The Thunder swiped 18 turnovers. The Thunder rank in the NBA’s top five in defensive and offensive ratings, thanks in large part to Williams’ resurgence.
The Magic (29-24) blew a fourth-quarter lead but managed to figure things out in overtime and beat the Chicago Bulls, 114-108. Franz Wagner dropped 36 on the Bulls, and Cole Anthony came off the bench to score 14 points and pull down 11 boards. Paolo Banchero added 19 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, and he is now averaging 20.2 points, 6.8 assists and 5.6 boards per game in five February games. Jonathan Isaac led all rebounders with a dozen, to go along with seven points and three blocks. Wagner has at least 30 points in three of his last four games. But will all this be enough against one of the West’s elite teams? Thunder to win and cover.
Sacramento Kings at Phoenix Suns
NBA Lines: Sacramento (+4.5) at Phoenix (O/U 244.5)
When: 10:00 pm ET
TV / Streaming: TNT
The Kings (30-22) are just a half-game behind Phoenix in the West, but they’ve beaten the Suns in two of their three meetings. Sacramento is just 2-3 over their last five. Their offense is still ninth in the league, scoring 118.6 points per game, thanks in large part to their strong three-point shooting. They are third in the league in three-point attempts and shots made. Their defense still needs to improve as they allow 118.1 points per game, just 22nd in the league. They allow opponents to make 39.8% of their three-point shots, the worst defensive showing in the NBA.
The Suns (31-22) bounced back from a 113-112 loss to Golden State on Saturday, which ended a three-game winning streak, by beating Detroit at home, 120-106, on Monday, making tonight’s game the second in a back-to-back. Their offense ranks 12th overall with 117.4 points per game. They rank fifth in three-point shot percentage and third in overall field goal shooting percentage. Their defense permits 114.4 points per game. It won’t surprise me to see the Suns slow things down a bit and bring the pace where they like it. They have the defense to slow down the Kings enough to get this win. Suns to win and cover.
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