NBA Betting Info. 1/30

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Preview: Golden State At Philadelphia
When: 5:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 30, 2016
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Golden State Warriors are once again ahead of the pace set by the 1996 Chicago Bulls in their 72-win season and are showing no signs of slowing down. The Warriors begin a three-game road trip and a stretch of 10 of 12 away from the Bay Area when they visit the lowly Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.
Golden State slipped behind the Michael Jordan-led Bulls with a loss at Detroit on Jan. 16 but responded with five straight wins over the likes of Cleveland, Chicago, Indiana, San Antonio and Dallas by an average of 25.4 points. Shooting guard Klay Thompson and forward Draymond Green both received well-deserved All-Star nods on Thursday, joining MVP Stephen Curry to make a trio of Warriors headed to Toronto next month. The 76ers are at the complete opposite end of the spectrum with no All-Stars and the worst record in the NBA. Philadelphia seems to be putting together a better stretch of late and has alternated wins and losses over the last six contests, including a 113-103 triumph over Phoenix in its last home game.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, CSN Bay Area (Golden State), CSN Philadelphia
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (42-4): Thompson broke out for a season-high 45 points on Wednesday against Dallas to make up for Curry and Green getting off to uncharacteristically slow starts. “When he hits his first couple, he’s going to get it going,” Golden State head coach Steve Kerr told reporters of Thompson. “What I was thrilled about (Wednesday) was his movement without the ball. He opened up the game, just really cutting, coming hard off of screens and curling.” Thompson is making his second straight All-Star appearance while Green will be heading to the NBA’s annual showcase for the first time.
ABOUT THE 76ERS (7-40): Philadelphia will have some representation at All-Star weekend, with rookie center Jahlil Okafor scheduled to be one of the headliners for the U.S. team during the Rising Stars Challenge. The Duke product is averaging 17.4 points and 7.3 rebounds and hopes to return on Friday after sitting out the last two games while battling an illness. The 76ers put themselves in position to earn back-to-back wins without Okafor and took a five-point lead into the fourth quarter at Detroit on Wednesday before falling well off the pace and suffering a 110-97 loss.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. 76ers G Hollis Thompson is 12-of-20 from 3-point range in the last five games.
2. The Warriors are the first team since the 1994-95 Orlando Magic to record at least 30 assists in five straight games.
3. Golden State has taken four straight in the series.
PREDICTION: Warriors 120, 76ers 101

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Preview: Detroit At Toronto
When: 6:30 PM ET, Saturday, January 30, 2016
Where: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario
The Toronto Raptors attempt to extend their franchise-best winning streak to 11 games when they host the Detroit Pistons on Saturday. Toronto has won by an average of 12.5 points during the streak and is wrapping up a seven-game homestand.
All-Star guards DeMar DeRozan (24-point average) and Kyle Lowry (22.3) have been superb during the winning streak as the Raptors find themselves 2 1/2 games behind the Cleveland Cavaliers for best record in the Eastern Conference. “We can’t dismiss the fact these young men have strung together 10 (wins), the first time in 20 years,” Toronto coach Dwane Casey said after Thursday’s 103-93 victory over the New York Knicks. “It’s not the end-all but it’s an accomplishment.” Detroit dropped a 114-106 decision to the Cavaliers on Friday for its sixth loss in the past 10 games. The game against the Raptors is the opener of a three-game road trip for the Pistons, who are 10-14 on the road.
TV: 6:30 p.m. ET, FSN Detroit, Sportsnet One (Toronto)
ABOUT THE PISTONS (25-22): Fourth-year center Andre Drummond is headed to his first All-Star Game and he is the first Detroit player to make the Eastern Conference squad since Allen Iverson in 2009. Drummond is happy to be a reserve but point guard Reggie Jackson was highly upset that his teammate wasn’t a starter. “To me, he’s been robbed,” Jackson told reporters. “Definitely and undoubtedly he should’ve been a starter. We shouldn’t even be sweating this day at all. If he’s not in, then everybody is a bunch of idiots. I think everybody in the NBA knows he should be a starter.”
ABOUT THE RAPTORS (31-15): Lowry is playing through a painful left wrist injury and it reminded DeRozan of the struggles of last season when he missed time with a groin injury and Lowry spent time being hampered by back, shin and hand injuries. “That’s one thing we really sat down this past summer and told ourselves we were going to work on,” DeRozan told reporters. “We’re going to have to be great for this team to take this next step. He did it with the weight loss, I did it with my approach to taking care of my body and really trying to elevate my game in different ways. And it’s definitely showing.” DeRozan has scored 30 or more points four times during the winning streak while Lowry has topped 20 points on seven occasions.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Raptors have won five of the past seven meetings.
2. Toronto has won 21 consecutive games when holding the opposition under 100 points.
3. Detroit SG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 19 points against Cleveland and is averaging 17.5 during the past eight contests.
PREDICTION: Raptors 103, Pistons 95

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Preview: Denver At Indiana
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 30, 2016
Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
The Indiana Pacers have been searching for the right formula to get them back on the winning track and may have finally found it with rookie Myles Turner in the starting lineup. Turner and the Pacers will try to put together back-to-back wins when they host the Denver Nuggets on Saturday.
Indiana was one of the most exciting teams in the NBA throughout November but has been stopping and starting ever since, and was in danger of falling back to .500 before running off the Atlanta Hawks 111-92 on Thursday. The Pacers had dropped six of the previous seven games before inserting Turner into the starting lineup on Thursday and overwhelming the Hawks with a frontcourt of Turner, Ian Mahinmi and Paul George. The Nuggets bounced back from two straight losses by squeezing past Washington 117-113 on Thursday and can match up with its own athletic frontline of Nikola Jokic, Kenneth Faried and Danilo Gallinari. Those three combined for 54 points on 17-of-29 shooting in a 129-126 home win over Indiana on Jan. 17.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Altitude (Denver), FSN Indiana
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (18-29): Denver has dropped four of six since that win over Indiana but evened its three-game road trip at 1-1 behind 26 points from Gallinari on Thursday. The 27-year-old Italian is averaging 23.5 points in 14 games this month, and he nailed a key 3-pointer late against Washington after the Wizards had come back to tie the game in the fourth quarter. Gallinari and reserve small forward Will Barton, who put up 19.7 points in the last three games, form one of the more effective wing scoring combos in the league.
ABOUT THE PACERS (24-22): Turner has been steadily earning more playing time this month and scored in double figures in six straight games before getting the chance to start. The rookie from Texas responded with 20 points on 9-of-17 shooting in the win over Atlanta. “Coach felt confident in the way I’ve been playing lately,” Turner told reporters. “He put me out there in a good position to go out there and play. It’s all about opportunity, and (Thursday) was a big one for me.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Pacers G George Hill is 7-of-12 from the field in the last three games.
2. Nuggets C Joffrey Lauvergne (toe) missed the last two games and is day-to-day.
3. Denver has taken three straight and eight of the last nine in the series, including a 108-87 victory in its last trip to Indiana on Nov. 14, 2014.
PREDICTION: Pacers 106, Nuggets 103

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Preview: Brooklyn At New Orleans
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 30, 2016
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
The New Orleans Pelicans were able to survive one game without stars Anthony Davis and Tyreke Evans, but they hope to get one – or both – back in time for Saturday’s meeting with visiting Brooklyn. Davis (concussion) and Evans (knee) sat out a 114-105 victory over Sacramento on Thursday but have been upgraded to questionable for the Nets game.
Ryan Anderson had a big performance (36 points, nine rebounds) while starting for Davis and Bryce Dejean-Jones – signed Jan. 21 to a 10-day contract – scored 14 points in his first career start in place of Evans. The win was the Pelicans’ first in six games without Davis this season and gave them a 4-1 mark on their season-high seven-game homestand. The Nets opened a two-game trek with a 91-79 loss in Dallas on Friday, their 12th setback in 14 games. They were 4-of-20 from 3-point distance and shot a season-low 35.9 percent overall while falling to 4-17 on the road.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, YES (Brooklyn), FSN New Orleans
ABOUT THE NETS (12-35): Injuries have left Brooklyn’s already-lackluster roster an exceptionally thin one, and the bench continued to disappoint in a major way in Friday’s loss. No reserves scored until Andrea Bargnani hit a jumper early in the fourth, which was the only basket made in 14 attempts by the bench. All five starters hit double figures, led by Brook Lopez’s 20th double-double (28 points, 12 rebounds).
ABOUT THE PELICANS (17-28): New Orleans has had at least 111 points in each game on the homestand and stands 3 1/2 games out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference, a notable development for a squad that opened 1-11. “We’re playing a lot better, playing more as a team and I think we’re more familiar with the offense,” guard Jrue Holiday – who scored 25 points against the Kings – told reporters. ”Being home, we’ve been playing hard and playing really good defense and just playing for each other. If we keep doing that, I think we can be where we want to be at the end of the day.” Anderson is 14-of-28 from 3-point distance over his last three games and hits 43.4 percent of his long-range attempts at home.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Pelicans PG Norris Cole has scored in double figures in a season-high four consecutive contests.
2. Nets SF Joe Johnson has made 20 consecutive free throws.
3. Davis averaged 26 points in a six-game hot stretch before suffering the concussion in a collision with Evans in Monday’s loss to Houston.
PREDICTION: Pelicans 109, Nets 98

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Preview: Washington At Houston
When: 8:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 30, 2016
Where: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
The Washington Wizards were supposed to take another step forward this season but have instead fallen off the pace and are currently outside of the top eight in the Eastern Conference. The Wizards held a players-only meeting after their latest loss and hope to turn things around when they begin a rough three-game stretch by visiting the Houston Rockets on Saturday.
Washington followed up a four-game winning streak by dropping five of six and now has to face the Rockets, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Golden State Warriors in the next three games. “It’s kind of similar to the past years,” Wizards guard Bradley Beal told reporters. “We’ve been through the same thing. It always takes a team meeting or two to figure it out, but we’re at the point now where we know what we need to do.” The Rockets, like Washington, are not exactly thriving on the defensive end and have allowed an average of 117.4 points in the last seven games. Houston endured one of the roughest two-game stretches on the NBA schedule by suffering losses at San Antonio and Oklahoma City in the last two contests.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, CSN Mid-Atlantic (Washington), ROOT (Houston)
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (20-24): The team highlighted its lack of defense in the meeting, with Jared Dudley pointing out Washington’s trouble defending the 3-point line and issues with turnovers. “It’s nothing offensively,” All-Star guard John Wall bluntly told reporters. “We just can’t guard a soul.” The Wizards allowed an average of 113.2 points allowed in their last five losses and let the Denver Nuggets shoot 50.6 percent from the field and 9-of-18 from 3-point range in a 117-113 loss on Thursday.
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (25-24): James Harden shredded the Washington defense for 42 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in a 109-103 win on Dec. 9, and led the way with 33 points in Friday’s 116-108 loss at Oklahoma City. Despite Harden’s output, Houston shot 37.9 percent from the field in the loss after managing 38.4 percent in the 130-99 setback at San Antonio on Wednesday. The Rockets had center Dwight Howard (ankle) back for each of those two losses after a three-game absence but got only 21 minutes out of the big man on Friday before he was ejected for drawing a second technical foul.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Beal (broken nose, concussion) played while wearing a mask on Thursday and scored 17 points in 26 minutes off the bench.
2. Rockets SG Corey Brewer is 2-of-17 from 3-point range in the last five games.
3. Houston has taken four of the last five in the series.
PREDICTION: Rockets 120, Wizards 106

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Preview: Sacramento At Memphis
When: 8:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 30, 2016
Where: FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in which the Sacramento Kings typically fall short and the Kings strive to halt a 10-game road losing streak in the series when they visit the Grizzlies on Saturday. Sacramento broke a 14-game losing streak in Oklahoma City earlier this season and now look to win in Memphis for the first time since Feb. 20, 2009.
The Grizzlies have won six of their past seven games after registering a 103-83 home victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday. Memphis has scored between 101 and 108 points in each of the past seven contests in a rare extended splurge of stellar offensive performances. “It’s about not giving up a hundred,” Gasol told reporters. “It’s not about what we get. Obviously, if we score a lot of points, that gives us confidence and gets some of the guys going.” Sacramento dropped a 114-105 decision to the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday – its third straight loss after rattling off a season-best five straight victories.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, CSN California (Sacramento), FSN Southeast (Memphis)
ABOUT THE KINGS (20-26): DeMarcus Cousins was named to the Western Conference All-Star team for the second time in his career and he has experienced a torrid January with averages of 32.6 points and 12.8 rebounds. “You go back and check my comments two, three months ago and when I got here – no doubt he’s the best big man in the game,” Sacramento point guard Rajon Rondo told reporters. “Obviously, the numbers speak for themselves.” Rondo’s assists numbers are verbalizing loudly as well, and his 15 assists against New Orleans marked his 14th consecutive game with 10 or more, tying the franchise record set by Hall of Famer Nate Archibald in 1972.
ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES (27-20): Center Marc Gasol was passed over for the Western Conference All-Star squad after making the team in two of the previous four seasons. His season stats of 16.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 45.6 field-goal percentage are all slightly down from last season – 17.4, 7.8 and 49.4, respectively – and he didn’t agree when teammate Tony Allen said he was “snubbed” by not being selected. “I don’t know what snubbed means,” Gasol told reporters. “If you look at the list, (everybody) deserves it that’s there. If we would’ve been 30-15, then we’d probably have somebody up there. At the end of the day, that’s how it works.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Cousins was sidelined with an Achilles’ injury when the Grizzlies recorded a 103-89 win in Sacramento on Nov. 3.
2. Kings SF Rudy Gay (eye) has missed the past two games and is questionable for the Memphis contest.
3. Grizzlies PF Jeff Green is averaging 25.5 points on 20-of-33 shooting over the past two games.
PREDICTION: Grizzlies 102, Kings 98

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Preview: San Antonio At Cleveland
When: 8:30 PM ET, Saturday, January 30, 2016
Where: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
The San Antonio Spurs rebounded from a severe whipping to rout the Houston Rockets and look to win for the 15th time in 16 games when they visit the Cleveland Cavaliers in Saturday’s nationally televised showdown. San Antonio was routed 120-90 by the Golden State Warriors on Monday before rebounding to pound Houston 130-99 two nights later.
Eastern Conference-leading Cleveland also was demolished by Golden State recently — 132-98 on Jan. 18 — and stands 3-1 since Tyronn Lue replaced fired David Blatt as coach. One of Blatt’s final losses was a 99-95 decision in San Antonio on Jan. 14, and now the Cavaliers are looking to avoid a season series sweep. Cleveland received big games from power forward Kevin Love (29 points) and point guard Kyrie Irving (28) on Friday while registering a 114-106 victory over the Detroit Pistons. The Spurs will be without veteran center Tim Duncan (knee) for the third straight game and coach Gregg Popovich doesn’t have a timetable on his return.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, ABC
ABOUT THE SPURS (39-7): Power forward LaMarcus Aldridge broke out of a two-game funk in which he averaged six points on 5-of-18 shooting to record 25 points (on 9-of-13 shooting), 10 rebounds and five assists in the beat down of the Rockets. “I wanted to be better than I was last game,” Aldridge said afterward. “I wanted to have a better rhythm, try to put my stamp on the game. I was trying to be more in-tuned to the game, for sure.” Aldridge initially struggled to fit in with the Spurs after coming over from the Portland Trail Blazers as a free agent but has been much more comfortable during the last month and was named as a reserve to the Western Conference All-Star team Thursday.
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (33-12): Cleveland is playing with a faster pace under Lue and has averaged 114.3 points while winning the past three games. Love is averaging 25 points and made eight 3-pointers during the past two games, and Irving’s big outing against the Pistons was a welcome sight after he had just eight points in Wednesday’s victory over the Phoenix Suns. “Part of our success as a team is me pushing me the pace and being aggressive and getting other players shots,” Irving told reporters after the win over Detroit. “With the pace we’re trying to play at — that we want to continue to play at — it’s important for me to do that. I take it as a personal challenge.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Cavaliers have dropped five straight home games against the Spurs with their last home win in the series occurring March 8, 2010.
2. Cleveland SF LeBron James had 20 points against Detroit and the 31-year-old became the youngest player to reach 26,000 career points — his total is at 26,005.
3. San Antonio SG Danny Green matched his season best of six 3-pointers against Houston and is 11-of-18 from behind the arc in the past three games.
PREDICTION: Spurs 103, Cavaliers 100