NBA Tuesday

WAS +5.5 vs OKC

It's the return of KD to the city that he helped build! That's right the nations capital, that wouldn't be here if not for Mr. former MVP. Though all the talk tonight is going to be about his chances of returning home after the end of the season, what they should be talkin about is the Wizards backcourt. Sure, they need to cut down on some turnovers, but these guys have been playing really well all season. The backcourt of Wall/Beal combine for 60 as the Wizards out play the Thunder in DC.

UTAH +6 vs CLE

For whatever reason Gordon Hayward plays really well whenever he plays against LeBron. Inevitably it always leads to the "has Hayward arrived??" convo on ESPN; followed by average output the rest of the season for Gordon. But at least it's fun to talk about for a few days. Plus Cleveland is on a mean heater right now...they have to be due for a confusing loss soon.

NYK +8 vs TOR

First off I owe Kristaps Porzingis's family and friends an apology. I thought he was going to be terrible. I really never expected him to do much of anything at all in the league and figured he would be back in Europe come February. Today he is averaging 12 and 9!! And looks like he legitimately belongs in an NBA rotation. So in honor of the Zinger...I'm taking the Knicks tonight.

MIN +2 vs CHA

Weird line alert!! Wolves are clearly the better team which is a line no one would have said at the beginning of the season. Wiggins is playing at a very high level, coming off of back to back 30 point games and the rest of the team is playing up to their potential. They have beaten legitimate good teams, don't be surprised if this one isn't even close.

NBA Win Streak

OKC (EVEN) @ CHI 

B Nutz fillin in for B Catz today. As stated, the Catz (with a little consultation with yours truly) has gone 6-0 the last two days. Helluva run! We'll start this off with an easy one. OKC was getting points earlier, but I still like it. Westbrook and Durant are too much to handle, especially after a loss. After last night there were some questions about OKC not fully comprehending their new offensive system. I call BS. The problem is that they have a bunch of terrible talent around their two mega stars, if one of them is off, the team is screwed. I'm expecting a trip dub out of Westbrook tonight and a 40 burger from Durant. Even though we're not getting points, let er' buck!!!

CHA (+4) @ DAL

Despite putting together the whitest roster in basketball, the Hornets have amassed enough talent to give most teams trouble on a nightly basis. Kemba Walker and Al Jefferson are a good enough 1-2 punch on offense, while having a guy like Nic Batum on defense allows for a weaker interior D. Dallas is grasping for any sign of life from their beat down team. Wes Matthews is on a minute restriction, Chandler Parsons is on a minute restriction and Dirk...well Dirk is just restricted by age. Take the points. 

UTA @ DEN (+4) 

Good God is Emmanuel Mudiay bad at at shooting! The future all star (that's right) has not found his shot, but he has impacted the game in other ways through the beginning of this season. His passing and court vision have been apparent and head coach Mike Malone has his young point guard pushing the tempo every night. Throw in Gallo and the human trade asset Kenneth Faried and you've got yourelf a fun squad to bet on! 

NBA Playoff Winners

OKC (+4) at LAC over 213.5  (WINNER!) (WINNER!)

I will be real honest with you folks out there, this is not a pick that I would "bet the house on". This series is a tough one to call as these two teams are pretty evenly matched. It is hard to say if the post Durant MVP speech will wear off tonight and the Clippers from game 1 show up, or if we see near triple doubles from both Westbrook and Durant again. I am going to side the Thunder for this game and hope that it does not bite me in the ass. Really I am just backing Hustle Westbrook here and hoping that he brings a huge game and not one of those classic, "fuck everyone else I got this shit even though I have one of the best players in the league on my team" games. Clips and Thunder engage in quite a fun scoring romp, which ultimately I think that the Thunder win, possibly even a double OT, instant classic thriller.

IND at WAS (-4) (UNDER 184) (L) (WINNER!)
Now this right here is a tough pick! People love the Wiz in this series and have written of the Pacers, for good reason. Are we supposed to believe that the Pacers are "back" now that they won a game on the road against a solid opponent? Is the Andrew Bynum stink gone, or still lingering in the nostrils of every man in that locker room? For Catz and I, this is an easy pick. The Pacers need to win 2 games in a row against a team that is over .500 to be respected again. Expect a horrible let down game from the Pacers in which they score 81 points. 

BONUS AFL PICK!!!

PITT at SPOKANE (+3.5) under 97.5

I am not really sure why the line setters out there think that this Pitt team can travel up into the frozen tundra hell hole that is Spokane and win this game, but apparently they do. I will happily take the Shock and watch them teach Pitt a thing or two about playing in the Arena League. I do think however, that despite the offensive fire power of the Shock that Pitt is able to keep this game under 97.5 points. Shock win, Pitts D and effort keep it under 97.5.

Thursday Streakers

Streak for the Cash

On Wednesday we went 2-2 as we continue to be mediocre at streaking. As the great European philosopher French Montana once said, "ain't worried about nothin." So we're back with more picks for dat ass.

First pick: Men's Hockey - Group A: Who will win this matchup? (WINNER!)
Choice 1: Slovakia

Choice 2: United States

USA! USA! USA! That's all we got! Seriously though, take the US, they are going to win.

Second pick: Luge (Team Relay): What will be the event result? (L)

Choice 1: Canada Gold, Silver or Bronze medal

Choice 2: Any other result

Do not bet against Canada in a nonviolent sport which is held on ice, snow or maple syrup. It will not end well. Take Canada and you'll be on a W2.

Third pick: PGA Northern Trust Open (Pacific Palisades, CA): Which player will card the lower front 9 score? (Holes 1-9) (W)

Choice 1: Keegan Bradley or tie

Choice 2: Jason Duffner

OR TIE! That is the key here, when these guys tie with horrible scores, you will thank us. Bradley ftw.

Fourth pick: Brooklyn Nets @ Chicago Bulls: Who will win this matchup? (WINNER!)

Choice 1: Brooklyn Nets

Choice 2: Chicago Bulls

The Bulls have found some sort of identity since losing Derek Rose and trading Luol Deng. They still play great defense and they still have the best coach in the league. Take them in this low scoring game, Boozer is back!

Fourth pick: NCB: What will be the GAME RESULT? 

Choice 1: San Diego wins or single digit loss

Choice 2: @ Saint Mary's win by double digits


Watch out for this barn burner! 2 WCC teams goin at it! Take San Diego, they might even win the way games are going this week! (L)

NBA 2k14 Simulation ROUND 2

  The last time we did a NBA 2K simulation, the game predicted a NY Knick win over the OKC Thunder, and a monster Raymond Felton game. Well, 2K, you were wrong about the spread and the o/u, but dammit did you nail that Felton prediction. So once again, we are going to simulate an NBA game and see what would happen if you bet according to the results! Tonight the Grizz and the Magic, two teams that you probably never watch! With this prediction, you won't have to.

Memphis Grizzlies @ Orlando Magic

 The Magic controlled the first half, taking a 53-43 lead into the break. Surprisingly, Orlando outrebounded the grit and grind Grizzlies 20-12. The Grizz were unable to grab one offensive board! What really separated the Magic in this half was their hot shooting, particularly from deep; they connected on 8-14 three pointers. Jameer Nelson led the way for Orlando, putting up 11 points and 5 assists. Nikola Vucevic went toe to toe with Marc Gasol, adding 6 points and 5 rebounds.

  For the Grizzlies, Nick Calathes continued his stellar play, opening the half with 11 points and 6 assists. Zach Randolph added 10 points and Marc Gasol finished with 8 points and 4 rebounds.

HALFTIME Orlando 53 - Memphis 43

The Magic came out on fire in the third quarter and extended their lead to 16 behind Tobias Harris' hot hand. The Grizz battled back as Zach Randolph scored 13 in the quarter and hit a buzzer beater to bring the game within 7. Gasol and Randolph finished the third quarter with 43 of their team's 69 points, but only 9 rebounds. Jameer Nelson had a rough quarter shooting, but continued to pass the ball well, penetrating and getting the ball out to open three point shooters.

In the fourth, the Grizz came barreling back and tied the game up with 3 minutes to go. The two teams traded buckets until the Magic finally forced a stop. Victor Oladipo answered with a 3 from the top of the key and Glen Davis hit his first shot of the game to put the Magic on top. From there it was all Orlando as they cruised to a 103-94 victory! 

Jameer Nelson was the player of the game finishing with 22 points, 12 assists and 3 rebounds. Vucevic controlled the paint for Orlando, finishing with 18 points on 8 for 8 shooting and 11 rebounds. Tobias Harris chipped in 22 and Oladipo had 13 off the bench. 

Z-Bo led the Grizz with 25, and Gasol finished with 23. The big men couldn't control the boards and finished with only 11 rebounds combined The real story of the game was the Memphis bench. The Grizz reserves could only muster 7 points and were dominated by the Orlando bench mob which put up 24. 

FINAL Orlando 103 -Memphis 94

Thoughts: This game sure does like chubby point guards as we are now 2/2 on PG MVPs. The three ball also seems to be heavily valued in this game as Orlando jacked up 23 and made 12 compared to Memphis 5-6. The simulation has the game going well over 179.5 and the Magic easily covering the 2 point spread. Will the 2k simulator let us down again, or have we unlocked the key to gambling?! Find out tonight!

2K14 Recap

Last night, we posted the results of our simulated NBA 2k14 game between the New York Knicks and OKC Thunder. The end product was a Raymond Felton MVP game and a win for the Knicks! We recommended taking the under (200.5) as well and now, we have the results!

2K14 mostly got the game wrong and resulted in millions of dollars lost. The Thunder easily disposed of the Knicks in a high scoring affair! We prefaced the post by saying we thought Kevin Durant would have a big game and recommending to lay the points as the Knicks can't even compete in the desolate shit hole that is the Eastern Conference.

BUT!!! Raymond Felton did indeed bring the noise with a 16 point, 7 assist, 7 rebound game! How NBA2k14 predicted this, I do not know. Over the next few weeks we are going to continue testing the basketball knowledge of 2K and hopefully never worrying about Raymond Felton going off again.

FINAL RESULT: LOSS

Bob's Sunday Picks

CHI (-3) at LAL

     Need to borrow twenty bucks? Go fuck yourself. Need some Sunday bball picks to stack your reserves and have them looking like Donald Duck's vault? I got you. The hometown of the Showtime series "Shameless" (Sundays 9 o'clock) gets the bonanza started. CHI-tizzy's athletic defense, led by DPOY candidate, Joakim Noah is dominant. Couple that with the recent struggles of the Lakers to score and keep people on the court (Meeks, Swaggy P, Pau Gasol, and Kobe). Making this +3 for the home team an easy cover, look for the bulls to win by at least ten, if not fifteen or twenty. As the saying goes, like rape allegations, defense travels. (WINNER!)

NO (+4.5) at BKN

        Welcome to the Anthony Davis coming out party, and no he's not announcing he's the next Jason Collins. Fresh off his All-Star promotion, look for the brow to continue his dominant start (20ppg, 10 reb, and 3.3blocks!!) against the Nets who have been playing better in the past month but, will struggle in Brooklyn today against the Pelicans. The only thing that could ruin this cover is if Austin "Why am I still on the team" Rivers plays more than 20 minutes and sabotages the game. (L)

IND at ORL (+8)

   The Magic, fresh off their buzzer beater win at home against OKC,  look to complete a homestand against two of the toughest teams in the league. Look for Tobias Harris and A-Aron Afflalo to keep things close with Indy. The Pacers tend to mail it in against lower caliber teams and this is a prime case after their exhausting win over Portland a few days ago. Indy will most likely win this game, but Orlando should be able to cover the +8 at home. (WINNER!)

PHI (+16) at LAC

No analysis here, just think that line is way too high for the return of CP3. Don't get me wrong CPeezy (as hes known in some circles) is one of the best players in the NBA and his return will help LAC in the long run, but tonight could have a little bit of an adjustment period to it, as they find their groove. Once again expect LAC to win, but covering (-16) to an underrated 76ers team isn't happening.

Good luck out there, and remember, SHAMELESS on Showtime Sundays at 9ET. (L)