NBA Almost 2016 Picks

DEN @ POR -6

BJones back in the building! Catz and I have been so off lately and even though I could blame it all on him because he's technically writing all the picks, my input hasn't helped. Today is a new day! We're mixing things up by mostly taking points like we always do, and adding a couple favs for balance. Now I'm a big Portland fan and this offseason was somewhat of a disaster for Rip City. Nonetheless, the Blazers are still competitive night in and night out because of their back court. Lillard and McCollum may be too similar to build upon going forward, but for this season they provide PDX fans a fun scoring duo that makes games worth watching. Dame might be out tonight but that shouldn't be a problem seeing as the Nuggets may have the most talented roster that's underperforming in the NBA right now. 

BK @ ORL -7.5

I know we've said its time to stay away from Orlando, but it's just too difficult! The Magic are the hottest team in the East right now and Coach Bad Ass won't let them lose to a team as bad as the Nets! In fact, the hot streak basically started when the Magic shmurdered TD Nets earlier this month. I see a solid 10 point win as Orland pushes for the 2 seed. 

Catz

WAS +6.5 vs. TOR

Two middle of the pack eastern conference teams and the Wizards are getting 6.5 points!! I'll take that any day of the week! I guess the logic here is the Wizards are short handed right now missing three of their key players, but John Wall tends to show up when they play Toronto. Wizards injuries are leading to an extra three or four points on a line that shouldn't be any higher than TOR -3...take those extra points!!

CHA +3 vs. LAC

The Clippers have handled the absence of Blake Griffin surprisingly well, a lot of it coming from the bench making unexpected contributions. Tonight is the night where they really feel the loss of the all-star in the middle, who had a habit of destroying the Hornets. Charlotte wins this game easy in a battle of benches that ultimately goes to the Hornets!

PHI +9 vs. SAC

Finally the balliest pick of the day!! Sixers have been playing better of late, beating the Suns in Phoenix, followed by a near upset of the Jazz in Utah. Ish Smith has come in and taken control of the point, a position they desperately needed some veteran experience at. As an added bonus DeMarcus Cousins might not get to play this game after being ejected against the Warriors when he went berserk on the officials. Boogie needs to go to the Russell Westbrook school of I'm not yelling at ref's anymore ASAP. Sixers don't get the outright win, but it will be close.

NBA Pod & Picks

The Spread is up for this week! Rob and Brandon break down the early NBA storylines. How good are the Warriors? What's wrong with Houston? Way too early playoff predictions, hot takes and more this week on The Spread!




MIL +3 vs WAS

Word on the street is Bradley Beal will probably miss tonight's game as he is still nursing an injured shoulder. Either way grabbing the points here with Waukee is a good call. Bucks are coming off a hard fought win against the Cavaliers and should be able to translate those positive vibes into a win against the Wizards in chocolate city.

DEN +6 vs NOP
I made the mistake of betting the over the other night when the Nuggets played the Suns, and then watched Jameer Nelson jack up terrible three after terrible three en route to a thirty point blowout loss. You know what helps a team get their confidence back? Playing the always injured lineup that the Pelicans like to trot out. Sure Anthony Davis is playing really well like he was supposed to do, but he is not getting any help, at all...zero. Take the points here.


TOR +10 vs GSW
Upset pick of the day!!! If you listen to the podcast you already know this is my upset special of the day (if you don't, click the link below and treat yourself to some aural pleasure). The Warriors should have lost to the Nets a few nights ago and tonight definitely has the feel of a letdown game for the Dubs. If the Raptors can get just enough defensively out of Kyle Lowry and Demarre Carroll they should have enough to do the unthinkable and beat the Warriors on their home floor no less!!

NBA threesome

NYK +6 vs CHA

I had a feeling the Knicks would show up last night and they did, covering against the Raptors. They haven't been great against the spread in two straight games all season and it definitely won't be easy against the resurgent Charlotte squad formerly known as the B Catz as well. In the end Jeremy Lamb and his bench of college all stars don't scare me enough not to take the points.

IND +3.5 vs BOS

Have you had the chance to watch Paul George play in the last week? If not, do yourself a favor and turn on the next Pacers game. PG has shed that early rust and is looking like the guy who tore up the league two seasons ago. Averaging 30 in his last three games, let's hope he's back to 100%. Meanwhile the Celtics are solid, but who are they really scaring? 

DET +1 vs SAC

Getting a point for a team that I love to bet on against the most dysfunctional organization in sports, sign me up!! The Kings just had a players only meeting to discuss their very poor start, but those never end up with a complete turnaround. Look for the Pistons to out coach, out hustle, and out play the Kings en route to a twenty point victory.

NBA FRIDAY!

LAL +3.5 vs BKN

The only team not worth watching this season  is the Nets. They might have the bleakest outlook of any team long term...and the short term isn't much brighter. I fully expect Lopez and Johnson to be traded at some point in the season, because this team isn't close to contention even in the East. The Lakers on the other hand are stacked with a few promising young guns and one cranky old superstar that just needs to hang it up already. They are at leas fun to watch, and that is basically the only reason I'm grabbing the points here.

DET +4.5 vs PHX

A game that I will be sitting second row at in less than 6 hours!! So excited to watch the monster that is Andre Drummond unleashed on the suspect Suns front line. The Suns could very easily win this game, but I expect it to be close enough that 4.5 should be an easy cover.

DEN +17.5 vs GSW

Just too many damn points!!! Sure it's the Warriors against a team that desperately wants to be the Warriors but doesn't have the talent..but still. Too many damn points.

Super Tuesday!

NBA Picks

SAC @ NO (-3)

Everybody loves Sac Town right now, and for good reason. DeMarcus Cousins is very, VERY good. He's franchise player good. Unfortunately, Anthony Davis is All-Time Great good. The Brow has put together an incredible season thus far, including a 28 point, 9 rebound, 3 blocks, 2 steals performance. You know what other number he put up? 0. As in 0 assists. The Brow might be a black hole, or he's just so good that he doesn't need to pass. Either way, he's really, really good and with Eric Gordon out for the forseeable future (again), Davis should have a few extra shots to work with. And Rudy Gay can't keep this up! Stop it Rudy!

CHI (+4) at DEN

There's no pleasing Catz. Yesterday he asks me to pick a fav for him and of course I picked the Mavs. He then proceeds to write the pick up, throw more shade than a palm tree in Miami and tell me how much he hates the pick! Then forces me to re-write it and claim it as my own! Needless to say, I was more embarrassed than a Chili's waiter after getting low-grade mashed potatoes thrown in my face. So today I decided to take the points, as Catz has been doing (well I might add) lately, and what do I get? "Whoooooaaa broooo that's a gnarly ass pick. Rose, Hinrich and Gibson are out, noooooo way. Now excuse me while I go catch some gnar waves." So I just don't know where to turn. Either way, Chicago with all back up players is 10x better than the Thuggets. This team sucks and that is a reflection of the worst coach in the league, Bryan Shaw. The man decided that his team, which has a geographical advantage, should slow it down and play defense! What the fuck?!! How does that make sense?! You have one of the fastest PG's in the league, a bunch of shooters, tons of wing players and a few athletic bigs. Why would you slow it down? Sorry, I hate this team. If Gasol and Rose play, they win by 20.

Catz: Giving the Bulls four points on the road against Denver? This can't be a real line right? This just seems to easy, which probably means Denver runs and guns its way to a thirty five point victory, but there is no way I am not taking four points with Thibs against whoever the hell coaches the Nuggets.

DET (+3) vs. MIL

Initially I did not want to make this pick at all. Then I started looking at some numbers and realized that the public loves Milwaukee in this game!! Not at a 51-49 split either, multiple sites have the Bucks favored by the public at 97-3 type spread!!! That is way too high for two teams that aren't very good. For some reason people think that Milwaukee is the Harlem Globetrotters all of a sudden, and while they are improved, they certainly aren't good enough to not take the points and Detroit here. Just don't jack any triples J Smoove, and for god sakes someone get Jeanette Mccurdy aka ICarly on the phone; Andre Drummond has become a shell of himself since he stopped pounding the former Disney star like a mallard duck! 

NBA Saturday!

It happens to the best of us. One night, you're cruising a long with everything figured out. You're thinking you have a couple big balls you can rely on when logic just doesn't make sense, and BAM! You go 3 for 13 picking NBA games in one night. Yeah, ol Catz struggled to get anything going last night and has demoted himself to the AFL. No worries, after taking a few days off from MLB picks, I am going to fill in until the metaphorical Catz can get back on his metaphorical horse, metaphorically speaking. Go easy on ol BJ though, I haven't been in the NBA game for a while, so things are bound to get a little sloppy. As the old African Proverb says: "A sloppy BJ, is better than a broken and disheartened Bobcat."

Sacramento at Los Angeles Clippers (-11) (WINNER!)
Way too many points right? Yeah that's what I was thinking, especially since the Kings have played the Clippers so well this season! In 3 matchups, the margin has been 6 or less! So, as gamblers, do we roll with the "They always play the Clippers close" narrative or the "LA needs to win to stay in contention for the 2 seed" narrative? It's not a choice many are brave enough to make. I'm going LAC because Isaiah Thomas is injured, as is Rudy Gay (which really might be a plus for SacTown). CP3, Blake and Demarcus Cousins' frustration should be enough to get a massive win for the Clips.

Philadelphia at Charlotte (-12) (L)
I'm doing this one for Mr. Catz himself, because I know he would be looking at scores tonight saying, "Damn, I would've totally picked the Bobcats." Let's not forget my affinity for the Cats and the Raps this year, which have both been very fun to pick. Charlotte had a 5 game winning streak snapped by Boston, a game which I am going to look past because the Cats probably weren't expecting the Celtics to show up. I mean, why Celtics? Why are you trying to beat playoff teams?! Do you want to be stuck with Doug McDermott or Gary Harris in the draft? Not bad players, but not franchise changers. Anyways, the Cats are playing some good ball and Al Jefferson should hit for 30-10 tonight. That's a guarantee.

Milwaukee at Washington (-10.5) (WINNER!)
Wow, I swear this is the last huge spread I am throwing out. I can tell right now, these are all going to be stupid close at the end. Oh well, the Bucks are so bad, my God. I mean, they had some talent at the beginning of the year and somehow everyone sucked! Then you had Nat Wolters running things and, I don't know. If you combined the Bucks and the 76ers, they might be a competitive squad with 4 recognizable players. At this point, the Wiz are completely healthy and trying to fend off the Bobcats. The Bucks? Ersan Ilyasova, OUT; OJ Mayo, OUT; Larry Sanders, OUT; Carlos Delfino, OUT; Hell, NATE WOLTERS, OUT!!! The Bucks should lose by 25!!!

Miami at Atlanta (+5) (WINNER!)
I love the Hawks here. As a franchise, they are building towards a solid basketball culture. The Heat struggle with Paul Millsap for some reason and they are coming off a physical game against the Indiana Implosion  Pacers. I like the Hawks at home.

Boston (+9) at Cleveland (WINNER!)
The Cavaliers should never be GIVING points. They are a disgusting basketball team and a cancer to the city of Cleveland and the league as a whole! Rondo will have a triple double tonight.

New Orleans at Houston (-14.5) (L)
Another steep line, so I apologize, but the Pelicañeros are done. They shut down Anthony Davis, Jrue Holiday is out for the year, Ryan Anderson is out for the year, Eric Gordon is having arthroscopic surgery AGAIN, and they can't make the playoffs. Even a D12less Rockets team should win by 45.

Phoenix (+4.5) at Dallas (WINNER!)
I know this is the wrong pick, you don't have to tell me twice. But before you slam my man parts in the door, think about this: How many times have you counted the Suns out this year, or said "no way" when they were playing a game they were supposed to lose?....Don't bet against the Suns! Especially when they are battling a team for a damn playoff spot!

Utah (+9.5) at Denver (WINNER!)
This is my bold, frost brewed (THIS SPONSORSHIP SPOT COULD BE YOURS) pick of the day. No one is picking Utah, including sharps. Well, fuck everybody. You're not telling me that a team led by Timmy Mozgov is going to dominate another Western Conference opponent. The Jazz should be much better. With Trey Burke, Alec Burcs, Derek Favors-Birk, Gordon Burkeley Hayward and Enis "BURRR so Icy"Kanter, the Jazz are suiting up a better team tonight. No Lawson, Chandler, McGee, Gallo or smart coach? Go Utah tonight.

Wet and Wild Wednesday Picks!

Bob's Free NBA Picks

We got a nice little set of NBA games coming at us today. Also I don't want to start any controversy, but we may be looking for a new hockey writer here at Dirty Picks as we fear our current one may be lost at sea. If you are interested hit up the editor at @dirtiestpicks on twitter and maybe you will be lucky enough to write for us! Now on to the picks! We are feeling pretty good today about the picks and I've had a few too many cups of coffee this morning so three team teaser!!! (5 points, +150) (L)

GS at SA over 201.5 teased to over 196.5 (WINNER!)
This should be a very good basketball game and a possible preview of a playoff matchup. The Spurs are on an absolute tear right now and haven't lost in what seems like six months. Look for Golden State to come in ultra focused and put up a bunch of buckets in the first half. Then a huge second half run by the Spurs as this one ends up in 114-112 shootout possibly even featuring an extra period or two.

NO (+3.5) teased to (+8.5) at DEN (L)
I hate the Nuggets. If you read this blog with any consistency you know that I can't stand this Nuggets team and think their chemistry is one of the worst I've seen in recent years. Plus one of my favorite NBA players of all time has been out for most of the season, Javale McGee, and he was the only silver lining for watching the Nugs. Watch Anthony Davis continue his run towards NBA superstardom as he dominates a weak Denver front line and propels the Pelicans to a victory in the mile high city. 

CHI (-2) teased to (+3) at ATL (WINNER!)
You know I love this Bulls team. Watching them play defense is an absolute treat on a night to night basis and coach Thibs is a ridiculous strategist that any player would be lucky to play for. In addition Joakim Noah is the perfect fit for Thibs system and he seriously couldn't have carved a more perfect player out of stone. Look for the Bulls to shut the Hawks down and dominate this game en route to the biggest blowout of the NBA season.

There we are a little three team teaser, and remember all three picks have to hit in order to win the big bucks!