NBA Tuesday Bangers!

MEM (-3) @ LAL
The Grizz might be completely decimated by injury right now, but they still have enough firepower to beat a D League Lakers team coached by the second worst coach in the league. The Grizz have beaten the Lake Show 9 times in a row and though today might be close as Kobe is probably sitting out (FG% automatically up 3%), the Grizz have done a great job pushing towards the playoffs with new acquisition Lance Stephenson.

CHA @ BK (+6)
This is one that is really outside of my comfort zone. Charlotte is one of the few teams I trust to get the cover consistently this year and tonight they should EASILY, EEEAASSSILLLY cover against a Nets franchise that has fucked up so badly that they can't even tank! Brook Lopez is still expected to play tonight and Charlotte just used all their energy to beat the Spurs in an incredible comeback. So let's roll with the Hornet's let down game theory and take Brooklyn.

MIA (-9) @ NO
Classic overreaction to Anthony Davis being hurt, but I don't care. The Pels WITH Anthony Davis were terrible this year. The Heat are healthy right now somehow, but the Pels seem to be missing half their roster again. Take the Heat, the Pels have thrown in the towel.

NBA Top 3 Locks Wednesday

PHI +7.5 vs ORL

Have you seen the Sixers play lately?? Ever since they traded for Ish Smith they actually have a competent NBA team on a nightly basis! It's insane what a few veteran players will do for a squad isn't it?? Love this line for two reasons; the Magic don't blow anyone out and the Sixers are 4-8 since trading for Ish!! Taking these points all day, and wouldn't be surprised if Philly pulls the upset.

OKC -9.5 vs CHA

The Hornets were able to turn things around on MLK after a two week long nose dive, but that only happened in double OT and Kemba had to drop 52!! Tonight they get to see what a real basketball team looks like in the Thunder. Rus and KD continue to be two of 5 best players in the league and the rest of their shitty role players haven't looked nearly as shitty of late. Thunder win this one in a rout.

CHI +7 vs GSW

Hopefully the Bulls are able to show that an eastern conference contender can actually execute down the stretch, sorry Bron. Dubs had everything and then some go right against Cleveland, look for them to take a step back and lose a close one tonight in Chi town.

MLK DAY TOP 5 LOCKS!!

CHA vs. UTA +2.5

The Hornets are in an absolute tailspin after losing center Al Jefferson, first to a suspension and then an injury. Losers of 9 out of their last 10, makes this an easy point grab for the always feisty Jazz.

MEM vs. NOP +4

We all know how much Anthony Davis loves playing against undersized power forwards, or at least I assume that he does.  Sure Memphis has Marc Gasol to stand behind Z-Bo and at least contest the Brow's shots, but defensively and rebounding AD is going to be an absolute nightmare against this front line. Ryan Anderson has also been playing better of late since he started getting mentioned in trade rumors, maybe he is trying to improve his stock so that the Pelicans get a better offer for me, what a guy.

ORL +7.5 vs ATL

The Magic getting 7.5 points??? I must be dreaming!! I would take this line if the Magic were playing someone like the Cavs, but against the Hawks this is free money!!

GSW +3 vs. CLE

This is one of those lines that hurts me to throw out, even though I know it is the smart play. I want the Cavs to win this game, as a matter of fact I would even say there's a very good chance that they win this game. But Golden State has lost 2 out of 3 and beat the Cavs previously in this series, so the smart play here is to take the points. Cleveland has had trouble during crunch time against great teams, hopefully those struggles continue tonight in the city known as the mistake by the lake.

DAL +1.5 vs. BOS

This game features two of the best coached teams in basketball, and will be a straight up execution-fest. Watch this one if you like set plays being run over and over, proper screens being set, and more back door cutz than Future's latest mixtape. In the end I like the Mavs only because they are coming off a blowout in San Antonio, and should find playing against Boston much easier than dealing with the Spurs.

NBA Weekend Money Grab

MIN +7 vs IND

Love absolutely everything about this Wolves team. Missing Rubio is definitely affecting them because they are forced to play Andre Miller heavy minutes when he should have retired four years ago. Wiggins has made the leap though, and getting this many points against a team that struggles to score? Sign me up.

NYK +6.5 vs CLE

If you ever find me on a street corner begging for money, it's because I have a hard time separating my love of New York sports teams and actual good bets. Lost big on the Jets last night and am just crazy (or stupid) enough to double up on the Knicks against the defending eastern conference champs. Spare some change?

NOP +9.5 vs TOR

Imagine if the Pelicans actually fielded a complete line up on a night to night basis? Might they have a shot at the 8th seed. Yep. Would Anthony Davis look like the MVP candidate he is rather than the guy having to do too much for a undermanned team? Yep. Oh well. Stupid bet here, but I'm grabbing points on the brow.

NBA Gun Show!

Last night: 3-0

TOR +8.5 vs OKC

What an awesome night!! If you know me, you know I love getting points in NBA games. Last night I went 3-0 betting on a bunch of garbage teams that all ended up not only covering but outright winning. Tonight I get the opportunity to actually get points on three teams that are good!! Yes, I included the Knicks, come off it. But back to the Raptors for a second. This team is solid. Toronto has been the same team now for 4 or 5 seasons. They play good quality team ball, everyone knows their role and they win basketball games. This year they overpaid for Demarreeeeeeee Carroll aka the Junkyard Dawg, but he's definitely helped their overall team defense. Sure Hustle Westbrook and KD are stupid ridiculous basketball players, but they can have an off night once in a while right??

Nutz Notez: I like the matchups in this game. Lowry and Demarre should slow the insanity of Westbrook and Durant down just enough to let the supporting talent win this one. 

NYK +10.5 vs CLE

This might be the last time I bet on the Knicks this season. I took them getting 9 the other night against the Spurs just to watch the Spurs harass the hell out of Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks into a double digit loss. Tonight against the Cavs I expect a different outcome though. Melo loves to go up against LeBron and has always tried to go 110% against the King even back in their high school days. Throw in that JR Smiff is out for the Cavs and I think the Knicks have just enough to at least get the cover in this one.

Nutz Notez: I guess I'll never understand how the Cavs continue to win with such a terrible, injured supporting cast. The Knicks aren't much better but you can always bet on Melo to bring it against Bron. Oh and Porzingis is good enough to play 20 mpg so that's a start. 

LAC +7.5 vs GS
By far my favorite line of the season so far. It opened at 9 last night and I will gladly still take it at 7.5 today. I love this Clippers team. They are crazy deep, Lance Stephenson and Josh Smith are two former starters playing extremely well of the bench and you know what you're getting from the big three of Paul, Jordan and Griffin. Sure the Warriors are great and will most likely represent the West come Finals time, but they aren't going 82-0. Look for the Clippers to shock the world and win this game outright.

Nutz Notez: How long can the Warriors keep this up? Dirty Picks' former NHL writer B Sugz McNasty almost had a heart attack at the thought of getting against Stephy Curry! At some point these guys won't cover and tonight they have a worth adversary. The Clips can match depth and star power so this one should be close. 

NBA Finals Preview

Catz:

Cleveland in 5

   All this week, I'm sure all you have heard is about how Steph Curry is the greatest shooter that has ever graced the earth, and the people in Nor Cal probably already have their championship t-shirts printed up right? It's a done deal to most! But not for Bobby Catz. People are really underestimating what LeBron James is doing/has done over the last five years. He's made 5 straight finals. Detractors simply point out that he is doing it in the East, but in reality what the fuck does that mean?? I don't care if he made five straight finals in the Chinese basketball league, its still impressive no matter which way you look at it. You know why? Because its basically impossible to beat this dude in a best of five series. Sure you might get a game, you may even get a series lead, but unless your name is Greg Popovich and you have a fantastic San Antonio team, you aren't beating him in the finals either. And don't even try to come at me with the Mavericks winning in 2012. They were extremely well coached as well and James had not quite yet learned what it took to be considered a champion. The problem for the Warriors? This Cleveland team knows exactly what they need to do in order to win and they do it very, very well. 

   I honestly do not think this series is going to be that close. Curry and Thompson are fantastic shooters possibly two of the best of all time, but they don't know what it takes to win on the biggest stage quite yet. Every great player has to go through a loss in the finals before they breakthrough. This series reminds me a lot of the one a few years ago between OKC and Miami, also featuring the King. Everyone liked the hot shooting Thunder in that one and what happened? Harden no-showed, Durant and Westbrook struggled and after losing game one, Miami rallied to win four straight. That is exactly what I think happens in this series. The first game will be the hot shooting Warriors getting a win after they go 20-22 from three or something crazy and then the next four games will be a showcase for the cerebral assassin LeBron as he averages a triple double and gets his third championship ring to add to his collection.

Mr. Nutz

Golden State in 6

Over the past week we have seen an influx of Cleveland supporters pile their opinions on the "who will win" dumpster fire for the Finals. Well I'm here to tell you this is the real world, not some fantasy land where all our dreams come true and the underdog always has a chance. The Warriors were not just the best team in basketball this year, they were absolutely dominant. That dominance comes from an offense that can not be slowed or stopped, no matter what different matchups you try to exploit. Much like the Spurs teams of the last 3 years, the Warriors have an exceptionally strong bench to back up one of the best starting 5's in the NBA. Hell, I don't even know who technically "starts" as the minute distribution for this team lends itself to about 7 different guys being starters. But when you can rotate guys like Andre Iguodola, Harrison Barnes, Draymond Green, David Lee and Shaun Livingston in and out of your lineup, you're not skipping a  beat! 

All this bench fire power only hurts the Warriors' opponent, the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers. People are trying to hype up LeBron James as some sort of basketball alien that was plopped down during the playoffs to win the whole thing by himself. Well, he's not. He's been to 5 straight finals right? Well he hasn't won them all, that's for damn sure. Oh and this time, he's relying on JR Smith, Iman Shumpert and Timofey Mozgov to get him to the promised land? No fucking thank you. I will take a broken D Wade and a garb salad surprise Heat roster over the reject Knicks any day. LeBron is exhausted. Not only from carrying this team through the EC playoffs, but from playing non stop Finals games. He's going up against the best D in the league, while chasing around someone from the best ball movement offense in the league. Good luck LeBron, this is just another loss in your finals column.