Daily Picks 12/09: Oh, Ho, Ho, It's Magic, You Know
In Sunday’s NBA games, Trae Young finished with 30 points, six rebounds and nine assists for the Atlanta Hawks in a 122-107 win over the Charlotte Hornets. In other action, Spence Dinwiddie led the Nets with 24 points, four rebounds and eight assists for Brooklyn in a 105-102 win over the Denver Nuggets.
Here’s a look at today’s NBA picks:
BET OF THE DAY:
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics
These teams squared off back on Nov. 5 in Cleveland, and it was the Celtics who came away with the win.
Gordon Hayward scored a career-high 39 points to go along with seven rebounds and eight assists, and Kemba Walker added 25 points, eight rebounds and three assists for the Celtics in the 119-113 victory.
Collin Sexton led the Cavaliers with 21 points and Tristan Thompson contributed 19 points, 13 boards and four assists in the loss.
Not only do the Celtics have an impressive 16-5 overall record, but they are 9-0 at home and they have a 13-6-2 record against the spread, according to Statschecker.
The Celtics have won the last five meetings against the Cavaliers. Look for them to do it again tonight while covering the 13.5-point spread.
2u – Celtics (-13.5) @ -110
Detroit Pistons @ New Orleans Pelicans
The Pistons will look to get back-to-back victories in this one. In their last game, Andre Drummond finished with 25 points, 22 rebounds, three steals and two blocks, and Blake Griffin contributed 25 points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals in a 108-101 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
New Orleans, on the other hand, is desperate for a win. The Pelicans have lost eight straight games.
In their last loss to the Dallas Mavericks, JJ Redick had 15 points, and Jrue Holiday and Brandon Ingram added 14 points each for the Pelicans in a 130-84 loss to the Mavs.
I believe this could be the game the Pelicans finally get a win. Take New Orleans minus the one point here.
1u – Pelicans (-1) @ -107
Orlando Magic @ Milwaukee Bucks
The Eastern Conference-leading Milwaukee Bucks will host the Orlando Magic in this Monday night matchup.
These two teams squared off back on Nov. 1 in Orlando. In that game, Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 29 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and two steals for the Bucks in a 123-91 win.
Eric Bledsoe added 18 points, six rebounds and six assists for Milwaukee.
The Magic got 19 points and four rebounds from Evan Fournier, and Nikola Vucevic contributed 14 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals for Orlando.
Orlando is just 3-7 on the road this year, and Milwaukee is an impressive 10-1 at home but I expect the Magic to play better since their blowout loss to the Bucks.
Take Orlando plus the 12 points in this game.