NBA Game Previews for March 17, 2017 (3 games).
Dallas Mavericks (29-38) at Philadelphia 76ers (24-43), 7 p.m. EST
Line: Mavs -4.5. Total 203.5.
Despite both teams’ lackluster records, they are two of the best ATS (Against The Spread) teams in the league. The Sixers are ranked 1st in the league, with an amazing 43-23-1 ATS record on the season, while the Mavericks rank 6th with their 37-30 ATS mark.
Dallas is fighting for a playoff spot, current 3½ games behind the Denver Nuggets for the 8th seed in the Western Conference. The Sixers will probably finish in the bottom 5 of the league standings for the 4th consecutive season.
Not a lot here for me to grab on to from a handicapping perspective. Philly just covered all four games on their west-coast trip after getting blown out by Milwaukee and Detroit at home. Dallas bounced back from a 22-point loss at Toronto on Monday to upset the Washington Wizards on the road on Wednesday. The Mavs hammered the Sixers at Dallas by 18 points in their only meeting this season six weeks ago, so I expect them to win again, but by a much closer margin.
Chicago Bulls (32-36) at Washington Wizards (41-26), 7 p.m. EST
Estimated line: Wizards -8. Estimated total 208.5.
The headlines for this game focus on the injured superstars for each team.
The Bulls’ Dwayne Wade suffered a right elbow fracture on vs. the Memphis Grizzlies in Chicago on Wednesday and is out for the season. He fell awkwardly after bumping into Vince Carter and landed hard on his elbow.
Meanwhile, on the same night, The Wizards’ star point guard John Wall suffered a minor sprain when he landed awkwardly on his left foot while shooting a layup. Wall, who did return to the game later and finished with 26 points and 11 assists. His status is listed as questionable for Friday’s game.
The Wizards have gone over the total in eight consecutive games, while the Bulls have gone under the total 7 of their last 8 games.
Washington is just 4-4 straight-up their last eight home games after winning 17 straight at the Verizon Center, their second longest home winning streak in franchise history.
The Bulls are just one game out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but by all indications, this team has seemingly quit despite being in the playoff hunt. Chicago is just 2-7 straight-up and ATS their last nine games and have been in-fighting for weeks as it seems clear that many of the players do not see eye-to-eye with Coach Fred Hoiberg.
Toronto Raptors (39-29) at Detroit Pistons (33-35), 7:30 p.m. EST
Line: Pistons -4. Total 199.5.
The Pistons are hanging on to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference by the slimmest of margins. They are tied with the surging Miami Heat at 33-35, but Detroit holds the tie-breaker edge over the Heat at the moment. So the Pistons could use a win after losing to The Cavaliers at Cleveland by 32 points on Tuesday and then losing again the following night to the Utah Jazz by 14 points.
Fortunately for Detroit, they have a good situational spot for Friday’s game at home vs. Toronto.
Kyle Lowry is still out for the Raptors after having surgery on his right wrist three weeks ago, and the effects of that injury are starting to show. Sure, the Toronto players rose up and won the first three games without him, but they are just 3-5 since then.
The Raptors have really struggled in the back-end of back-to-back games without Lowry, going 0-3 straight-up and ATS in the last 2 weeks. And Toronto is playing their second game in as many nights tonight after losing at home to Oklahoma City, 123-102.
Also in Detroit’s favor is the fact that they have gone 10-4 straight-up and ATS in what I call “check-mark games”. A check-mark game is a game where a team with at least one day’s rest is playing an opponent on the back-end of back-to-back games. And the Pistons have this situational spot in their favor Friday night.
As far as the total goes, the Raptors have gone under all three games since Lowry has been injured in the back-end of back-to-back games. Toronto has also gone under 7 of their last 8 back-enders.
