Media by Associated Press – Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma (33) dribbles during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
The NBA schedule is starting to pick up when it comes to jockeying for playoff position. While the end of the season is still a few months away, any team on the bubble doesn’t want to have any negative results now that could leave them in the play-in tournament. Building confidence in January will help lead to more positive results down the road.
Here’s a look at some games worth betting on Wednesday night.
Washington Wizards (-3) at Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets have hit hard times after being in the Western Conference Final just a few seasons ago. The Rockets are 1-9 straight up and against the spread over the past ten games. Houston’s offense has had a hard time keeping up with their opponents.
The Rockets have the worst field goal percentage in the league, making 44.8 percent of their attempts. Houston is second-worst in scoring offense, only putting up 109.9 points per game. Washington, which is 21-26 overall and 21-23-3 against the spread, has started to build up some momentum. The Wizards have won three straight games and have covered the spread in all three games.
Washington won two of those past three games as an underdog. The Wizards will cover their four straight games against lowly Houston.
Atlanta Hawks at Oklahoma City Thunder (+1)
The Thunder are one of the NBA’s surprise teams. While Oklahoma City is a tiebreaker away from the play-in tournament, not many people anticipated them being anywhere near the top 10. The Thunder are 23-24 and 7-3 straight up in their past ten games.
Oklahoma City is 30-16-1 against the spread this season. At home, the Thunder are 14-9 straight up. Oklahoma City’s offense has helped keep the Thunder from plummeting down the standings. Oklahoma City is eighth in the league in scoring by scoring 116.6 points per game.
The Thunder have done so despite being middling team at 3-point shooting. Atlanta is 24-24 overall this season and 20-28 against the spread. The Hawks have also struggled shooting from the outside and playing defense. Oklahoma City will protect the homecourt and take down the Hawks.
Memphis Grizzlies (+125) at Golden State Warriors
Heading out west has produced a number of disappointments for the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies lost to the Lakers and Phoenix Suns by a combined three points before being clobbered by the Sacramento Kings Monday night.
The Grizzlies, who are 31-16 overall and 22-24-1 against the spread, won’t want to turn in another performance against Golden State, which eliminated the Grizzlies from the playoffs last season.
Memphis is a strong defensive team to complement its explosive offense. The Grizzlies are first in the league in defensive field goal percentage by limiting their opponents to 44.6 percent shooting from the floor. Golden State is only 4-6 over its past ten games. The Warriors are hanging onto 10th place in the West and need to start winning games.
The Grizzlies will ratchet up the intensity to grab a win over the Warriors.
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