Thursday’s NBA slate was a profitable one for us as we hit on two out of our three plays for the day. Both the Wizards and the Hawks made light work of their opponents to grant us easy money, but the Rockets couldn’t quite get over the line against the Warriors to make it 3/3, eventually losing by two points. We now shift our focus to the eight game slate on Saturday and look to keep the ball rolling. Good luck to everyone following!
NBA Betting Tips Saturday 16th of March
Los Angeles Lakers @ Detroit Pistons (10am AEDT)
First up on Saturday we’re looking at the match-up that sees the Los Angeles Lakers take the road to take on the Detroit Pistons. The Lakers won their first meeting this season at the Staples Centre 113-100 in January.
The Lakers will be playing their second game of a back-to-back after playing in Toronto on Friday. They lost that game comfortably, with the Raptors cruising to a wire-to-wire victory. That loss was the Lakers sixth in their last seven games in what has been a season ending run for them.
The Pistons have suffered two heavy losses to Eastern Conference rivals in their last two, both of which came on the road. They now get to return home for the start of a quick two game home stand against the Lakers and the Raptors. The Pistons currently hold the seventh seed in the East, but will be desperate to move up into sixth to avoid the Raptors in the first round of the playoffs.
We’re prepared to forgive the Pistons for their two road blowouts and back them in at home in this one. They’ve been solid on their home deck all season with a 21-13 record and get a great opportunity to bounce back against a Lakers unit who have nothing to play for and who will likely rest LeBron James.
Detroit Pistons -7.5
$1.92
Sacramento Kings @ Philadelphia 76ers (10am AEDT)
Second up on Saturday we’re interested in the Sacramento Kings at Philadelphia 76ers match-up. The Kings won the only other meeting between these teams this season, defeating the Sixers by seven points at the Golden 1 Centre in Sacramento around six weeks ago.
The Kings are on the second night of a back-to-back after playing out a tough loss in Boston on Friday. Close closes have become all too common for a Kings side that will now likely miss the playoffs in the West. They’ve lost eight of their last 11 games and all eight losses have been seven points or less.
The Sixers look to continue their successful homestand where they’re currently 2-0 after beating the Pacers and the Cavaliers fairly comfortably. Superstar centre Joel Embiid is also back in the frame after a few games off through injury, while Ben Simmons is showing some of the best form in his short career.
It’s an extremely tough ask for the Kings to play two Eastern Conference games on the road back-to-back, especially when they’re of the quality of the Celtics and Sixers. For this reason, as well has the terrific home record of the Sixers (27-9), we’re more than happy to take the home side at the line.
Philadelphia 76ers -8.5
$1.88
Charlotte Hornets @ Washington Wizards (10am AEDT)
Our third and final play on Saturday comes from the Charlotte Hornets at Washington Wizards duel. This will be the fourth and final meeting between these Eastern Conference rivals this season. All three games have been won by the home team, meaning the Hornets lead the series 2-1.
The Hornets are in a season ending slump at the moment, losing 11 of their last 14 games. They’re entering the third game of a four game road trip where they’ve lost by 12+ points against both the Rockets and Bucks thus far, and won’t find it much easier against a solid home team in the Wizards.
The Wizards enter this in decent form having won four of their last six. Their most recent win came at home against the Magic by 10 points (100-90), which was their fourth straight home win by 6+ points. As it stands, the Wizards are 3.5 games outside the eighth seed and are hanging onto their playoffs aspirations by a thread.
Once again, we’re backing in the favourite to get the job done at a spread we believe is rather generous. The Hornets are in a terrible patch at the moment and are finding it very tough away from home (9-23 road record this season), whilst the Wizards have won four on the spin at home and should make it five with a win on Saturday.
Washington Wizards -3
$1.92
