RADIO
Nine games Wednesday with five teams playing on the second night of a back-to-back. The Miami Heat are one of those teams and, as of only a few minutes ago, sent three more players, P.J. Tucker, Gabe Vincent, and Zylan Cheatham, into COVID protocol, and as of even more recently, Jimmy Butler has also been ruled out. The Heat were already force-feeding Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro, so Wednesday they have no choice but to adopt the same gameplan.
Having Jimmy Butler available kept the floor of this team relatively high, but with such depleted numbers, the Heat’s current big-two should continue to post massive stat-lines with Caleb Martin potentially being the third. The Lakers, Knicks, Kings, and Thunder also played yesterday, but none of those teams can even compare to the current Heat rotation of what was already down to just eight players.
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NYK @ DET
Julius Randle (NYK) MORE 21.5 Points - Frank Jackson (DET) MORE 18.5 Points
A COVID outbreak in Detroit gives Frank Jackson and Saddiq Bey the green-light to do everything they possibly can just to get through this game. 19 points is a stretch for him normally, but with basically no available players for the Pistons, not only will Jackson draw the start, but he’s going to have to put up shots whether they are open are not. He produces as a point guard should, and sometimes that means taking the backseat. Since there is no backseat tonight, pedal to the floor on the available Pistons.
Julius Randle played well against the Pistons last time they met, but that’s also the case for most players that line up against this frontcourt. Randle either has good shooting nights or he doesn’t, but rarely does he shy away from what he’s built his career on. He will get plenty of opportunities in the post, but it’s up to him to actually make those fadeaways.
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LAC @ BOS
Jaylen Brown (BOS) MORE 26.5 Points - Marcus Morris Sr. (LAC) MORE 15.5 Points
Even when Jayson Tatum is available, the Boston Celtics downfall this season has been impossible to ignore. Luckily, Tatum not playing means Jaylen Brown is going to carry this offense and every other Celtics is going to sit back and pass him the ball when he wants it. Brown is averaging nearly 29 points over the last three games and his usage rate over the previous two weeks is at a season-high. If there’s any night to go big on Jaylen Brown, it’s when he’s playing Paul George-less Clipper squad.
George being out benefits both players in this wager. Marcus Morris Sr. is a skilled big that knows how to demand the attention of a defense, and in his first game back, he put up 24 points on 13 shots. His ability to score from all three levels makes him difficult to guard, and when he puts focus on scoring and plays aggressive, the limited numbers work in his favor.
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LAL @ MEM
LeBron James (LAL) MORE 28.5 Points - Ja Morant (MEM) MORE 25.5 Points
With the Lakers barely staying afloat, having Russell Westbrook and LeBron James to help weather the storm makes things much more bearable. Not only is James averaging over 30 points a game over the last two weeks, but he’s one more quality teammate away from averaging a triple-double throughout that same span. James is the playing like the best player in basketball right now and both his and Westbrooks’ stats should be satisfying most bettors.
Ja Morant is Memphis’ offense despite what he specifically produces, so even when he has bad games, his shot attempts still compare with whatever Grizzly teammate might be hitting that night. Late in games, Memphis cannot help but resort to giving Morant the ball and watching him work to draw double-team after double-team, still creating quality attempts out of virtually nothing. This is going to be the game to watch with the amount of star-power and Memphis’ ability to play up to their competition, usually led Morant.
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DAL @ SAC
Kristaps Porzingis (DAL) MORE 24.5 Points - De'Aaron Fox (SAC) MORE 20.5 Points
Without Luka Doncic, the Mavericks aren’t really desperate for offense, because they know exactly who to go. The one player capable of getting off a shot against, literally, any defender. He’s leading the Mavericks in shot attempts and even when Doncic returns, Kristaps Porzingis has been more than deserving of his 33% Usage Rate and his potential increases every night he plays well since there’s no defense that can account for his length and skill.
Sadly, De’Aaron Fox is the polar opposite and has been playing terribly, but what makes Fox such a dynamic player is his ability to produce even in unlikely situations. Dallas’ looks composed and their defense has shown versatile toughness, but in terms of athleticism, all Fox needs to do is hit a few shots and the Mavericks won’t have a choice but to play further into Fox’s hand and close out. Unfortunately, in his first two games back, his shot isn't looking fairly efficient and against this surprisingly defensive backcourt, his upside looks that much dimmer. Fox is natural toss-up, boom-or-bust player at this point and the Kings aren't good enough to keep games close enough to warrant Fox's late game offense.
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