NBA Betting Odds – February 6: Warriors vs. Hawks, Clippers vs. Raptors More

Carrie Stroup here with your NBA betting odds for today with some great games on tap.  We have your Warriors vs. Hawks, Clippers vs. Raptors and Heat vs. Spurs betting previews below along with all of today’s NBA lines.

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (39-8) at ATLANTA HAWKS (41-9)

Sportsbook.ag Line: Golden State -2.5, Total: 215.5

Two of the league’s elite teams clash Friday when the Warriors face the Hawks in Atlanta.

The Warriors hosted the Mavericks on Wednesday and won 128-114 as eight-point home favorites. Golden State has now won-and-covered in its past three games. The Warriors have also held their opponents to 99.0 PPG over the course of their win streak, even despite the high scoring affair they were engaged in with the Mavs.

The Hawks won-and-covered in a 105-96 victory over the Wizards in Atlanta on Wednesday. Atlanta had a 19-game win streak snapped by the Pelicans on Monday and has been the hottest team in the league in recent months.

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The Warriors have dominated this head-to-head series recently, winning five straight contests SU and covering in four of those games. They’ve also won in their past three trips to Atlanta, covering in two of those contests.

Both of these teams have been covering machines this season, as the Warriors are 27-9 ATS off of one or more consecutive wins and the Hawks are 17-2 ATS after having won six or seven of their past eight games. C Festus Ezeli (Ankle) is out indefinitely for the Warriors. PG Shelvin Mack (Calf) is probable for Atlanta, but SG Thabo Sefolosha (Calf) is expected to miss at least six more weeks of action.

The Warriors have won three straight games and PG Stephen Curry (23.6 PPG, 8.1 APG, 4.7 RPG, 2.1 SPG) has been on fire recently. Curry played 37 minutes and poured in 51 points (16-for-26 FG, 10-for-16 3PT, 9-for-11 FT) in a win over the Mavericks on Wednesday. He’s now averaging 30.4 PPG, 7.0 APG, 4.8 RPG and 2.4 SPG over the past five games. He’ll be going up against PG Jeff Teague (17.0 PPG, 7.5 APG, 1.7 SPG) in this game, and he’ll need to be ready to play solid defense on Friday.

SG Klay Thompson (22.4 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.2 SPG) had 18 points and five assists against the Mavericks. He’s scored 20+ in just one of the past four games and the Warriors will need him to get back to his usual self against the Hawks. This game could end up being an extremely high-scoring contest and the Warriors will not be able to outscore the Hawks without Thompson playing his best offensive basketball. Defensively, he could be the one chosen to chase SG Kyle Korver (12.9 PPG, 4.2 RPG) around in this one. If that’s the case, Thompson can not give Korver an inch of space or he’ll certainly make him and the Warriors pay.

C Andrew Bogut (6.6 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 1.8 BPG) must come prepared to play excellent defense in this game. Bogut will be guarding C Al Horford (15.5 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 1.4 BPG) in this one, and the Hawks’ big man has been one of the best offensive players at his position this season. Bogut has to protect the rim and prevent the Hawks from getting second chances when they’re on offense.

SF Draymond Green (11.2 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.6 SPG, 1.4 BPG) has been one of the league’s best defenders this season. He will, however, need to break out of his recent shooting slump. He’s averaging just 7.2 PPG (29% FG, 22% 3PT) over the past five games and the Warriors need him to consistently get back into double digits in scoring moving forward.

The Hawks responded well to their 19-game losing streak being snapped Monday, beating the Wizards 105-96 in Atlanta on Wednesday. C Al Horford struggled in their lost Monday, finishing with just eight points and nine rebounds in 30 minutes. He came back with 21 points and 13 rebounds in a win over the Wizards and he’ll need to be on his game against the Warriors. The Hawks rely on Horford to score in the post, but he is also one of their best passers. If he has an off night, this offense does not operate as well as it is capable of.

PF Paul Millsap (17.1 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 1.8 SPG) has played well recently, averaging 18.0 PPG and 8.8 RPG over the past five games. Millsap can bang down low, which should really give the smaller Draymond Green issues. He is also able to step out and knock down outside shots (36% 3PT), which is going to help stretch out the Warriors’ defense.

PG Jeff Teague has a very difficult job in this game. Not only will he need to run the Hawks’ offense, but he’ll also need to slow down Steph Curry. Curry has been unconscious as a scorer lately, and the Hawks won’t have much of a chance to win if he isn’t held in line.

If this game turns into the high-scoring affair that many expect it to be,

SG Kyle Korver will need to be on his game. Korver is shooting the ball at a historically accurate rate this season (52% FG, 53% 3PT, 92% FT) and the Hawks will do whatever they can to get him some open looks in this one.

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LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS (33-17) at TORONTO RAPTORS (33-17)

Sportsbook.ag Line: Toronto -1.0, Total: 211.5

Both the Clippers and Raptors will be trying to avoid three-game losing streaks when the two teams square off in Toronto Friday.

The Clippers went into Cleveland on Thursday and lost 105-94 as four-point road underdogs. They’ve now lost two straight games and three out of their past four SU. Over the past six contests, Los Angeles is just 1-5 ATS. Offensively, the Clippers are really struggling. They’re averaging just 99.2 PPG over their past five games, which is a major drop from the 106.5 PPG (3^rd in NBA) they’ve scored this season.

Meanwhile, the Raptors lost 109-93 as 7.5-point home favorites against the Nets on Wednesday. They’ve now lost their past two games SU and ATS, but they had won six straight SU prior to those losses.

These teams met earlier in the season, when the Raptors beat the Clippers 110-98 as 4.5-point road underdogs. Los Angeles, however, is 5-2 SU in its past five meetings with Toronto. Prior to a 126-118 Clippers victory at Air Canada Centre on Jan. 25, 2015, the Raptors had won-and-covered in four straight home games against the Clippers. Toronto is also 6-4 SU and 7-3 ATS when hosting Los Angeles since 2004.

Over the past two seasons, the Clippers are 12-3 ATS in road games off of a road loss. They are, however, just 64-100 ATS after allowing 60 points or more in the first half of their previous game since 1996. J.J. Redick (Back) is out indefinitely for Los Angeles and James Johnson (Hamstring) is questionable for Toronto.

The Cavaliers blew out the Clippers on Thursday despite the final score indicating otherwise. Los Angeles only lost by 11 but they also outscored Cleveland 31-11 in the final quarter, when the Cavs had already given up and started thinking about their matchup with the Pacers on Friday. The Clippers committed 29 personal fouls in the game, putting the Cavaliers on the line 44 times. They’ll need to be a lot more disciplined against the Raptors.

PG Chris Paul (17.6 PPG, 9.5 APG, 4.8 RPG, 1.9 SPG) struggled in the game, scoring just 10 points (4-for-14 FG) with nine assists in 27 minutes. He has a tough matchup on Friday with PG Kyle Lowry (18.8 PPG, 7.4 APG, 4.8 RPG, 1.6 SPG), who always brings a ton of energy on both ends of the floor.

One player who could really dominate this game for Los Angeles is PF Blake Griffin (22.5 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 5.1 APG). Griffin had 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists against Cleveland on Thursday and now faces a Raptors squad that often rolls with a number of undersized power forwards. The Clippers will need to get him to post up often in this game, as he won’t help them much settling for jumpers.

C DeAndre Jordan (10.3 PPG, 13.6 RPG, 2.4 BPG) had eight points, 14 rebounds and a block against the Cavaliers on Thursday. He’s now had 12+ rebounds in each of his past nine games and will need to be a force on the glass against the Raptors. Toronto has a number of guys who can attack the rim well, so Jordan will also have to be more than ready to defend the rim in this one.

The Raptors are coming off of a bad loss to the Nets on Wednesday and they’ve now scored just 84.0 PPG over their past two contests. Toronto is averaging 105.8 PPG (5^th in NBA) on the season and the team will need to start scoring again because it is not good defensively (101.1 PPG, 23^rd in NBA).

One positive for the Raptors is that SF Terrence Ross (10.8 PPG, 3.2 RPG) appears to be gaining some confidence. Ross has gotten inconsistent minutes this season, but he’s averaging 16.5 PPG in 30.5 MPG over the past two contests. Toronto needs him to score and he should be able to do so against the Clippers, who are weak at small forward.

PG Kyle Lowry will have his work cut out for him in this one. Lowry is going up against Chris Paul and he will need to hold his own against one of the league’s elite point guards. He’s really struggled with his shot recently, averaging just 7.5 PPG (6-for-19 FG) over the past two contests. His inability to score recently is a huge reason that this offense is struggling and Toronto needs him to find his stroke again.

SG DeMar DeRozan (18.0 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 3.1 APG, 1.2 SPG) has really struggled with his outside shot this season (21% 3PT). He was never much of a shooter, but his defenders have not had to respect him from behind the arc and that’s allowing them to better guard his drives to the rim. He’ll need to start knocking down some shots or he’ll continue to struggle like he has in the past five games, where he’s averaged just 16.4 PPG (39% FG, 13% 3PT).

C Jonas Valanciunas (12.4 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 1.2 BPG) better be ready to do some dirty work on Friday. He’ll be going up against DeAndre Jordan in this one, and if he doesn’t play hard then the Clippers will get way too many second chance points for the Raptors to compete.

MIAMI HEAT (21-28) at SAN ANTONIO SPURS (31-18)                                             

Sportsbook.ag Line: San Antonio -10, Total: 185.5                                                                      

The San Antonio Spurs finish off a six-game home stand when they host the struggling Miami Heat for the first time since the NBA Finals.                                                                                                        

The Heat have had a ton of issues this year with the combination of LeBron James going to Cleveland and injuries to key players. The team comes into this contest with losses in four of its past five games. The Heat managed to score just 89.8 PPG during that time and was defeated on three occasions as the favorite. Miami took another tough loss on Wednesday night against one of the worst teams in the league, the Minnesota Timberwolves, in a 102-101 game on the road. The Heat were giving two points as the away team and turned the ball over 18 times as the team let Minnesota hit 37-of-72 shots (51% FG).

The Spurs have been playing some rather weak competition of late, but they are winning the games they are supposed to, going 11-4 SU since the start of January. If bettors decided to fade San Antonio over that stretch it would have been smart with the team being 6-9 ATS and failing to cover in each of its last six. The Spurs have been double-digit favorites in four of their past five contests and were giving 13.5 points to Orlando in the 110-103 win on Wednesday night. The offense shot a blistering 52.4% from the floor in the high-scoring game and were on from behind the arc as well, making 14-of-32 threes (44% 3PM).

Miami has performed better when on the road this year as evidenced by its 13-13 SU record (15-10-1 ATS) as they go up against a Spurs unit which is 19-7 SU (9-15-2 ATS) at home. This will be the first meeting between these two clubs since last year’s NBA Finals where San Antonio won in five games against a Heat team that still had the best player in the world (LeBron James). In the series, the Spurs scored 105.6 PPG as they made 50% or more of their shots in four of the five contests. Overall in the past three years the teams have split 16 meetings against each other SU (8-8) with San Antonio having a 10-6 ATS edge and winning five of eight games when at home.

Trends show that the Spurs are a putrid 0-8 ATS when playing their second game in five days this year as they have also gone 20-6 ATS (77%) after a game where they made 12 or more three point shots in the past two seasons. In injury news, SG Dwyane Wade (Hamstring) continues to miss time and SF Shawne Williams (Hip) is questionable for this game as San Antonio has no significant injuries to its club.                                                                                                     

The Heat offense has been nearly non-existent this season as the team has scored the second-fewest points in the league (92.6 PPG) behind 45.6% shooting from the field. Its defensive unit has benefited from the slow pace and is allowing just 96.3 PPG (2^nd in league) with the opposition making 45.6% of their shots (10^th-worst in league).

PF Chris Bosh (21.1 PPG, 7.3 RPG) has made less than 36% of his attempts in three of his last four games and is coming off a rough game (14 points, 5 rebounds) on 5-of-14 shooting against Minnesota. He had some very nice performances in his two regular season games with the Spurs last year, scoring 24.0 PPG (73% FG) with 6.0 RPG.

C Hassan Whiteside (9.8 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 2.5 BPG) has been one of the better stories of this season and had yet another monster game (24 points, 20 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks) despite losing on Wednesday. He has never had the opportunity to go against San Antonio in his career.

SF Luol Deng (14.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 1.1 SPG) should have a few more opportunities with Wade out and put up 18 points in his last game. He didn’t do much in his one game against the Spurs last year with nine points and three assists.

San Antonio has continued with its great efficiency on offense and is scoring 101.0 PPG (13^th in league) behind 45.7% shooting (9^th in league) as they dish out 24.3 APG (6^th in league). The defense has also done a good job in the tough Western Conference and is giving up a mere 97.4 PPG (7^th in league) on 44.3% shooting.

PF Tim Duncan (14.8 PPG, 10.0 RPG, 1.9 BPG) is coming off one of his best performances of the year when he dropped 26 points to go along with 10 rebounds, a steal and a block against Orlando. “Big Fundamental” had some of his best scoring games against Miami over two contests in last year’s regular season, averaging 23.0 PPG (69% FG), 7.0 RPG, 1.0 BPG and 1.0 SPG.

SF Kawhi Leonard (15.6 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 2.1 SPG) put up a full stat line (18 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, 4 steals, 1 block) against the Magic and was the Finals MVP last year against the Heat when he scored 17.8 PPG.

PG Tony Parker (14.2 PPG, 4.7 APG) hasn’t been the prolific scorer that he once was, scoring in the single-digits in three of his last seven contests and didn’t do too well (14.0 PPG, 5.5 APG) in two matchups with Miami last year during the regular season.

- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter