Suns vs. Trailblazers, Clippers vs. Cavaliers Betting Odds
Carrie Stroup here with your Suns vs. Trailblazers and Clippers vs. Cavaliers betting odds.
Sportsbook.ag Line: Portland -4.5, Total: 212
The Suns look to snap their two-game losing streak when they head to Portland on Thursday to take on the Blazers.
The Suns hosted the Grizzlies on Monday and lost 102-101 as 2.5-point home underdogs. Phoenix has now lost two straight and four of its last six SU. The team is just 2-5 ATS in its past seven games and has struggled offensively, scoring just 95.7 PPG over its past three games. The Suns are not a good defensive team (104.9 PPG allowed, 28th in NBA), so that type of offense just isn’t going to cut it for them.
The Blazers haven’t been much better though, beating the Jazz 103-102 as 8.5-point home favorites on Tuesday for their first win SU in their past four games. Portland is now 3-7 SU in its past 10 games and the team has covered in just two of those contests. The Blazers are also currently on a four-game ATS losing streak.
These teams last met on Jan. 21, when the Suns beat the Blazers 118-113 as 7.5-point home favorites. The Blazers did play without PF LaMarcus Aldridge in that game. That victory made Phoenix 6-2 SU and 7-1 ATS versus Portland over the past three seasons. The Suns have been successful playing in Portland as well, winning two of their past three games at Moda Center outright. They have also covered in four straight games in Portland.
Place Your 1st Bet, Get Your 2nd Bet Free Here
Phoenix is 42-22 ATS when playing on the road over the past two seasons. The Suns also have the luxury of facing a Portland team that is 4-14 ATS in home games after failing to cover the spread in three or more consecutive games over the past three seasons. SF Gerald Green (Calf) is questionable for Phoenix and the Blazers continue to be without C Joel Freeland (Shoulder), who is out indefinitely.
Phoenix is in a tight race for the eighth seed in the Western Conference and it will need to play with a sense of urgency against the Blazers on Thursday. This team has had a lot of trouble scoring the basketball recently, averaging just 95.7 PPG over its past three games and it will need to get a lot closer to the 106.6 PPG (4th in NBA) that it’s been racking up all season.
PG Eric Bledsoe (16.9 PPG, 6.0 APG, 5.2 RPG, 1.7 SPG) had 21 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, four steals and two blocks in a loss to the Grizzlies on Monday. Bledsoe was excellent against the Blazers earlier in the season, finishing with 33 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and three steals in 34 minutes of action. His head-to-head matchup with PG Damian Lillard (21.7 PPG, 6.3 APG, 4.6 RPG) will be crucial in determining who wins this game.
PG Isaiah Thomas (15.4 PPG, 3.6 APG) was also big in the Suns’ victory over the Blazers on Jan. 21, scoring 27 points (11-for-16 FG, 3-for-6 3PT) very efficiently off the bench. Thomas also dished out four assists and he’ll need to be a spark for the Suns in this one. He should have plenty of confidence after putting up 24 points in the loss to Memphis on Monday.
SG Goran Dragic (16.5 PPG, 4.0 APG, 3.6 RPG) has a tough matchup with SG Wes Matthews (16.5 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 1.1 SPG) in this game. Dragic had 16 points the last time these teams played and will need to use his speed to blow by the much slower Blazers shooting guard. Defensively it will be tough for him to defend Matthews when the guard plays the high post, but it’s important that Dragic stays disciplined and keeps himself out of foul trouble.
PF Markieff Morris (15.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 1.3 SPG) struggled the last time these teams played, scoring just six points (2-for-7 FG) in 29 minutes. Morris also had only five rebounds and things are not going to be any easier with PF LaMarcus Aldridge (23.8 PPG, 10.3 RPG, 1.1 BPG) in the lineup for the Blazers. Aldridge was out the last time these teams played and his size and ability to score will really make things difficult on an undersized Suns team. It’s likely that they’ll need to give PF Brandan Wright (7.3 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 1.3 BPG) some extended minutes as a defensive specialist in order to keep Aldridge in check.
The Blazers needed a victory over the Jazz to snap a three-game losing streak and they got it, but in pretty unimpressive fashion. SG Wes Matthews was big in that victory, finishing with 21 points and three steals in 35 minutes. He’s been hot lately, averaging 17.2 PPG and 1.4 SPG over the past five contest thanks to some lethal outside shooting (45% 3PT in those games). He should get plenty of open looks against a Phoenix team that loves to play up-tempo. Stopping Goran Dragic will also be a big task for him, so his offense alone won’t be enough to help his team win this game.
PG Damian Lillard is coming off of a 25-point, six-assist performance against the Jazz on Tuesday. Eric Bledsoe outperformed Lillard in the Blazers’ last game against the Suns and Lillard will need to get the better of this matchup in his home arena. At the very least, he can’t afford to let Bledsoe erupt for 33 points again in this one.
PF LaMarcus Aldridge did not play the last time these teams met. Aldridge has been on a tear lately, even with his thumb injury. He’s had a double-double in each of the past four games and is averaging 28.2 PPG, 11.0 RPG and 1.2 SPG over the past five contests. The Suns are going to struggle to cover Aldridge, as they do not have many power forwards with the size to bang with him in the post. It could force them to ditch their preferred small-ball lineups, which would be a huge advantage for Portland.
SF Nicolas Batum (9.0 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 4.6 APG, 1.1 SPG) had 27 points, 10 rebounds and five assists when these teams last met. He likely won’t need to do that much scoring again in this one, but he does give a major advantage to the Blazers at the small forward position. He should be able to have a solid game in this one.
LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS (33-16) at CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (30-20)
Sportsbook.ag Line: Cleveland -5, Total: 208
The Cavs look to win their 12th straight game when they host the Clippers Thursday.
Los Angeles lost 102-100 as 8.5-point road favorites in Brooklyn on Monday and the team has now lost two of its past three games SU. The Clippers are also just 1-4 ATS in their past five games. Meanwhile, Cleveland beat the Sixers 97-84 as 17-point favorites in Cleveland on Monday. Cleveland has now won 11 straight games SU and they’ve covered in nine of those contests. The Cavaliers are really clicking defensively, holding their opponents to under 100 points in nine straight contests. The Cavs’ past six games have gone Under the total as well.
These teams met on Jan. 16, when the Cavs beat the Clippers 126-121 as 8.5-point road underdogs. Cleveland is 3-2 SU and ATS versus Los Angeles over the past three seasons. The Cavaliers won-and-covered the last time they played the Clippers in Cleveland. They’ve also won 11 of the past 12 games played in Cleveland between these teams, covering in 10 of those contests. The past three have gone Under the total.
Place Your 1st Bet, Get Your 2nd Bet Free Here
Over the past two seasons, the Clippers are 12-2 ATS in road games when coming off of a road loss. Since 1996, however, the Cavaliers are 36-18 ATS in home games after a game where they made 12 or more threes. SG J.J. Redick (Back) is out indefinitely for the Clippers and the Cavaliers continue to play without C Anderson Varejao (Achilles), who is out for the season.
The Clippers have lost two of their last three games and now have to face a red-hot Cavaliers squad. PG Chris Paul (17.7 PPG, 9.6 APG, 4.8 RPG, 1.9 SPG) was really off the last time these teams met, scoring 15 points (4-for-15 FG, 1-for-7 3PT) only because of his ability to get to the line (6-for-7 FT). Paul did dish out 14 assists and also grabbed eight rebounds in the game. He’s been on fire for Los Angeles lately, scoring 20+ points in each of the past four games. His matchup with PG Kyrie Irving (21.9 PPG, 5.2 APG) should be really exciting to watch and the winner of that battle could end up being the reason their team comes out victorious.
PF Blake Griffin (22.6 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 5.1 APG) was dominant the last time these teams met, finishing with 34 points, 10 rebounds and three assists before fouling out late in the game. Griffin’s athleticism makes him extremely tough to cover and PF Kevin Love (16.9 PPG, 10.5 RPG), who didn’t play in their last meeting, is not as good of an option to guard Griffin as his teammate PF Tristan Thompson (9.0 PPG, .84 RPG) was. Griffin could be in for a similar performance against Love, who is a very mediocre defender.
C DeAndre Jordan (10.4 PPG, 13.6 RPG, 2.4 BPG) had 22 points and 20 rebounds in a loss to the Nets on Monday. Jordan had 19 points, 12 rebounds and a block against the Cavaliers on Jan. 16, and his athleticism will also really give Cleveland issues. Jordan is very active around the basket and grabs nearly every available rebound.
With SG J.J. Redick (14.4 PPG) out, SG Jamal Crawford (15.7 PPG) will be relied on to play big minutes. Crawford had 13 points and six assists in the last meeting between these teams and he should be able to score a lot more, as he’ll be relied on as more of a scorer than a playmaker with Redick’s scoring ability shelved for the time being.
The Cavaliers are one of the hottest teams in basketball and SF LeBron James (26.2 PPG, 7.4 APG, 5.5 RPG) has started to play the way people expected before the season. Over the past four games, James is averaging 26.3 PPG, 7.5 APG and 4.5 RPG in 36.3 MPG. The superstar had 32 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists in 42 minutes the last time these teams played. Los Angeles is weak at the small forward position and James will need to be in attack mode from the opening tip.
PG Kyrie Irving had 24 points, five rebounds and five assists in Cleveland’s win over the Sixers on Monday. Irving had a 55-point game a little over a week ago, and he’s been playing some of the best basketball of his career lately. Guarding Chris Paul will be the hardest part of this game for Irving. He’ll do his best to prevent Paul from getting in the lane, but it’ll be tough to shut him down completely.
PF Kevin Love had just five points in the win over the Sixers on Monday, but he did grab 15 rebounds. He’s now averaging 16.0 RPG over his past two and will need to be an animal on the glass against an extremely athletic Clippers frontcourt. Love’s offense will not be a cause for concern in this game, but he will really need to show up on the defensive end. Cleveland has a number of guys that can make up for Love’s recent lack of scoring (11.8 PPG in past five games), but they’ll need the forward to play well defensively against Blake Griffin.
C Timofey Mozgov (8.9 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 1.3 BPG) is a huge reason this team has turned things around defensively. Mozgov has played 14 games with Cleveland this season and the team only allowed 100+ points in his first five games as a Cavalier. Since being able to adjust to his new team after those games, the Cavaliers have not allowed 100+ in each of their last nine games. He’s also been solid offensively recently, averaging 9.8 PPG with 7.4 RPG and 2.2 BPG over the past five games. He’ll need to hold his own against DeAndre Jordan in this one, and if he does the Cavs have a great chance of winning this one.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
