Best NBA Picks and Predictions Today [Mar 10th]

Josh C:

It did. It was a strange one. They were completely dominant obviously, as they should be against whatever version of this Portland Trail Blazers team exists at the minute. Easily, I think, could be the worst team in NBA history. If they were to play a full season with this roster, I’m very confident in saying that they would. It’s that bad at the moment. But, the team total got there. It was extremely sweaty in the end. The Raptors got there pretty straightforwardly in the end. And, we pushed on our opposites in Detroit-Chicago, which is, I guess, fantastic for the overall show record, right?

Kate Constable:

Yeah. That’s one of the craziest things about this past day, I suppose. It’s that you and Alex were both on the Pistons, plus six. I was on the Bulls, minus six. And so, yesterday, we were talking, “Well, someone’s got to lose.” Like, it’s just kind of how it works.

Kate Constable:

Well, nope, when you don’t have a hook. Bulls won by six. They had absolutely no business winning that game, let’s be real. Pistons controlled that game throughout the entirety of it, basically, into midway into the fourth, and the Bulls came back and won.

Kate Constable:

And Chris, you had a tweet yesterday. I loved your tweet… Such a Bulls thing to do to win by six and push, right?

Josh C:

Win a game, yeah.

Chris R. Farley:

Yeah. They just looked lifeless in that first half. I think, I mean if DeRozan plays his typical… If he performs to his typical average, I think the Bulls probably win that game by more points. But, at least he showed up in the second half. I had the Bulls in that one, too, but I got minus six. So, when it moved down to five and a half, I wasn’t around to snag that. So, we just all pushed together. That’s so anti-climatic and disappointing.

Chris R. Farley:

But, I do have to say, my one loss yesterday was on the Heat team total and I was just blown away. So, impressed by the Suns’ defense. Miami’s going to have those games every now and then, right where they’re just not hitting their shots. Obviously, Jimmy Butler is out.

Chris R. Farley:

But, next-man-up type of mentality there for Phoenix. Their players that just… Up and down that roster know how to play defense. And, it just reminds us that coaching still matters in the NBA, it seems, because Monty Williams knows how to coach and scheme his teams for the right situation. Probably figured that Devin Booker coming off COVID protocol, right? Maybe they would have to depend on him a little less. So, they just upped their defense. And, it was something to watch that he could not do anything against them.

Chris R. Farley:

And Josh, I have to say, I faded… I wanted to take the Celtics again yesterday. I faded them because I thought… maybe a sleepy spot. And, what do the Celtics do again? All they’re doing is dominating teams. It’s really impressive.

Josh C:

Yeah. Jayson Tatum is playing incredible basketball at the moment. Absolutely unconscious, offensively. Fantastic, defensively. If we get that Jayson Tatum in the playoffs, I think that’s when the Celtics really make noise.

Josh C:

But, it is still a lot to ask, I think, of a young player who… We still forget, he’s still very young. He might be experienced in terms of his years in the league, but he’s still extremely young in the grand scheme of things, I think, in terms of his career and longevity.

Kate Constable:

Yeah. He still has plenty of years left in the league. What is he, 23, 24? He just had a birthday a little bit ago?

Josh C:

Yeah, yeah.

Kate Constable:

That’s crazy. Absolutely crazy.

Kate Constable:

Celtics beat the Hornets last night, 115-101. Easy win for them.

Kate Constable:

The Suns won that one over the Heat, 111-90, which was impressive and kind of surprising, because the Heat jumped on them early and the Suns got down. But, they were able to climb back into that one.

Kate Constable:

The bucks won and 124-115 over the Hawks, and this is another one that… Kind of contrasting picks on the show yesterday. I had the Bucks team total over 122. That hit. And, Alex took the game under 139 and a half, and that hit. Typically, if a team total hits and you have the under, then that one, likely, is going to lose. If you have the over and then under on the team… Like, those just don’t go together. But, full, I guess, team effort all around. We’re all on the same page. Something’s clicking between all of us in that one.

Kate Constable:

But, surprising… Not surprising win for the Bucks, but surprising final score of the margin that it was over the Hawks last night. What did you guys think, Josh, about that game?

Josh C:

Yeah, I didn’t get a chance to watch too much of that game because I made the life decision to watch Chicago play Detroit instead.

Josh C:

But look, I think, from what the understanding was, there was potentially some controversy early on in terms of some officiating, which may have changed, I think, the landscape of that game. When a player’s getting foul trouble early, it shakes up your rotations and really flips things a bit.

Josh C:

But, ultimately, Milwaukee’s rolling at the moment. I think they make a really big, big, strong push towards the top two seed in the East to finish the regular season. I hope they do, anyway, so they go clinch that division title for me, as well, along the way.

Josh C:

And, the Hawks… I mean, they just can’t really seem to get things going. We keep saying the time is now for them to make a run, and I think they’re going to ultimately run out of time. The whole team is going to just land in the play-in and have to do it the hard way just to make the playoffs. And, given who they’ll, then, match up with in the first round, it’s probably going to be a first round exit for them.

Josh C:

So, I think the hard part with them is working out… Is it really a backward step on last season, or was last season just such an anomaly where things just went their way, and they had a ton of lucky breaks, and… Maybe, that’s sort of overvalued what their true commodity is and what the talent is on that roster. It’s really a hard situation for them.

Josh C:

So, we’ll see how the rest of this season plays out and, ultimately, I think it might, then, change perception of them going into next season and realizing that they still probably need to do a lot with this roster to actually get it back into that upper echelon of the East.

Kate Constable:

Yeah. It’s been surprising, watching them just doing what they did last year, making to the Eastern Conference Finals up against the Bucks last year, and Bucks took care of them last night.

Kate Constable:

Chris, the Lakers did not get it done last night. Maybe not a surprise. I took the Lakers, minus two, when that line first came out and I’m thinking, “Oh, okay. Yeah, the Lakers stink right now. They’re awful. But, they can beat the worst team in the Western Conference by more than two points.” It’s like, “Come on, you can win that game. That’s a very winnable game,” especially with where you’re at in the season right now and needing to stack on these wins. So then, Christian Wood’s out. This line’s up to six, I’m feeling real good. I’m like, “Wow, okay. You really crushed it. Way to get a nice closing line value.” And then, the Lakers lose in overtime. The Rockets put up 13 straight points to start overtime. What is going on?

Josh C:

Can we just… Can we touch on LeBron’s decision at the end of regulation real quick? Because, I mean, there’s zero reason for you not to be going up for a layup there, unless… I don’t want to have to be the one that says it, but unless you’re trying to chase those stats and really going for that 25 points a game and making sure that you get there in overtime. You know, maybe it is at that point.

Kate Constable:

I didn’t even think about that.

Chris R. Farley:

Oh my gosh. Did he get there?

Josh C:

No, I don’t think he did.

Kate Constable:

No, he had 23.

Josh C:

Yeah. Yeah. He still fell short, ultimately.

Chris R. Farley:

Yeah. Well, nice try, LeBron. Yeah, I mean, you were on the right side, Kate, I mean, especially with Christian Wood out the Rocket’s lineup. I mean, make no mistake about it, he’s their best player right now, I think. Probably a future All-Star.

Chris R. Farley:

So, the fact that he was out and Lakers still couldn’t take advantage of it… Wasn’t that the only game that Westbrook led the Lakers in points, or was that the game before, maybe? I don’t know, but that should tell you-

Kate Constable:

No, he led them, yeah, with 30 yesterday.

Chris R. Farley:

Yeah. So, that should tell you everything. When Russell Westbrook is the anchor of your offense, I don’t think that’s the recipe for success.

Chris R. Farley:

And for what it’s worth, these Rockets are playing hard. They’ve been covering a lot of lines. They’ve been winning some straight up. I wish they played like this earlier in the season for my futures bet. But, at least they’re finishing strong, maybe some momentum into next season.

Kate Constable:

Yeah. Momentum for the Rockets. Lakers need to figure something out and make some changes this offseason.

Kate Constable:

All right, kicking today’s show off, let’s take a look at our overall record to start. And, as we mentioned earlier, this record’s looking pretty good, 10-1 on the week. We were 5-0-3 yesterday, with that push coming in the Chicago-Pistons game. But overall, things are looking up for us and we’re going to continue with two games today, two nationally-televised games to put some Ws in the win column. Being there only two games today, throw some questions for us into the chat feature, and we’ll hit on as many of those as we can towards the end of the show.

Kate Constable:

We’ll start with one of the most highly-anticipated matchups, maybe, of the season that’s going down tonight in the City of Brotherly Love, although I’m not quite sure there’s going to be too much love between these two teams. The Nets and Sixers, Sixers are laying four and a half. This total is all the way up to 235.

Kate Constable:

Chris, what do you expect this atmosphere to be like in Philly tonight?

Chris R. Farley:

Yeah, I think the atmosphere is going to have a playoff feel, and the fact that it’s in Philadelphia probably only escalates that. You know, the Philly fans are not shy to tell you exactly how they feel, which I love. You know, I love a fan base like that. But, it makes this game, from a handicapping perspective, actually pretty hard because when there is that much tension, potential animosity, emotion in a game like this, it can result in a lot of variance, I think, especially a playoff feel like this. I usually approach it as either it’s going to result in a lot of defense and a lot of nerves or a lot of missed shots, or it’s going to result in both teams really attacking the rim at will. I’m not sure what’s going to happen here, but both teams have certainly been attacking the rim recently.

Chris R. Farley:

So, I mean, I lean to the over here. There’s a lot to like about both of these offenses and the way that they’ve been operating. And for what it’s worth, I don’t think that the Nets’ defense has quite caught up to their offense yet. They’re relying on their super stardom. We saw Kevin Durant, even in a loss against the Celtics, just put on a great performance. Now, we saw Kyrie put on a great performance against the Hornets, 50 points. I think he shot over 75% or something. Just an absurd performance in that game. So, if both of those guys can perform at that level, it’s always going to be a scary prospect for whoever they face.

Chris R. Farley:

I think Drummond is going to have a huge role in this game. LaMarcus Aldridge out. He’s not going to be intimidated by Joel Embiid. He’s been in these situations before. Also a part of that trade, right? So, he got to think that maybe there’s some extra steam in him, as well. There were years where Drummond was averaging 15 rebounds per game. Not quite doing that anymore, but I think it’s not a bad look to look at his rebound prop, it’s around 11 tonight. And, I think that he’s going to probably have that extra motivation for this game, too.

Chris R. Farley:

Seth Curry as well, something else to think about. Been underutilized a little bit, obviously, since Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving have been back. But, he also got traded, right? So maybe, he’s looking for a little vengeance in this game. Maybe not a bad look to look at his PER props or his point props or three point props.

Chris R. Farley:

Overall, I have to lean towards the Nets here just because we’re getting points with a team that… We all know the sky’s the ceiling for this team if Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving play well, if they get great support in this game, if their defense steps it up more. This is obviously a team that can beat any team in the NBA. And, they need to win more, right? Philly is not exactly coasting right now, but they’re in a really good position, whereas the Nets… Not so much. And for what it’s worth, Kyrie and Durant have been stone-cold lately. I mean, they don’t seem bothered at all by their current situation. They’ve just been putting on great performances.

Chris R. Farley:

So, both of these teams, there’s just so much to like. I mean, Philly has only lost against Boston and Phoenix in the last month, and both of those games were without Harden. And then, of course, they lost against Miami last Saturday, but that was kind of a give up game. Philly is very confident, would not be surprised if Philly covered this line, either. So, I’m just comfortable not having a play on this game, but it’s going to be a great one to watch.

Kate Constable:

You’re a smart man, not having a play on this game, because this one could definitely go either way in terms of the side or the total. So, I’m going to play a Sixers team total over, because this line… The game total’s gone up from 222 to 235, so I’m not sure I want to mess with what’s going on with the game total. But, the Sixers team total, over 120, I like that. In Harden’s five games in the lineup with Philly this season, they’ve averaged 125 points per game in those games. Add in Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid, when they’re in the lineup with Harden, that number goes up to 133 points per game. And, three of them are shooting over 54% from the field. So, their offense is having no issues scoring when those three are in the lineup.

Kate Constable:

Nets’ front court defense, I think, is going to be their biggest weakness. I think Joel Embiid’s going to have a fine time doing whatever he wants tonight against Andre Drummond. And, I think James Harden’s going to be able to get into the lane pretty much at will tonight. So, once again, that offense not having any issues.

Kate Constable:

And, the Nets’ defense, it’s been bad lately, 28th in defensive rating over their last 20 games. And, that was supposed to be go up, get better with Kevin Durant coming back in, but it’s only gotten worse. Two points worse in defensive rating since he’s back there, allowing teams to shoot 49% from the floor, 37% from deep since he’s been in the game.

Kate Constable:

So, I’m going to stay away from the full game total, but I do like the Sixers team total, over 120, tonight. Josh, you don’t have an official play in this one either, but if you had to take a side, where would you land?

Josh C:

If I had to take a side, I’m taking Brooklyn. I’m taking the plus four and a half.

Josh C:

It’s hard. When it comes to these two teams, I’m still not particularly confident in my number in either of those, in that I think I still might be overvaluing Brooklyn a little bit, at least compared to the markets. And maybe, I’m still undervaluing Philadelphia a little bit, even though I have adjusted them. And again, that’s relative to the market. So, my number is sort of between two and a half, three here, so I do show value on the Nets. Normally, that would be enough reason to back them, especially when there’s that much of an edge, excuse me.

Josh C:

But again, it just comes down to the fact that there isn’t a ton of confidence there on either number on either side of the fence. So, I’d rather sit back and, I think, just get a better understanding of exactly where both these teams sit going forward, not just for the remainder of the regular season, but especially come playoff time, as well.

Josh C:

If these two teams are, in fact, to meet at some point in the playoffs, it would be A, fantastic viewing, but B, it would certainly set up, I think, for some fantastic betting opportunities, as well, both ways. So, a really good game, I think, for everyone to sort of sit in and learn something about both sides here.

Josh C:

I completely agree with what you’re saying, as well. I think Joel Embiid is just going to have an absolute field day inside. Drummond is no match for him whatsoever.

Josh C:

I think the biggest potential hindrance to the 76ers here is if Harden tries to do too much and almost prove a point, I guess, if you will, against this Brooklyn Nets defense and sort of ups his usage a little bit too much where it takes away from the biggest advantage you have, which is inside and with Joel Embiid posting up.

Josh C:

The flip side, I don’t know if the Sixers have anyone that can stop either Kevin Durant or Kyrie Irving, really. They’re a terrific defense as a team. I think, schematically, they likely still make things difficult, but if it comes down to the final sort of two or three minutes, and this game is up in the air and one or two possessions either way, I’m probably going to trust Durant and Irving to be able to get whatever they want in those clutch situations. And ultimately, this becomes a coin flip game where those points could be pivotal.

Josh C:

So, I’ll take Brooklyn with the points if I had to take something. But again, I just want to stay away from this one in its entirety and just watch, enjoy, and hopefully learn a thing or two as well about both sides.

Kate Constable:

Which side do you think takes this game more personal, the Nets or the Sixers?

Josh C:

The Nets. The Nets. Clearly, Kevin Durant in particular, I think. He has a bone to pick with James Harden, put it that way.

Kate Constable:

Yes. Yeah. He had that quote the other day that… Kyrie was out, I was injured, James is getting older. He hasn’t won a championship yet. Talk about being passive-aggressive, my goodness.

Josh C:

Fantastic. Fantastic.

Chris R. Farley:

It kind of sets up really well for Philly, too, because what they’ve been doing so well is, I mean, basically using James Harden as a decoy. He handles the ball, garners that attention. So, if the Nets fall for that trap, right, and that they put extra focus on Harden, no doubt Embiid will happily accept that challenge and completely dominate the game.

Chris R. Farley:

So, it is just going to be interesting to see how each team approaches this, especially on defense. Maybe a lot of fouls. I don’t know. It’s going to be interesting.

Kate Constable:

All right. Well, I’m the only one with an official play in this one. I’m going to play the Sixers team total over 120 tonight.

Kate Constable:

Our second and final game of the day, only two games tonight, but also on national television, the Warriors and the Nuggets. Nuggets are on a back-to-back. They beat the Kings last night. And, they’ve also taken three in a row over the Warriors this season, which included a 131-124 win over Golden State on Monday night. Now, that was a makeup game and Golden State kind of wanted to make a point that they weren’t too pleased with that, so they pretty much sat their entire roster, let’s be honest.

Kate Constable:

So, I’m not sure you can play too much into that latest outing between these two teams, but Josh, what is your play in this matchup tonight?

Josh C:

I am on the Warriors here. Not a team that I think a lot of people want to be backing, especially laying points on the road right now, given how they performed over the last month. But, this spot for Denver is horrendous. I mean, you said, yeah, it’s a back-to-back and they had to travel out to Sacramento for a one-game road trip and then back home again for this one. But, this is their fourth game in five nights because of that makeup game. And, they haven’t taken the Golden State route of sitting players and, I guess, ensuring that some of their stars don’t have to play big minutes. They’ve, essentially, still had to exert themselves, probably more than what they would like. They’ve also had an overtime game thrown into that, as well. So, the minutes have just skyrocketed over the last five days.

Josh C:

I don’t know how you possibly put a number or value behind a team playing their fourth game in five nights, so maybe I’m… I did try and come up with something and maybe that’s why I’m getting such an edge on the Warriors here, because I think it should fall between minus three and a half, minus four.

Josh C:

But, at the same time, I think there’s a lot of other circumstances as well that favor Golden State here. Denver have been terrific against the Warriors so far this season, aside from obviously that punt game, if you will. The Warriors just didn’t show up to. But, I don’t think that Golden State is going to allow themselves to be swept 4-0 in this season series. I think that’s a pretty big thing. It’s really difficult in the NBA betting odds for a team to sweep another team in a season series, especially when it’s a three- or four-game series. It’s quite rare that you see it happen, especially with two teams who are top-level, playoff-caliber lineups and rosters.

Josh C:

So, I think that’s a factor in itself. I look at the game probably before their most recent meeting, which was only a few weeks back anyway. Denver coming back to win that game by a point, after the Warriors led by double digits in that third quarter. The fourth quarter was just an absolute mess from the Warriors, but there was a lot of anomalies there I don’t think repeat themselves. I mean, Golden State was 62%, I think it was, from the free throw line. That’s just ridiculous. I don’t think that’s something that happens again. They were 28% from the three-point line and I think it was minus 18 in three-point scoring that game. I’m not sure that necessarily replicates itself. That was a game where Bryn Forbes went off for 22 points off the bench.

Josh C:

So, there was a lot of things, I think, that went right for Denver in that game, and a lot of things that went wrong for the Warriors in that game, down the stretch in particular, that won’t necessarily replicate themselves. So, if we get some positive regression from Golden State in a couple of those key areas, three-point shooting, free throw shooting in particular, they should be able to take advantage against a very tired Denver team.

Josh C:

And finally, I think the biggest point of emphasis here is Denver. Over the past month, 30th in the NBA in turnover percentage. They are turning the ball over more than any team in the NBA right now. The Warriors all season long have been a top six, top seven team in terms of turnovers forced and live turnovers forced as well. So, I think it’s another avenue where when you’re playing a team who, again, playing their fourth game in just five nights, those sloppy possessions, those sloppy turnovers lead to some easy baskets. And, one thing we know about Golden State is if you let them find rhythm and you let them get points without much resistance, that’s when they become really problematic, because things start falling all over the shop after that and it becomes an avalanche that’s really difficult to try and navigate.

Josh C:

So ultimately, this is just about the spot and about some small key personal, I think, advantages that the Warriors have that should all come to the fore in this situation. So, happily laying the two. I got two and a half, personally. Two is even better.

Josh C:

For those sort of asking questions, as well, about what’s going on with the line movement, I don’t read into it too much. This isn’t a real move. Two and a half to two is nothing. It’s not a thing. It can be influenced by a multitude of different reasons. So, again, not phased by that.

Josh C:

I think it’s also interesting to see what happens closer to tip off with these lineups as well. Maybe there’s a chance Denver that does pull someone. We see load management being such a frequent and prevalent thing in the NBA. The Nuggets, of all teams, cannot afford to lose anybody here at the moment, so, hey, they might choose to sit someone as well, come closer to tip here.

Josh C:

So for me, everything points to Golden State. I have to take them. I have to fade a Denver team who have logged such serious minutes in just five nights of NBA.

Kate Constable:

So, Josh is speaking about how much minutes the Nuggets have logged over the last five games. Chris, that doesn’t seem to be an issue with the play that you are taking. You’re not too worried about that, playing Denver team total over 113 and a half.

Chris R. Farley:

Yeah. This is kind of a sucky position to follow Josh. Josh almost talking me off this bet, for God’s sake.

Chris R. Farley:

I mean, I almost switched to the Warriors before the show and their team total, but the short story is… I like both of the team tot… I mean, I like this game to go over. Now, it’s up to 229, 230 now, so I can’t touch that. I got a 222. I believe it opened on 220 or 221 which seems absurdly low. And, that is huge line movement, right? We’re talking about a full 10 points, which a lot of things have to happen in a game to change it in full 10 points.

Chris R. Farley:

But, I agree with that. The Warriors are doing something recently, at least from the eye test, that I’ve noticed, where it really seems like they’re trying to force the ball to Klay. Earlier in the season, the Warriors kind of got away with a slower pace. They had Draymond healthy, they were playing great defense, and Steph Curry doesn’t really need to be like in rhythm, right? Steph Curry is always going to do well.

Chris R. Farley:

But, the majority of the Warrior’s offense, especially now, I think they really depend on that rhythm. Klay’s still not shooting up to par for where he should be. Started that last game slow, too, but then kind of caught up with it. I like that pace to kind of set the precedent in this game against a tired Denver team.

Chris R. Farley:

And even though Denver’s tired, I mean, what we’ve seen from Jokic in these games against the Warriors, he’s been dominant, you know? 33 and a half points per game in the past two. 16 rebounds in the past two. I just think, right now, this is kind of a Jokic takeover game, you know? And, I like the fact that the Warriors bench is showing a lot more, too. We got a great effort from Kuminga, from Jordan Poole. These guards are going to fly off the bench, right? It’s a small team.

Chris R. Farley:

But, we know that the Warriors, their one area of concern is the front court. They have one of the worst forward and center defenses in the NBA right now. On the season, they’re 30th in forward defense, defensive rating. I mean, they kind of have centers, right? But Kevon Looney… I mean, Kevon Looney against Jokic is a joke. I mean, it really is. So Jokic, I think, is going to be able to do whatever he wants tonight.

Chris R. Farley:

And on top of that, Denver is down two guards. Will Barton, I don’t know if he’s going to play tonight. I think he’s still questionable, but he has a bum ankle. Bones Hyland, too, right? So, I mean, you would think that would talk me off of the Nuggets team total, but I think that’s just going to permit the Warriors to have more success from the perimeter from their guards on offense. It’s going to push the score up. Jokic is not going to be able to go as methodical as he wants to go in this game, I don’t think, because the Warriors are going to come into this one hot. That is just the way that I see the game playing out. Denver did play last night. Jokic played 35 minutes. They did start some of their bench. Obviously, the last two games between these two teams have soared over.

Chris R. Farley:

And, I like that the Warriors are increasing their pace in general. I know the Warriors… I think they need rhythm right now to have a good offense with their young players. So, I think they’re going to keep on relying on that. So, hopefully I don’t regret not choosing the Warriors team total over, but I just think there’s a lot of points in this one so we really can’t go wrong. I just don’t like the 230.

Kate Constable:

And, with Looney, if he gets in foul trouble, who’s going to guard Jokic? All of a sudden, Jonathan Kuminga is your defender on Jokic. That just doesn’t seem like a good situation for the Warriors to be in, and a great situation for the Nuggets, especially if you’re wanting points. So-

Josh C:

Hey, just a quick one. Are we all in agreeance that Jokic is the MVP as of right now?

Chris R. Farley:

I think it’s either him or Joel Embiid.

Kate Constable:

Clearly not, with that pause.

Chris R. Farley:

I mean, it’s either him or Embiid.

Kate Constable:

Yeah.

Josh C:

But, it’s Jokic, one, right? Like, I agree it’s a two-horse race, but it has to be Jokic, one.

Chris R. Farley:

I think it has to be Jokic, one because of what the definition of an MVP should be for me, which is that without Jokic, the Nuggets would be horrendous. I mean, I don’t know about horrendous, but they wouldn’t be-

Kate Constable:

They would be bad.

Chris R. Farley:

I don’t even know if they’d make the playoffs, right? Whereas Embiid, you can make an argument even with how dominant he’s been this year, they still have a really good base around him, so maybe they could still have some success. But, Jokic is holding his team on his shoul… I mean, the kind of performances he’s doing with assist and rebounds and points every game is absurd.

Kate Constable:

Yeah. Three triple doubles in the last five games, and he was maybe one assist or rebound away from a triple double in those other two. I think one of the things with Embiid, because I’ve thought Embiid should be the MVP for a little while up until these past couple weeks when Jokic has really… I don’t know, taken over the league.

Kate Constable:

But, it’s that Jokic plays like this all the time so this isn’t like something that’s out of the ordinary. Where we’re seeing something that’s out of the ordinary for Embiid, so it’s like, “Wow, he really is playing really, really well.” But, it’s just because we haven’t seen this level of performance from Embiid in years past, where Jokic does this every year. I mean, that’s why he won it last year.

Kate Constable:

So, yeah, Jokic should definitely be number one.

Chris R. Farley:

I think the NBA kind of wants Joel Embiid to win it, too. There’s just been a lot of attention around him. And, deservedly so. It’s great to have a big star in Philly, right?

Chris R. Farley:

But, pure stats-wise, yeah, I would have to agree with you, Josh. I have to go Jokic.

Kate Constable:

Yep. And, what Jokic does defensively for that team, too. Not just offensive stats, but some of the things you can’t track are pretty impressive.

Kate Constable:

So, in this game, though, Jokic going up against Steph Curry, two big stars there. And, Josh is taking the Warriors, minus two. Chris is playing the Nuggets team total, over 113.

Kate Constable:

Questions for today… Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Kevin Durant, all to score 25 each tonight. Kyrie’s averaging 26, Harden’s averaging 24, and KD’s averaging 29.

Josh C:

I think, theoretically, you look at the full game total, and then you look at the usage of each player and the projecting, I guess, shot attempts as a result of that. They should all get there, really. They should all have enough shots. They should be played at a high enough pace. There should be enough final points on either side for all of them to get theirs.

Josh C:

But ultimately, we see, I think, so often in games like this where it can become a case where one of those guys on each side gets super hot and therefore absorbs a lot more of that. So, for example, if this is a Durant night where he is on 40 and Kyrie’s on 18 to 20 in the fourth quarter, they’re just going to keep feeding KD, and the flip side.

Josh C:

Same thing with Harden. He could have 20 in the fourth quarter, probably not score a point if Joel Embiid’s the one that’s absolutely feasting down low, has 36 points and Brooklyn has no answer for him.

Josh C:

So, it is difficult, I think, to say that all three of those get theirs, even if logically, it all makes sense that they do just because I think there’s a couple of game scripts where someone might fall short of that number. Which doesn’t seem like a high number, it’s still a lot of points on any given night in the NBA.

Josh C:

And, the fact that, again, they can all have terrific nights without necessarily having to score 25 points.

Kate Constable:

I mean, we just saw that two nights ago for the Nets. Kyrie put up 50 and KD had 14. So, that’s definitely something that would scare me off of this. I’m not sure I would bank on all three having 25. Chris?

Chris R. Farley:

Yeah. I totally agree with what you guys are saying. I mean, it sounds like someone’s trying to put together a player prop, which is great, right? Those are fun. I just wouldn’t invest too much in that. It’s tough for all those players to score that many points, particularly two players on the same team like Josh and Kate already said. I mean, they’re going to turn towards the hot hand.

Chris R. Farley:

And for what it’s worth, with Harden, too. I think James Harden is comfortable not being the leading scorer with the Sixers. I mean, that’s at least how it seems. He’s comfortable being the number two guy who can light it up when he has to, but he doesn’t mind relying on Joel Embiid. So, I don’t know if he’s going to get the 25 every game like he used to.

Kate Constable:

So, the overall consensus from us three is maybe throw your money elsewhere.

Kate Constable:

And here are three places to throw your money. Let’s take a look at our best bets. Two team totals on the board today. I am taking the Sixers team total, over 120. Chris is playing the Nuggets team total. And, Josh is laying the two points with the Warriors, hoping they can kind of get back on track and avoid the season sweep from the Nuggets.

Kate Constable:

Well, that’s all we have. Two very exciting matchups tonight. I think we would all say that Philly-Nets is probably the one must watch between these two.

Chris R. Farley:

Oh, yeah.

Kate Constable:

So much drama with the whole Ben Simmons thing. I’m just kind of anxious to see how those Philly fans react to him even being in the building.

Josh C:

Yeah. Him being on the bench is somewhat surprising, I think, and necessary. I mean, you can’t coddle the kid forever, right? At some point, he’s going to have to face some level of adversity. So, it did have to happen, but it is a little bit surprising that they decided to bring him along for this one.

Chris R. Farley:

I have a little bit of a conflict of interest tonight because I’m about to move, so I’m having a video game night with my neighbors, which… I haven’t played video games in 10 years, so I’m pretty excited about that. But, I’m going to have to bring my laptop so I can watch the Sixers and Nets the whole time. I’m not missing that.

Kate Constable:

No. I think a game like this trumps video games, Chris.

Chris R. Farley:

It does.

Kate Constable:

Good luck to you guys playing 2K and you’re going to go Celtics versus Nets in 2K.

Chris R. Farley:

Well, it’s an Xbox. I’m terrible at Xbox. I’m a PlayStation guy. So, I’ll probably just let them play and I’ll be there. I’ll cheer them on. I’m not going to be good, anyway. It’s been a long time.

Kate Constable:

You’re going to be like the Ben Simmons of the game, just sit on the end of the couch and… yeah.

Chris R. Farley:

No pressure. Just like I like it.

Kate Constable:

Right? Exactly.

Chris R. Farley:

Just like Ben Simmons likes it.

Kate Constable:

All right. That is all we have for you today. Thank you for joining us. Head over to Twitter, give us all a follow. Chris is @FarleyBets, josh is @punt_school, I am @KateConstable. And, we’ll see you back here tomorrow to wrap up the week. Have a good night amd don’t forget to check our sportsbook!