Back-to-back nights of sweeping the board and another day of NBA action on Saturday. I hope to continue the winning ways for the full schedule of games on Saturday night. History could be made on Saturday night as LeBron James continues his quest for 40,000 career points. Below are my March 2, 2024 NBA Picks.
The Miami Heat will return home after a four-game road trip that ended in a tough loss against the Denver Nuggets. Now, the Miami Heat will host the Utah Jazz, who are also in the midst of an East Coast road trip.
The first game back home after a long road trip is always a tricky one for the home teams. Further, the Miami Heat as a home favorite has not been a profitable trend.
In fact, since last season, when the Heat are favored at home, they are 26-36-2 ATS (41.9%). This is also an early start for the Miami Heat at 5:00 pm EST. Furthermore, in the same span, when the game is against a Western Conference opponent, the Heat are 7-13 ATS (35%)
Despite the Jazz struggling on the road and defensively, I believe this is an opportunity for them to get this game competitive and possibly win outright. I’ll take the points here with the Jazz.
Best Bet: Jazz +7
Denver Nuggets vs. Los Angeles Lakers
Tipoff: 8:30 pm EST Spread: Nuggets -1 Total: 230.5
The Saturday Night Primetime game will feature LeBron James on his quest to reach 40,000 career points against the defending champs, the Denver Nuggets. The Denver Nuggets come a bit hobbled in this game as Jamal Murray is dealing with a lower leg injury.
However, I am expecting this game to be a slower-paced and lower-scoring game. First, in the Lakers home games this season, the Under is 17-12-1 (58.6%). Furthermore, if those games are against Western Conference opponents, the Under improves to 13-6-1 (68.4%).
Additionally, the Nuggets are a profitable team towards the Under their road games this season. In fact, the Under is 19-11-1 (63.3%). Lastly, the Nuggets are the third-best defensive-rated team in the NBA since the All-Star break.
Best Bet: Under 230.5
YTD Record: 42-26-1 (61.5%)
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