RADIO
This month has flown by, and we only have a few more days of January before turning the calendar to February. Looking to add some more wins before the month ends, there are 12 games on today's slate. There are a few games to look forward to. Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves travel to Oklahoma City to take on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the upstart Thunder. In a game that's somehow not nationally televised, Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks will battle against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets.
Friday night was not a good result for me, as I failed to find a win. The term 'long season' is a term that gets overused, but it is true: these seasons are long. I'm leaving Friday night in the past and only looking forward. We have a nice slate of games tonight; let's hopefully find some winners.
In this article, I'll be providing my favorite picks against the spread, game totals, parlays, and teasers for the NBA slate that tips off at 7:00 p.m. EST on Monday, January 29. Follow me on Twitter/X, @Jwiesel13.
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NBA Betting Picks: ML & Spreads
Utah Jazz (-1) at Brooklyn Nets (234.5 total)
This is not the flashiest game on the Monday slate, but I do like Brooklyn at home. The Nets come into this game off of a 106-104 home win over the Rockets on Saturday night. Brooklyn built an 18-point lead going into the fourth and was able to hold on.
Utah is on a nice two-game win streak and put up 134 points in a 134-122 win in Charlotte over the Hornets on Saturday night. The Jazz are 10-4 this month and 24-23 on the season.
I'm taking Brooklyn in the first half here. The Nets are second in the NBA in first-half defense in January. Opponents are only shooting 44 percent on field goals but also only attempting 42.8 shots. From three, teams are making 5.3 threes, which is tied for the lowest. The 15.4 attempts opponents are averaging in 12 January games are the lowest in the league.
The Jazz have been the highest-scoring team in the opening 24 minutes of games this month. They have made 103 three-pointers, which puts them in the top five. Brooklyn is one of the lower-scoring first-half teams, so they will need their defense to come through. I don't feel great about betting against this Jazz team playing good ball, but the Nets are 13-9-1 ATS in the first half at home this season. Utah is just 9-17 ATS on the road in first halves so far.
When they played in Utah back on December 18, the Nets were up 59-54 at halftime. This was before Utah outscored them 71-49 in the second half to win 125-108. Brooklyn is only 21st in fourth-quarter defense, which is why I'm avoiding a full-game spread.
The Pick: Nets First Half ML (-105 FanDuel)
Milwaukee Bucks (+4.5) at Denver Nuggets (239.5 total)
Unlike Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo will not be ducking Nikola Jokic in his home arena. These two greats have matched up 13 times over their careers, with Joker holding the 9-4 edge. In their most recent matchup back on March 25, 2023 in Denver, the Nuggets cruised to a 129-106 victory.
It's hard to use that as a comparison for this game, given that Damian Lillard is now with the Bucks. Milwaukee has obviously been going through things internally with the firing of head coach Adrian Griffin. The Bucks are 2-1 since then and come into this game off of a 141-117 victory over the Pelicans at home. Milwaukee shot 51/91 (56%) on FGA and 20/45 (44%) from three. This is an elite offensive team that can be very hard to stop when they are clicking.
I did not like the way the Nuggets looked against the short-handed Sixers on Saturday night. They could've totally been playing down to their competition, but they only shot 45 percent on FGA and 35 percent from three. If they come out with that effort tonight, I don't think they will win this game.
In the three games since Griffin was dismissed, the Bucks have given up 115 points per game. That's definitely an improvement from the 120.1 points the teams have been averaging this season. It's a small sample size, but maybe Milwaukee will turn some kind of defensive corner or at least improve.
I'll take the points in what I think should be a close game.
The Pick: Bucks +4.5 (-110 ESPN BET)
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NBA Betting Picks: Totals
Washington Wizards (+4) at San Antonio Spurs (240.5 total)
For the season as a whole, the San Antonio Spurs look like one of the NBA's worst defenses. They have given up over 121 points per game; teams are shooting 48.9 percent on field goals and averaging nearly 14 three-pointers per game.
Those numbers have improved this month. Teams are averaging 117.1 points against the Spurs and hitting 12.7 three-pointers. They are in the top 12 for limiting attempts from deep in January. For a team that has stunk on defense, I do believe this is notable, and I am hoping the trend continues tonight.
I'm not going to mess with the over/under involving both teams; rather, I'm going to take the Wizards team total under. Washington is currently a bottom-seven scoring team in January and has shot it worse this month compared to the full season. Especially on the road, they are only hitting 44.3 percent of their FGA and 31.6 percent from three. This Wizards team is near the bottom of the league in offensive rating.
The Pick: Wizards Team Total Under 118.5 (-110 FanDuel)
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