RADIO
This weekend featured plenty of exciting games, but throughout all 13 games, only one player scored 50 points. Jaylen Brown was unstoppable against the Magic and even though Orlando had the opportunity to win this game outright, their defense had no answer and seemingly no adjustments within the second half of the game. Boston doesn't play again until Wednesday where they take on the Spurs at home, it seems that Jayson Tatum or Brown's availability isn't limiting the others production, since they are having to do so much shoulder-work to carry this offense anyway.
The Magic however, face DeMar DeRozan tonight, the game after he's hit his second game-winning-buzzer-beater in a row. To say he might enter this game with confidence is an understatement and between all ten games Monday, DeRozan is set to once again, lead the charge.
MonkeyKnifeFight.com is always ahead of the curve with their canceling of contests amid postponements, so don't worry about wasting money on a player or game that might not play. As always, you can find me in the NBA Chat Room or @HalfCourtJester on Twitter with any questions, especially since lines and players are subject to change throughout the day.
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CHA @ WAS
Bradley Beal (WAS) MORE 26.5 Points - LaMelo Ball (CHA) MORE 20.5 Points
When you post six 30-point games less than half-way through a season, and people are wondering why you aren't playing well, you are clearly doing something right. Beal's woes have seemed much worse when comparing them to how well he played last year. Through thirty contests this season, Beal's posted six 30-point games compared to 21 out of 30 last season. An obvious drop-off, but Beal had a career-game last time out against the Bulls and the Wizards don't require huge games from Beal if they are going to take away from the rest of the team. He's scored at least 27 over Washington's last two games so against a Hornets defense, he's likely to come away with similar success.
LaMelo Ball is not a 20-points-a-night player despite creating that much production through assists and hockey-assists. Sadly, his shot hasn't followed his incredible entrance into this league and until he finds some consistency there, scoring this many points will always be a challenge, even if the defense is passive. There's no real consistency, but his talent always leaves him grasping for those 20-point games and that can be tough to accommodate for. The Wizards defense isn't necessarily tough, but they will block any weak attempts at the rim.
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MEM @ BKN
Kevin Durant (BKN) MORE 30.5 Points - Ja Morant (MEM) MORE 26.5 Points
The Nets gave up a massive lead and lost to the Clippers Saturday, because neither James Harden or Kevin Durant could stay composed late in the game. The momentum had shifted in the Clippers favor mid-way through the fourth quarter and when Brooklyn needed offense, the Nets star players took it upon themselves to lose the game, ultimately being the ones that couldn't make the shots needed to win. Durant is lined up to score 30 points every night, but both Durant and Harden missed key free throws late in the game and their confidence looked absolutely shot after the final buzzer sounded. They need to bounce back and fortunately, Durant is one of those players that slumps for minutes rather than games, so he should be good-to-go against Memphis.
Eventually Ja Morant will score under 30 points, but it won't be because of the team he is facing. Morant produces against every team, and teams that play quality defense just force the issue onto Morant even more, so his upside is never really in jeopardy unless he's literally dealing with an injury. The Nets are lucky Bruce Brown and DeAndre' Bembry are available because neither Harden or Patty Mills will even volunteer to guard Morant tonight.
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HOU @ PHI
Joel Embiid (PHI) MORE 28.5 Points - Christian Wood (HOU) LESS 17.5 Points (THIS IS BAIT)
PAY ATTENTION TO THIS BET.
Christian Wood is likely not playing, and this is just MonkeyKnifeFight trying to make money off of people who don't pay attention. Wood, Kevin Porter Jr. and the Rockets are dealing with something bigger than basketball, outside of the NBA-environment. No announcements have been made about Wood or Porter Jr. just yet, but neither checked into the second half of Houston's game against Denver. If anything similar happens, MKF cleans up on every bet wagered on these two players. Instead, wait till they actually post a legitimate bet about Jalen Green, not a predatory one in an attempt to pull a fast one on uneducated bettors. Do not be fooled.
On the other side, is there ever a better time to bet on Joel Embiid? Granted, there have been multiple times, that a team in shambles, and in this case a team now missing their two best players, needs this type of kick in the pants to kickstart their season outside of the drama filling the rest of the room. Teams can come together at uncertain times to pull through and win games, but specifically, they won't be able to stop Embiid from doing whatever he wants on the court tonight. Even if Houston can put together a quality game without two of their best players, their frontcourt is lacking so severely that it ultimately won't affect what Embiid is going to do this game.
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DET @ MIL
Giannis Antetokounmpo (MIL) MORE 28.5 Points - Hamidou Diallo (DET) MORE 19.5 Points
The Pistons are rostering, maybe, one frontcourt player and that's already ignoring how terrible their frontcourt situation was before-hand. Luka Garza is the only big Detroit has available, so that leaves everything on the table for the Bucks. Milwaukee can run whatever rotation they want, as long as it leads to more points than whatever Hamidou Diallo, Saddiq Bey, and Garza can combine for. The fact the Pistons beat San Antonio is a testament to how good the Pistons team can be shorthanded, and most importantly that they can always keep games competitive under head coach Dwayne Casey. Giannis Antetokounmpo is still putting up 30 points on this frontcourt with minimal resistance.
Luckily, all these problems work in our favor if we decide to take the over on both. Diallo and Bey are the focal points of this offense and both have proved the ability to produce when given touches and create winning possessions. There is nothing about this game that leads me to believe the Pistons will have a great game and win, but in terms of both Diallo and Antetkounmpo scoring tonight, that's certain.
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