Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week – March 19 Edition

Expect a heavy fine coming for embattled Detroit Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy, who might be in his final days in that role. Following Saturday’s loss to Portland, he absolutely ripped the officials and that’s a no-no from the league office. The Blake Griffin trade just hasn’t worked out as planned for Detroit, but we are going to focus on teams with real playoffs chances. Here’s a look at two intriguing NBA betting matchups this week, be sure to check back for the NBA basketball odds.

Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week – March 19th Edition

37 points, 13 rebounds, 14 dimes, 5th straight triple-double, and 6th straight win for @russwest44! #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/bU0VCQWTcy

— NBA (@NBA) 19 de marzo de 2018

Oklahoma City Thunder at Boston Celtics

• When: Tuesday, 8 PM ET (TNT)

It’s the final meeting of the season between these clubs, although it’s not impossible they meet in the NBA Finals. According to the NBA Betting Odds to win it all, is much more likely that Boston gets there than Oklahoma City, however. The Thunder on a given night, though, can beat anyone. They proved that in very impressive fashion Sunday in Toronto, winning their sixth straight game, 132-125. The Raptors have the NBA’s best home record and had won 11 straight overall before Sunday. Russell Westbrook had 37 points, 14 assists and 13 rebounds for his fifth straight triple-double, Steven Adams scored 25 points, Paul George scored 22 points and Carmelo Anthony had 15. Westbrook put the Thunder ahead to stay by driving for a layup with 39 seconds left, then banked home a jump shot with 11 seconds left, giving Oklahoma City a four-point cushion. Westbrook, last year’s MVP, joined Oscar Roberson as the only players in NBA history with three, five-game triple-double streaks. Adams went down in pain after taking a knee to the groin while defending Ibaka’s drive in the third. Adams stayed down for several minutes before walking gingerly to the locker room but was able to return. Anthony reached 25,289 points, passing Reggie Miller (25,279) to take over 19th place on the NBA’s list. Next up is Alex English (25,613). The Celtics are very short-handed right now with Kyrie Irving (knee), Jaylen Brown (concussion), Marcus Smart (thumb) and Daniel Theis (knee) all injured. Theis will miss the rest of the season, and Smart will be out at least the rest of the regular season. It’s possible that Irving plays here. Probably not Brown. On Nov. 3, Boston won in Oklahoma City 101-94. The Celtics outscored the Thunder 64-39 in the second half as they came from 18 down. Irving led the Celtics with 25 points and six assists while Al Horford netted 20 points and eight boards. Brown added a double-double with 10 points and 12 boards. The Thunder were led by George and his 25 points and 10. Westbrook added 19 points and 11 assists.

Toronto Raptors at Cleveland Cavaliers

• When: Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Could be a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals. It will be the second of a back-to-back for Toronto, though, as it was to visit Orlando on Tuesday. The Raptors had their 11-game winning streak snapped Sunday in a rare home loss, 132-125 against the Thunder. DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points and Kyle Lowry fouled out with 22 points and 10 assists as the Eastern Conference-leading Raptors suffered just their sixth home loss of the season. DeRozan, Serge Ibaka, and Raptors coach Dwane Casey were all ejected in the final minute for complaining to the referees. DeRozan was incensed after not getting a call when he tried to drive on Brewer with 30 seconds left and picked up two technicals in the following 22 seconds. With fans in the Air Canada Centre chanting at referees, the officiating crew mistakenly attributed a comment made by a fan or someone else on the Toronto bench to Casey. They decided to eject Casey with just eight seconds left, despite the coach not being who actually spoke to the referees. The Cavaliers are thin up front with Larry Nance (hamstring), Kevin Love (hand) and Tristan Thompson (ankle) all on the sidelines. It’s possible that Love returns sometime this week. He has been quoted as targeting either Wednesday or Friday against the Phoenix Suns. LeBron James recently admitted how much the absence of Love is affecting the struggling Cavs. “It’s been a long time since I haven’t played with another All-Star on my team,” James said. “So, having Kev out has been very challenging for all of us. Kev has a big usage rate on our team. He’ll get the ball when things get tight, chaotic; we can throw it to him in the low post and get some things going.” These teams have met just once this season, a 133-99 Raptors home win on Jan. 11. James scored 26 points while Isaiah Thomas missed his first 11 shots. Thomas has of course since been traded. Love had just 10 points. At the time, it was the most points the Cavs had allowed this season. Fred VanVleet scored a career-high 22 points for the Raptors. Jonas Valanciunas had 15 points and 18 rebounds. The Raptors were without Lowry (bruised tailbone) and Ibaka (suspension). Toronto outscored Cleveland 76-48 in bench points. It outrebounded the Cavs 63-35.

Expert NBA Betting Predictions

I like the Thunder to win in Boston, even more so if Irving sits again. The Cavs will beat the likely tired Raptors playing their second game in 24 hours. Good luck with your NBA Betting Picks!