It’s another big time Sunday for NBA betting battles, and our expert NBA handicappers offer up their free basketball picks for the biggest game on a huge slate of clashes!
NBA Matchup: Chicago Bulls @ Miami Heat
Date: Sunday, March 6th, 1:00 ET
Location: American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL
NBA Odds: Miami -5
Over/Under (Total): 188
The Heat are in bad shape right now, as they have been outscored by a whopping 51 points in their last three halves of basketball. Needless to say, regardless of who you’re playing, that’s not going to get the job done. Miami has been wildly inconsistent this season at home, going just 11-18 ATS over the course of its 29 games played here in South Beach. However, this is the back end of a brutal road trip for the Bulls after beating the Orlando Magic at the Amway Center on Friday night. Sure, Chicago has an incredibly deep team, but Miami just matches up particularly well against this team for whatever reason. Go with LeBron, D-Wade, and company to take care of the NBA odds in this one, as the good run of play for the Bulls will go by the boards. NBA Free Pick: Miami Heat
NBA Matchup: Los Angeles Lakers @ San Antonio Spurs
Date: Sunday, March 6th, 3:30 ET
Location: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX
NBA Odds: San Antonio -2.5
Over/Under (Total): 191
If the Spurs were out to make a big time statement on Friday night, that’s exactly what they did when they obliterated the Miami Heat by a whopping 30 points at home. The defense was just locked in, and the lack of depth on the Heat just wasn’t able to keep up with the run and gun style of offense that Head Coach Gregg Popovich is now bringing to the table. Will it keep up against the Lakers? Kobe Bryant and company had better hope not, especially if Derek Fisher is going to be held out of the fold with an elbow injury. There is just so little respect for the Spurs this season, and this is really no exception. Sure, Los Angeles is good, but the time is really going to have to come that the oddsmakers realize that the Spurs really are the best team in the Western Conference, and potentially in the whole NBA. Tony Parker will be back at full strength in this one after getting his feet wet against Miami, and he should help lead this team to a ‘W’ on Sunday. Free NBA Pick: San Antonio Spurs
NBA Matchup: New York Knicks @ Atlanta Hawks
Date: Sunday, March 6th, 6:30 ET
Location: Phillips Arena, Atlanta, GA
NBA Odds: OTB
Over/Under (Total): OTB
Neither the Hawks nor the Knicks really thrill us right now, but health could really be a key factor in this one. We know that Chauncey Billups has been out of the lineup for these last two games with a thigh injury, but he is likely to be back to join the team in the Peach State for this NBA betting affair. However, the Hawks are likely going to be without Josh Smith. It is clear which team made the right moves at the trade deadline and which one probably didn’t, though Kirk Hinrich finally had his first big game with the Hawks in the loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday. The truth of the matter though, is that the combination of Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, and Billups could easily combine for 75, or even more points in this one, and if that’s what happens, there isn’t a heck of a lot that the rest of this team is going to have to do to make for great NBA picks in this one. Expert NBA Pick: New York Knicks
NBA Matchup: Phoenix Suns @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Date: Sunday, March 6th, 7:00 ET
Location: Ford Center, Oklahoma City, OK
NBA Odds: Oklahoma City -5.5
Over/Under (Total): 212
This game could be significantly closer than the expert NBA handicappers really think. The Suns have been playing great ball of late, and they really probably found a diamond in the rough when they brought in Aaron Brooks to help out as a scorer. It’d be great if Vince Carter would play in this one, and the possibility is still there, but even if he doesn’t, we still tend to believe that Phoenix is the right play. It really just feels like the Thunder are merely trying to hang on until Kendrick Perkins gets into this lineup for the first time, as the truth of the matter is that the only differences between this team now and the one from a few weeks ago is that Nazr Mohammed is in, and both Nenad Krstic and Jeff Green are out. Not exactly a great deal quite yet, and it won’t look all that great on Sunday either. Free Basketball Pick: Phoenix Suns
NBA Matchup: Boston Celtics @ Milwaukee Bucks
Date: Sunday, March 6th, 9:00 ET
Location: Bradley Center, Milwaukee, WI
NBA Odds: Boston -7.5
Over/Under (Total): 182.5
We’ve been talking a lot about injuries in this piece, but we know that there isn’t a team that we feel worse for this season than this one. The Bucks are just all over the board right now, as there aren’t any players that have been in the fold for even 59 of the 60 games this season. Still, grabbing that last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference isn’t totally out of the question, making this one a potential playoff preview. However, Jeff Green has really arrived at this point, and his 21 point effort off of the bench on Friday proved that. The C’s are a dangerous club, and even though they really haven’t turned up the defensive intensity in a few games, they are scoring a ton of late. The Bucks don’t have that inside banger to make up for the lack of bigs that Boston has, and as a result, the visitors should triumph in a big time way in the Bradley Center on Sunday. Free NBA Pick: Boston Celtics
