Celtics, Nuggets cap NBA betting twinbill
The ’over’ is 4-1 in the last five meetings between Denver and Boston.
A reshaped Denver Nuggets roster, minus Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups, will host the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics during the second half of Thursday’s TNT pro hoop doubleheader.
Tip-off will be 7:30 p.m. (PT) from Denver’s Pepsi Center and follows the telecast of the Heat and Bulls in Chicago.
Despite playing with just nine players on Tuesday against Memphis, the Nuggets registered a 120-107 victory against the Grizzlies as 1 ½-point home favorites. The win and cover lifted Denver’s home ledger to 23-7 straight up and 13-15-2 against the spread.
The combined 227 points soared above the 205 ½-point closing total, enabling the ‘over’ to improve to 17-12-1 at home and 31-26-1 overall.
J.R. Smith's 26 points helped short-handed Denver defeat the Grizzlies hours after the Nuggets finalized a blockbuster deal that sent Anthony and Billups to the New York Knicks for Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov and a 2014 first-round draft pick. Denver also acquired center Kosta Koufos from the Timberwolves.
No Anthony meant more shots to go around for Smith, who finished 9-of-22 as he stepped into Anthony's starting spot. Speedy Ty Lawson efficiently ran the team in place of Billups, scoring 21 points and dishing out seven assists.
However, Smith hobbled off the court late in the game favoring his right leg. The Don Best Sports injury report lists Smith as “probable,” as are the new players Denver acquired from the Knicks in the Anthony trade.
The Nuggets have 24 more games to reassemble the pieces in an effort to make the playoffs for an eighth straight season. The team entered the night in seventh place in the Western Conference, just ahead of Memphis and Utah.
Boston doesn’t have any roster issues or new players to welcome. Doc Rivers’ troops own the best record in the Eastern Conference at 41-14 SU, but they are just 27-26-2 ATS.
Boston ran its winning streak to three games with Tuesday’s 115-93 shelling of the Golden State Warriors as a 4 ½-point road favorite. It was Boston’s first game on a four-game West Coast trip.
The victory lifted Boston’s road ledger to 16-9 SU and 14-11 ATS. The squad is outscoring its opponents away from home by an average of six points per game (96-90).
Rajon Rondo celebrated his 25th birthday by scoring 19 points and dishing out 15 assists to lead Boston’s offense.
The win might have come with a harsh price, as Kendrick Perkins bruised his left knee in the third quarter and didn’t return. quarter and didn’t return. The 6-foot-10, 280-pound center, who is averaging eight rebounds per game, is listed as “questionable.”
Defense continues to be Boston’s calling card this season, as the club leads the league by yielding a meager 91.2 PPG. The Celtics are allowing the opposition to shoot just 43.5 percent from the field (3rd) and 33.5 percent from beyond the arc (5th).
Though the Celtics are just 19th offensively with a 98.2 PPG average, they are shooting a league-leading 49.4 percent from the field.
Boston and Denver have met once this season (Dec. 8), with the Celtics recording a 105-89 victory as seven-point home favorites. Though the combined 194 points dipped ‘under’ the 204-point closing total, the ‘over’ is still 8-3 in the last 11 series meetings.
Ironically, Anthony missed that game with an injury. Ray Allen led the Boston attack with 28 points.
Denver is 5-1 ATS in its last six home meetings against Boston, with the ‘over’ going 4-1 in the
last five home matchups.
The Celtics continue their four-game West Coast excursion Saturday against the Los Angeles Clippers, while the Nuggets travel to Portland for a Friday contest against the Blazers.
The ’over’ is 4-1 in the last five meetings between Denver and Boston.
A reshaped Denver Nuggets roster, minus Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups, will host the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics during the second half of Thursday’s TNT pro hoop doubleheader.
Tip-off will be 7:30 p.m. (PT) from Denver’s Pepsi Center and follows the telecast of the Heat and Bulls in Chicago.
Despite playing with just nine players on Tuesday against Memphis, the Nuggets registered a 120-107 victory against the Grizzlies as 1 ½-point home favorites. The win and cover lifted Denver’s home ledger to 23-7 straight up and 13-15-2 against the spread.
The combined 227 points soared above the 205 ½-point closing total, enabling the ‘over’ to improve to 17-12-1 at home and 31-26-1 overall.
J.R. Smith's 26 points helped short-handed Denver defeat the Grizzlies hours after the Nuggets finalized a blockbuster deal that sent Anthony and Billups to the New York Knicks for Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov and a 2014 first-round draft pick. Denver also acquired center Kosta Koufos from the Timberwolves.
No Anthony meant more shots to go around for Smith, who finished 9-of-22 as he stepped into Anthony's starting spot. Speedy Ty Lawson efficiently ran the team in place of Billups, scoring 21 points and dishing out seven assists.
However, Smith hobbled off the court late in the game favoring his right leg. The Don Best Sports injury report lists Smith as “probable,” as are the new players Denver acquired from the Knicks in the Anthony trade.
The Nuggets have 24 more games to reassemble the pieces in an effort to make the playoffs for an eighth straight season. The team entered the night in seventh place in the Western Conference, just ahead of Memphis and Utah.
Boston doesn’t have any roster issues or new players to welcome. Doc Rivers’ troops own the best record in the Eastern Conference at 41-14 SU, but they are just 27-26-2 ATS.
Boston ran its winning streak to three games with Tuesday’s 115-93 shelling of the Golden State Warriors as a 4 ½-point road favorite. It was Boston’s first game on a four-game West Coast trip.
The victory lifted Boston’s road ledger to 16-9 SU and 14-11 ATS. The squad is outscoring its opponents away from home by an average of six points per game (96-90).
Rajon Rondo celebrated his 25th birthday by scoring 19 points and dishing out 15 assists to lead Boston’s offense.
The win might have come with a harsh price, as Kendrick Perkins bruised his left knee in the third quarter and didn’t return. quarter and didn’t return. The 6-foot-10, 280-pound center, who is averaging eight rebounds per game, is listed as “questionable.”
Defense continues to be Boston’s calling card this season, as the club leads the league by yielding a meager 91.2 PPG. The Celtics are allowing the opposition to shoot just 43.5 percent from the field (3rd) and 33.5 percent from beyond the arc (5th).
Though the Celtics are just 19th offensively with a 98.2 PPG average, they are shooting a league-leading 49.4 percent from the field.
Boston and Denver have met once this season (Dec. 8), with the Celtics recording a 105-89 victory as seven-point home favorites. Though the combined 194 points dipped ‘under’ the 204-point closing total, the ‘over’ is still 8-3 in the last 11 series meetings.
Ironically, Anthony missed that game with an injury. Ray Allen led the Boston attack with 28 points.
Denver is 5-1 ATS in its last six home meetings against Boston, with the ‘over’ going 4-1 in the
last five home matchups.
The Celtics continue their four-game West Coast excursion Saturday against the Los Angeles Clippers, while the Nuggets travel to Portland for a Friday contest against the Blazers.
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