Ricky Dimon
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The two most storied franchises in NBA history are squaring off on Saturday. It’s the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics, and they are appropriately getting primetime billing on ABC. Saturday’s eight-game slate also includes the Milwaukee Bucks, Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks, and Golden State Warriors.
Here’s our five-team parlay for Saturday:
Bulls ML (+105)
Bucks -7 (-110)
Heat ML (-220)
Celtics +2 (-110)
Warriors -5.5 (-110)
Parlay odds: +1650
For this parlay we mix in two favorites against the spread, one underdog and the points, and two outright winners (one favorite and one underdog). Let’s break down each of the five legs one by one.
Chicago Bulls ML over Portland Trail Blazers (+105)
It has been a rough stretch for the Trail Blazers, who have lost C.J. McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic for an extended period of time. They are 2-3 in their last five games and things won’t get better any time soon as the duo is expected to be out until at least the end of February. Portland has dropped the first two of a current seven-game road trip. The Bulls are by no means a juggernaut at home, but they have covered 11 times in their last 15 overall and they already beat the Blazers in Portland earlier this month when they were +9.5 underdogs. Zach LaVine has been playing really well this season and leads the team in scoring, averaging 27 points per game while connecting on 50 percent of his shots (40 percent from three-point range).
Milwaukee Bucks -7 over Charlotte Hornets (-110)
The Bucks are coming off a loss to New Orleans on Friday, but they should feel confident in getting back to their winning ways here. They have dominated the Hornets over the last few seasons (5-0 against them in the last five meetings with the smallest margin of victory during this stretch being eight points). Charlotte simply does not have anyone to match up with Giannis Antetokounmpo (not many teams do!). The Hornets’ big men are too slow to guard him off the dribble and their tweener forwards like P.J. Washington and Miles Bridges are too small and get exploited in the post. The rest of the Bucks supporting cast should benefit from the double-teams that the Hornets are likely to send the Greek Freak’s way. It is also worth noting that Charlotte is playing the second game of a back-to-back situation, as well.
Heat ML over Sacramento Kings (-220)
There is optimism that Heat star Jimmy Butler will be able to return to the lineup for this one. The return of their best player should elevate them back into the upper-third of the NBA, where they certainly have not been throughout 10 games that Butler missed. Meanwhile, the Kings did not fly out of Tampa (where they beat the Raptors 126-124 on Friday) until close to midnight and will likely be dealing with some fatigue. Sacramento ranks dead last in the NBA in defensive efficiency by a wide margin. They allow a league-worst 120.6 points per game and allow their opponents to shoot almost 40 percent from beyond the arc. Playing on zero days of rest this season, the Kings are 0-2—losing to the Suns by 16 points and the Trail Blazers by 26.
Boston Celtics +2 over Los Angeles Lakers (-110)
The Lakers are coming off back-to-back losses for the first time this season. The first was against Philadelphia and came in the final seconds, but the most recent one was far more alarming (against lowly Detroit). Anthony Davis is questionable for Saturday, whereas the Celtics finally have all hands on deck. Jayson Tatum is back to put Boston at full strength, as Kemba Walker has also returned from an early-season injury. Jaylen Brown used their absences to emerge as the team leader and he has really taken his game to another level in the process. Even if Davis plays, Boston has the talent to hang with the defending champions.
Golden State Warriors -5.5 over Detroit Pistons (-110)
The Pistons are coming off their best win of the season and they may be in line for a hangover after upsetting the Lakers. It doesn’t help that Detroit has to go on the road for this one, as it is 1-7 in such games during the 2020-21 campaign. The Warriors are 7-4 at home, and when they are good…they are really good. They simply play in a ton of blowout games, both to the good and to the bad. At home against a terrible opponent (Detroit’s most recent performance notwithstanding), Stephen Curry and company should be in line for one of those good days at the office.
Pickswise is the home of free NBA picks and predictions. We will cover all the big offseason news before making picks for every game during the 2021 season.
