After the shortest off-season ever, the NBA is back! The daily preview breaks down a Western Conference duel between Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers.
NBA Tips – Golden State Warriors V Portland Trail Blazers
14:30 (AEDT), Sat 2nd Jan @ Chase Center, San Francisco
History: Played 245: Trail Blazers 128 V Warriors 117
Last meeting: January 20, 2020: Trail Blazers 129 d Warriors 124 (OT) at Moda Center
Final Thoughts: Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers both head into this New Year’s Day showdown with 2-2 records. But it’s the home side with the momentum after notching wins in their last two games.
The Warriors lost heavily to the star-studded Nets and Bucks in the early days of the season. But they have bounced back with victories over the Bulls (129-128) and Pistons (116-106) to finish a four-game road trip on a high. Steph Curry scored 36 and 31 points respectively in the wins, which both saw Golden State overturn fourth-quarter deficits. New faces Andrew Wiggins and Kelly Oubre Jr have also impressed.
The Blazers kicked off their campaign with a disappointing 20-point loss to the Jazz. But they responded with an overtime victory against the Rockets – with CJ McCollum going off for 44 points – and a Damian Lillard-led (31 pts) 115-107 upset of the Lakers. Portland came back to earth two days ago via a 128-105 loss to the Clippers, however.
Despite a string of convincing playoff series losses to the Warriors in recent seasons, the Blazers have won six of the last nine regular-season clashes between the teams. Meanwhile, their last 20 regular-season meetings produced tallies of 219-plus points.
The Curry-Lillard battle is the headline attraction in San Francisco. But until the shorthanded Warriors can prove themselves against quality opposition, the deeper Trail Blazers shape as the clear value option only giving away a small start in what should be another high-scorer.
Tip: Handicap – Trail Blazers -3.5 @ $1.90
OTHER NBA GAMES | ||
| TEAMS | ||
| Dallas Mavericks V Miami Heat | Result – Heat @ $1.85 | |
| Charlotte Hornets V Memphis Grizzlies | Handicap – Grizzlies +3.5 @ $1.93 | |
| Detroit Pistons V Boston Celtics | Margin – Celtics 1-10 @ $2.71 | |
| Brooklyn Nets V Atlanta Hawks | Handicap – Nets -6 @ $1.90 | |
| Minnesota Timberwolves V Washington Wizards | Result – Wizards @ $2.00 | |
| Milwaukee Bucks V Chicago Bulls | Total – Under 233.5 @ $1.90 | |
| San Antonio Spurs V Los Angeles Lakers | Handicap – Lakers -6.5 @ $1.90 | |
| Utah Jazz V Los Angeles Clippers | Handicap – Clippers -3.5 @ $1.90 | |
| Denver Nuggets V Phoenix Suns | Handicap – Suns +3.5 @ $1.90 | |
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