Wednesday's NBA Preview

” A major trend to sweep through the league on Monday was near perfect 6-1 mark on the 'under'. Tuesday night's games will help us determine what's to come on Wednesday.

ESPN will broadcast a solo tip-off between Golden State (14-31 straight up, 20-24-1 against the spread) and Dallas (25-19 SU, 19-25 ATS) to begin the evening.

The Mavericks are coming off a four-game road stint for which they went 2-2 SU and ATS. But they shouldn’t rest just yet as the home contest on Wednesday is short lived. A two-game trip to

Miami and Orlando will roll right into the beginning of February.
Sticking with the contest at hand, Dallas has surrendered 109.1 PPG in its last nine (3-6 SU, 4-5 ATS). This lack of defense has pushed the club down the rankings at 16th, allowing a seasonal 99.4 PPG. The trend to emerge from allowing so many points is an ‘over’ record at 5-1 in the last six. Included was a Sunday, 124-100 loss in Boston which had the Mavs shooting just 42 percent from the field.

On the opposing bench, the Warriors have worked for a 4-3 record in their last seven after falling in five straight. But a 9-25 stretch in the last 34 can be overshadowed by a 7-3 ATS sprint in the last 10. Golden State has won four of the last five ATS games in large part to shooting 49.6 percent from the wood. Its last SU and ATS win over the Clippers came as a 10 ½-point favorite. Led by Corey Maggette (20 points, six rebounds), the Warriors drained 47 percent of its shots from beyond the arc, capturing the victory by the score of 107-92.

Golden state has coughed up 118.2 PPG in its last six losses versus giving up 105.3 PPG in the last four wins. The Warriors will now look ahead to three tough road games after finishing up a seven-game home stand. Golden State is 1-10 SU and 2-8-1 in its last 11 road games and is a disappointing 4-8 ATS away from home against teams playing over .500.

While Dallas is 3-1 in the last four head-to-head matches, the Warriors are a standout, 22-6-1 ATS in the last 29 head-to-head tip-offs.

Nuggets at Hornets – 8:00 p.m. EST

It’s been a roller coaster ride playing New Orleans (27-14 SU, 18-21-2 ATS) against the spread. For starters, the Hornets may be 4-1 in their last five but a 5-5 ATS record in the last 10 provides enough evidence of their unpredictability in returning money. Three of the five ATS losses have resulted as being the underdog on the board in road games. In-fact when books have installed New Orleans as the ‘dog this season, the team has gone 2-8 ATS.

Supporting the fade play on the Hornets is Denver’s (29-15 SU, 25-18-1 ATS) three-game ATS winning streak for which the team has outscored its opponents, 117-103.7 PPG. This offensive dominance has resulted in an 11-4 SU and 9-6 ATS run in the last 15, all aided by the Nuggets finding the hoop for 114.5 PPG. If you’re a totals player then a 10-5 ‘over’ record through the same 15 games is pertinent evidence that books will continue to tinker with total figures (the last two games have seen totals of 214 ½ and 220 ½-points respectively).

The road team is 10-4 ATS in the last 14 head-to-head meetings between these two teams.

Philadelphia at Houston – 8:30 p.m. EST

The 76ers (21-22 SU, 21-22 ATS) are coming off a loss in New Orleans (101-86), resulting in their third straight ATS loss in a row. A 4-6 ATS slide in the last 10 road games has backers sitting on the sidelines in the hopes that a positive trend tips the scales in their favor. At least a 7-3 record on the ‘over’ in those same 10 has produced an avenue for bettors to hop on. Philly is also coming off a seven-game winning streak which ended with a loss in Dallas (95-93) on Jan. 19. And there’s no overlooking the 8-3 ATS record in the last 10 (eight of them crafted in a row).

The Rockets (28-18 SU, 21-25 ATS) are best described as damaged good (nothing new for this club). Just as Tracy McGrady and Ron Artest come back from injury, Yao Ming departs with an ailing knee. A good indication of the rough goings in Houston include averaging 20.2 assists per game this season, 22nd worst in the league. The Rockets will be coming back home after playing eight of 13 games on the road (3-5 SU and ATS during the road trip). In its last 14 home games, Houston has put the injury bug behind it, working for a 12-2 SU record. But a 7-7 ATS stint doesn’t warrant heavy support from your bank account.

The team hopes that Ming will return to the lineup on Wednesday.The ‘Sixers dispatched of the Rockets on Jan. 6, 104-96. Philly didn’t need the three-points to cover the spread.

The ‘over’ is 6-0 in the last six head-to-head meetings.

Charlotte at Portland – 10:00 p.m. EST

A 5-13 road record is no way to open analysis on a team which you might be thinking to back. But if we dig just a little deeper we’ll notice that Charlotte (18-26 SU, 26-18 ATS) is 6-1 ATS in its last seven (ending the six-game ATS streak in a 98-93 loss in Indiana). Then again, four of those six ATS victories came from playing at home. Most books have opened the Bobcats as 9 ½-point visiting ‘dogs with a total set at 180 ½. From nine to 14-plus underdogs, Charlotte is just 2-3 ATS this season. On the road versus teams with a winning record, Charlotte has been the play at 5-2 ATS.

Portland (27-17 SU, 21-22 ATS) will attempt to take its eighth win in the last 11 home games in its 11th game installed as the favorite. The Trailblazers are 6-4 ATS in their last 10. Individually, Greg Oden has created a groove for himself, scoring 17 PPG with 10.8 RPG in the last four (3-1 SU and ATS in those four). When Oden has surpassed scoring double-digit figures in the last nine, Portland has gone 7-2 SU and 6-3 ATS. The ‘Blazers have also stepped up their production on defense, allowing 91 PPG in the last four games.

This is a revenge game for Portland which took an overtime ‘L’ against the Bobcats (102-97) on Jan. 17.