Kings vs. Clippers

The Clippers are one of my favorite teams right now against the spread. The spread is even against the Kings and I like the Clippers on this one. Although the Clippers are 2-11 on away games, the Kings are only 3-13 at home. Blake Griffin will lead the Clippers to another victory tonight.

UPDATE: Clippers beat Kings 100-99

RECORD: 5-5

With the score at 100-97 and practically no time left on the clock, Tyreke Evans goes to the free throw line to shoot 3 free throws for the Kings. He makes the first two but ends up missing the last one and the Clippers win the game.

NFL Christmas day special

Slam the Cowboys! The Arizona Cardinals have a terrible offense that hardly puts up any points. The Cowboys on the other hand put up a bunch of points each game. Although the Cowboys were off to a slow start this year, they turned their game around and will definitely cover the spread on this one.

The two early pick sixes by the Cardinals defense early in the 1st quarter proved to be too much of a deficit for the Cowboys to come back from. I won't say the Cowboys were a terrible pick, but Jon Kitna just didn't come out to play on Christmas Day.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! Go Magic!

Today I got the Magic covering the -2.5 spread against the Celtics. With the new additions to the Magic, they put on a show the other night against the Spurs, the number 1 team in the NBA right now. The Celtics are a good team and play good set defense, but the new Magic team is more like a quick, transition offense. Expect the Magic to run up the score on these guys.

UPDATE: Magic beat the Celtics 86-78

RECORD: 4-5

The Magic were off to a 13-0 run. However, the Celtics came back and were up 10 at the half. Boston led the rest of the way till the final minutes of the 4th quarter. The Celtics went on a dry spurt, scoring only 1 pt in the last 3 minutes of the game and the Magic came up with some clutch threes and jump shots to put them ahead and eventually win the game.

Heat vs. Suns

Sorry guys. I've been slacking a little lately on posting. The Heat are giving the Suns 6 pts and I'd take the Heat on this one. Although the Mavs broke the Heats win streak the other day. I expect them to shake it off and come back with a big win against the suns.

UPDATE: Heat beat the Suns 95-83

RECORD: 3-5

Celtics vs. Knicks

The Celtics are giving the Knicks 4 points. Both teams have great records, but the Celtics have an awesome record on the road. 19-4 overall and 9-3 on the road. The Celtics are the better team overall and I believe they will easily cover the spread.

UPDATE: Celtics beat Knicks 118-116

RECORD: 2-5

Magic vs. Nuggets

The Magic are giving the Nuggets 2 points. I do think that the Magic are the better team overall here, but the Nuggets are 10-1 at home this year and it's hard to bet against a stat like that. I think the Nuggets can pull this one off with a straight win over the Magic.

UPDATE: Nuggets beat Magic 111-94

RECORD: 2-4

Jazz vs. Warriors

The Jazz are giving the Warriors 11 points. Take the Warriors!

UPDATE: Jazz beat the Warriors 108-95

RECORD: 1-4

After being up 3 points at the end of the 1st half, the Warriors gave up the lead and much more. They ended up losing by 13 points. My picks seem to be going downhill in the late stages of the game. One thing we may be learning from this whole pick-a-day challenge is that you should go AGAINST whatever I pick! Good luck guys! I'll keep picking and see how the next couple days turn out.

Magic vs. Clippers

The Magic is giving 8 points to the Clippers. I don't know if I developed a bias towards Blake Griffin and the Clippers, but I'd take the Clippers on this one. I don't expect them to win the game but I expect them to keep it close enough to cover the spread.

UPDATE: Magic beat Clippers 94-85

RECORD: 1-3

I guess I can't be too disappointed with the outcome seeing as the Clippers were down by 21 points in the first quarter. They were off to a really slow start and couldn't play defense at all, giving up 35 points in the first quarter alone. They managed to come back and in the end, they lost by only 9 points. The Magic won as I expected, but the Clippers didn't hold the score quite as close as I thought it would be.

Clippers vs. Grizzlies

Clippers giving 1.5 points to Grizzlies. With Blake Griffin and the way the Clippers have been playing, I'd give it to them on this one. They're playing at home and should come away with the win on this one.

UPDATE: Grizzlies beat Clippers 84-83

RECORD: 1-2

The Clippers were off to a good start going in to the half up 6 points but costly turnovers towards the end of the game cost them the lead and the game overall. If they can clean up the turnover situation, they would be a much better team.

Pistons vs. Timberwolves

Timberwolves are giving 4 points to the Pistons. The Detroit Pistons are a terrible team on the road and although the Timberwolves aren't much of a team either, I believe the Timberwolves will come through tonight with a win against Detroit.

Another interesting matchup is the Lakers vs. Bulls. I really don't know who to pick on this one. The Lakers are giving 2 points to the Bulls but I think the Bulls may beat the Lakers straight up. The Lakers have been flaky this season against better competition and I don't know if they'll be up to the challenge. The Bulls are 7-2 at home and I think they may be able to keep their home record strong with another win tonight.

UPDATE: Timberwolves beat Pistons 109-99, Bulls beat Lakers 88-84

RECORD: 1-1

Celtics vs. 76ers

The Celtics are giving five points to the 76ers and I would take the Celtics for sure on this one. After they destroyed the Nuggets last night at home, they should be able to get a convincing win over the 76ers tonight. With completely opposite records, Celtics 14-7 and 76ers 7-14, watch as Boston dominates Philadelphia tonight.

UPDATE: Celtics beat 76ers 101-100

RECORD: 0-1

The score remained close with some clutch shots down the stretch by both teams. A loss on the spread for me but overall an exciting game to watch.

NBA 1 pick-a-day Challenge

For the next two weeks, I will choose one NBA game a day and see what kind of record I hold at the end. I know a 50% record isn't good in terms of betting seeing as the house will win the juice and you will end up losing money. I will shoot for 60% and anything above that is just icing on the cake. Anything below that means I suck. Have fun with it guys! Feel free to comment on picks and give your input.

Miami Heat

The Heat were off to a slow start at the beginning of the year and the hype of LeBron, Wade and Bosh seemed to overshadow the play of the team. But it seems like they are starting to play together and with a five-game win streak, I'd take the Heat over the Jazz tonight. Although the Jazz are playing at home and have a better record than the Heat, the three leaders on Miami will come through and continue the streak.

UPDATE: Miami beat Utah 111-98

The Heat continue to burn and they increase their win streak to six games.

DEFENSE

With two of the best defenses going against each other tonight, the Steelers vs. Ravens under 38.5 points seemed like an easy pick and indeed it was. The score was 7-0 Ravens going into the half and that left no doubt in my mind that the under would be safe. The final score 13-10 Steelers totaled only 23 points covering the under by a lot. Stay tuned for more stories and feel free to post your own. It's fun to share!

UW clutch TD

With a 6 point spread over Washington State, the Washington huskies looked like an easy pick over the cougars. Looking at their season records and statistics it seemed like UW would trample WSU. Both teams were off to a slow start in the 1st half. The huskies managed to score a couple touchdowns and took a 14-7 lead into the break. In the 2nd half, defenses got tired and both offenses exploded. With the game tied at 28, Washington needed to score a touchdown to cover the spread. With 1:21 left in the game, Washington goes for it on 4th and 1 at WSU 31 and converts. Thank god. However, on the next play they get penalized for a personal foul. The chances of winning look slim… The time will probably run out and Washington will kick the field goal to win the game but not cover the spread. Locker read my mind and on the next play threw a ball to the end zone and connected for a 27 yard touchdown pass to Kearse. WSU gets the ball back, time begins to wind down and with no time remaining WASH gets a pick to seal the deal!

Oregon vs. Auburn

After a typically slow start, the Oregon offense came through and carried the Ducks to a win over the Beavers and a shot at the BCS title. All is good for them… However, I had the over and they fell one touchdown short of covering the 64 points. I’ve seen worse starts for the Oregon team including the scoreless 1st quarter in the Washington game, but this time they were not able to pull through and score enough points. On the other hand, Auburn continued to do their thing against #19 South Carolina, smashing them 56-17. I’m anxious to see the o/u for that game with two of the most potent offenses meeting up. I’m guessing a ridiculously high total around 70 points. It may sound absurd, but I’d shoot the over again.