Warriors Look for Revenge in Back to Back Meetings
The Golden State Warriors (23-13 SU, 14-22 ATS) came out of the holidays as the top team in the Pacific Division. They’re not playing like the juggernauts of recent memory though. They won’t have their big off-season acquisition ready for Saturday’s road game against the Portland Trail Blazers (20-15 SU, 17-18 ATS).
Tip-off is at 10 PM ET on NBA-TV. Line: Warriors -5; O/U: 226.
The Warriors had hoped that DeMarcus Cousins might be ready to make his 2018-19 season debut on or shortly after Christmas Day. His recovery from last year’s torn Achilles is taking some time. Cousins’ rehab might even extend into February. That is leaving Golden State’s front-court in some disarray . Damian Jones is also out indefinitely with a torn pectoral.
Portland has a healthy lineup going into Saturday’s matchup, but they’re an average team at best right now. They are outscoring teams by an average of 0.1 points per game. The Warriors have a point differential of plus-4.0. PG Damian Lillard is scoring 27.5 points per 36 minutes for the Blazers. Most of his back-court teammates defense leaves something to be desired. Big men Jusuf Nurkic and Zach Collins supply most of Portland’s stopping power
This, That, and a Dart Throw
Damian Lillard didn’t miss his chance to win a game in overtime on Thursday, but Kevin Durant did. Durant and the Warriors will try to get some quick revenge against the Trail Blazers on Saturday in the back end of the home-and-home set. Lillard buried a 3-pointer with 6.3 seconds left in overtime on Thursday. It gave the Trail Blazers a 110-109 lead that became the final when Durant missed a jumper at the other end.
Golden State dropped its last two games and three of the last five. The team continues to look for the form that enabled them to win three of the last four NBA titles. Steph Curry finished with 29 points and seven assists on Thursday. He also committed the turnover that led to Lillard’s go-ahead 3-pointer. Curry is 9-of-16 from 3-point range over the last three contests. Klay Thompson went 2-of-9 from 3-point range. He is shooting 20.8 percent from beyond the arc over the last eight games.
Portland center Jusuf Nurkic collected 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting. He also had 12 rebounds on Thursday. He took advantage of a Warriors team lacking a true center. Nurkic was one of the few Trail Blazer players to enjoy a decent shooting night Thursday. The rest of the club shot 32.2 percent from the floor.
PREDICTION: Warriors 112, Trail Blazers 106
NBA Betting Odds & Trends
| Golden State Warriors |
|---|
| The Warriors are 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games |
| Golden State is 8-4 SU in its last 12 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Golden State’s last 10 games |
| The Warriors are 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road |
| The Warriors are 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Portland |
| Golden State is 12-3 SU in its last 15 games when playing Portland |
| The total has gone OVER in 18 of Golden State’s last 24 games when playing Portland |
| The Warriors are 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Portland |
| The total has gone OVER in 10 of Golden State’s last 11 games when playing on the road against Portland |
| Portland Trail Blazers |
|---|
| The Trail Blazers are 6-13 ATS in its last 19 games |
| The Trail Blazers are 5-2 SU in its last 7 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Portland’s last 5 games |
| Portland is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games at home |
| The Trail Blazers are 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home |
| The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Portland’s last 14 games at home |
| The Trail Blazers are 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Golden State |
| Portland is 3-12 SU in its last 15 games when playing Golden State |
| The total has gone OVER in 18 of Portland’s last 24 games when playing Golden State |
| The Trail Blazers are 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Golden State |
| The total has gone OVER in 10 of Portland’s last 11 games when playing at home against Golden State |
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