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The Milwaukee Bucks host the Utah Jazz for an interleague battle Saturday night! It's time to continue our NBA odds series with a Jazz-Bucks prediction and pick.
The Jazz have been the biggest shocker of the 2022-23 season to date. They are (17-14) on the year despite trading both Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell this past offseason. Utah has won two in a row against the New Orleans Pelicans with both being at home. On Thursday night, the Jazz escaped with a 132-129 vicotry over NO as Jordan Clarkson scored 39 points to lead the game. The Jazz are the 7th seed in the Western Conference.
The Bucks are (20-8) on the year and are battling injuries right now. The Bucks are coming off what could be the worst loss in franchise history as the Memphis Grizzlies whooped them 142-101. The players on the Grizzlies bench started doing the wave in the third quarter … that's how bad it was. Bobby Portis led the Bucks in scoring with 19 as Giannis Antetokoumnpo scored just 19 also on 5-13 shooting. The Bucks are hoping to get healthy soon as the remain the 2nd seed in the East.
Here are the Jazz-Bucks NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NBA Odds: Jazz-Bucks Odds
Utah Jazz: +4.5 (-114)
Milwaukee Bucks: -4.5 (-106)
Over: 230 (-110)
Under: 230 (-110)
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Why The Jazz Could Cover The Spread
The Jazz have a great chance to cover this spread as away underdogs. Collin Sexton is the only player out and even though he is a crucial part of this team, the Jazz have proven they have a ton of offensive threats. Six players average north of 10 points per game and five will be active tonight. Clarkson should continue to play well. He's fresh off of 39 points and has scored over 20 points in three of his previous four games. Lauri Markkanen averages 22.4 points per game with 8.5 rebounds to go along with it. HE and Clarkson have been the top two scoring options all season.
It's too early too tell if Giannis will play, however, he likely will. The Jazz will need to try and defend him as the Grizzlies did Thursday night. They have a chance to take advanatge of an oppertunity to keep the win streak alive. The Jazz are the 2nd best offensive team in the NBA as of now behind the Boston Celtics at 117.9 points per game.
Why The Bucks Could Cover The Spread
The Bucks have more bad news. Khris Middleton is out tonight once again with right knee soreness. The good news is, he is progressing and forward Joe Ingles is set to return as well from his torn ACL. Giannis and Jrue Holiday are both banged up and likely will play tonight. Holiday didn't play in that awful loss to the Grizzlies so him set to play tonight is big for this team. This month of December has not been great compared to October and November. The Bucks offense has taken a hit and are now 18th in scoring at 122.2 per game.
I'm sure Giannis and Jrue will play well enough and keep them in this game for the whole way through, unlike the last performencd. Brook Lopez has been the top defender all season long and should have some success against Kelly Olynyk and Markkanen. Lopez is averaging 13.9 points per game, but more importantly 2.8 blocks per game. Bobby Portis and Giannis are out-rebounding him but those defensive boards will catch up to him. He is the favorite to win the DPOY award according to FanDuel.
Final Jazz-Bucks Prediction & Pick
This should be an easy pick as the Bucks have been so elite for so long. However, I expect the Jazz to cover five points tonight. I also like the over at 230.
Final Jazz-Bucks Prediction & Pick: Jazz +4.5 (-114); Over 230 (-110)
