The Portland Trail Blazers and the Brooklyn Nets will battle it out in an exciting inter-conference affair on Friday. It’s time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Blazers-Nets prediction and pick.
Portland is finally getting their season back on track after going through one of the worst slumps of Damian Lillard's career over the past few weeks. Portland has won their last two games, surpassing 130 points scored in each. Brooklyn has won four straight games despite having an injury list that could fill an entire roster.
Here’s how sportsbooks have set the opening Blazers-Nets odds.
NBA Odds: Blazers-Nets Odds
Portland Trail Blazers -1 (-105)
Over 240.5 Points (-110)
Under 240.5 Points (-110)
Why The Blazers Could Cover The Spread
The Portland Trail Blazers are finally back on track after stringing together a ton of losses over the past few weeks. They are currently 34-28 on the season and won their last game against Memphis by 21 points. The Blazers are finally shooting with efficiency again as they've shot at least 47% from the floor in each of their last two games. The backcourt trio of Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, and Norman Powell came up big for Portland in the recent win against the Grizzlies and the NBA odds in this game against the Nets have seemingly taken note.
The trio went for 73 combined points for Portland and saw some other contributions from key front court players as well. Carmelo Anthony added 18 points and Jusuf Nurkic was one rebound shy of a double-double. Nurkic has been a key addition to the club since returning from a 32-game absence earlier in the season. In his last four games, Nurkic is averaging 17 points, 13.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.0 steal, and 1.3 blocks. He has solidified this group that couldn't man the paint while he was gone.
Why The Nets Could Cover The Spread
The Brooklyn Nets have clinched a playoff spot and are now just playing for seeding as the season winds down. The biggest focus for the Brooklyn Nets down the stretch will be to get healthy as they have one of the most extensive injury lists in the league. The big-three have only appeared in seven games together this season, which isn't promising from a chemistry perspective. The talent and offensive abilities are clearly there, but three primary ball-handlers will have to learn how to play together on the fly come playoff time. Despite the lack of their consistent presence, this team has still dominated opponents on a regular basis.
The depth and capabilities up-and-down this roster have been put on full display over this injury-plagued stretch for Brooklyn. They are getting contributions down the line from guys like Jeff Green, Alize Johnson, Landry Shamet, and Tyler Johnson. Brooklyn still has one of the two leaders in Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant playing on a semi-regular basis. Durant delivered a double-double in the recent win against Indiana with 42 points and 10 rebounds. The Nets enjoy playing at home as they are 12-1 in their last 13 games at the Barclays Center coming in. Despite this, they find themselves a slight underdogs for the NBA odds in this matchup.
Final Blazers-Nets Prediction & Pick
It's hard for me to convince anyone that Brooklyn will lose a game at the Barclays Center, but that is what I believe will happen on Friday. Portland is clicking on all cylinders right now and enters this game with the utmost confidence. With Brooklyn being on the back end of a back-to-back and an injury list that looks like a whole roster, I find it hard to believe that they will have the firepower to keep up. Kevin Durant is doubtful, James Harden is out, and Kyrie Irving is questionable after missing Thursday's game. Portland is 5-0 in their last five road games against Brooklyn and will have much less of a test in the game tonight.
FINAL PICK: Portland -1 (-105)
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