The Brooklyn Nets (16-12) visit the Washington Wizards (11-16) on Monday. Action tips off at 7:10 pm ET. Below we continue our NBA odds series with a Nets-Wizards prediction and pick.
Brooklyn has won three games in a row to bump them up to fourth in the Eastern Conference. The Nets are 12-15-1 against the spread while 57% of their games have gone under. Washington has lost six straight games to drop them to 12th in the East. The Wizards are 10-14-3 against the spread while 52% of their games have gone over. This will be the third of four meetings between the two teams this season.
Here are the Nets-Wizards NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NBA Odds: Nets-Wizards Odds
Brooklyn Nets: -6 (-108)
Washington Wizards: +6 (-112)
Over: 227.5 (-110)
Under: 227.5 (-110)
Why The Nets Could Cover The Spread
Brooklyn has been red-hot as of late thanks in large part to their strong two-way play. The Nets rank 16th in scoring and ninth in offensive rating. They're similarly solid on defense where they rank tenth in points allowed and 18th in defensive rating. Their biggest weakness falls on the glass as they're near the bottom of the league in rebounding, ranking 27th in rebound differential and last in rebound rate. Notably, center Nic Claxton is questionable tonight while forward Royce O'Neale remains out.
After a rocky start to the season, the Nets are finally starting to look like the team we expected them to prior to the year. Brooklyn has won seven of their last eight games with forward Kevin Durant playing at an MVP level. Durant is having one of the best statistical seasons of his career. In his age-34 season, Durant has averaged 30 PPG (sixth in the NBA), 6.6 RPG, and 5.4 APG. He's been a menace on defense where he averages nearly a block and two blocks per game. In addition to his strong numbers on both sides of the ball, KD's efficiency has been outstanding. He's shooting 56% from the field, 34% from three, and 92% from the free throw line.
Durant has shown no signs of falling off despite this being his 14th season. For as good as KD has been this year, he's been even better against the Wizards. Durant averaged 33.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG, and 8 APG in two prior matchups with Washington – something to keep in mind before making a Nets-Wizards prediction.
While Durant has been incredible all year, Brooklyn's recent success has a lot to do with the return of guard Kyrie Irving. Irving's been an incredible complimentary scorer to KD, averaging 25.3 PPG on 48% shooting. He's coming off back-t0-back 33-point outings and is set up for a big night against Washington's poor defensive backcourt.
Why The Wizards Could Cover The Spread
Despite their recent skid, the underlying metrics suggest Washington is much closer to an average team than how they've played lately. The Wizards struggled offensively, ranking 22nd in scoring and 19th in offensive rating. They've been slightly better on defense where they rank 15th in points allowed and 21st in defensive rating. The one area Washington excels at is on the glass where they're above average with ranks of 12th in rebound differential and 13th in rebound rate. Bradley Beal and Rui Hachimura remain out tonight while Monte Morris is questionable.
The Wizards have begun to freewill in recent weeks after a solid start to the season. In the continued absence of star Bradley Beal, Washington has not had the offensive firepower to compete with the rest of the league. That being said, the Wizards have a pair of 20-point-per-game scorers who've shown the ability to swing games and spreads alike.
Center Kristaps Porzingis leads the team in both scoring and rebounding. For the season he's averaged 22.7 PPG and 9.1 RPG while also placing near the top of the league in blocks at 1.6 BPG. The stretch-big has been solidly efficient this season, shooting 48% from the field and 35% from three. Porzingis is coming off one of his best games of the season in their loss to the Clippers where he scored 30 points, grabbed 15 rebounds, and blocked two shots. He controlled the glass in his two prior meetings with Brooklyn, averaging 14.5 RPG. He also averaged 20.5 PPG in those two games – something to keep in mind before making a Nets-Wizards prediction.
The biggest X-factor for the Wizards is that of forward Kyle Kuzma. Kuzma has been spectacular all season but has been especially dangerous lately. The versatile forward has averaged 27 PPG and 8 RPG while shooting 48% from the field over his last four games.
Final Nets-Wizards Prediction & Pick
Pay close attention to the status of Nets center Nic Claxton, but if he's good to go Brooklyn shouldn't have any problems covering against the free-falling Wizards.
Final Nets-Wizards Prediction & Pick: Brooklyn Nets -6 (-108)
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