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The surging Portland Trail Blazers will put their early success to the test yet again as they tip off with the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday. Join us for our NBA odds series where our Trail Blazers-Mavericks prediction and pick will be made.
Is Portland legit? With a 9-3 record including a near flawless 10-2 record against the spread, the Blazers have thus far shown that they are very much a pest within the wild, wild, west. Currently on a three-game winning streak, Portland is playing as good of ball as they could possibly play and will be excited to return home after squaring off with the Mavericks to cap off the sixth and final game on their current road trip.
Coming into this one just one game north of the .500 mark, the Mavericks certainly have the makings to be a championship roster simply because of the way Luka Doncic has started off his 2022-2023 campaign. Playing at an MVP-type level, the international sensation that happens to play his basketball in the Lone Star State seems to be on a mission this season with no plans of stopping any time soon. Even though the Mavericks are only 6-5, they boast a 5-1 record at home and are tough to beat on their own floor.
Here are the Trail Blazers-Mavericks NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NBA Odds: Trail Blazers-Mavericks Odds
Portland Trail Blazers: +5 (-114)
Dallas Mavericks: -5 (-106)
Over: 217.5 (-108)
Under: 217.5 (-112)
Why The Trail Blazers Could Cover The Spread
To kick things off, why on Earth couldn't the Trail Blazers cover the spread in this one? Even though facing the Mavericks out on the road is certainly not an easy task, there are many reasons why the Blazers have a decent shot at covering and coming out triumphant to finish their road trip on a positive note.
For starters, Portland has done a tremendous job at overcoming injuries and getting amazing contributions from players who usually don't pop off on a consistent basis. For example, in the team's impressive 106-95 victory over the Pelicans on Thursday, the Blazers benefitted from solid outings from Josh Hart and Justise Winslow, who both combined for 29 points. With Nurkic still day-to-day and questionable for this evening's game, guys like Hart and Winslow may be tasked to carry a bigger load than usual once again.
With that being said, Portland couldn't be happier to have gotten forward Jerami Grant back on the floor especially with Damian Lillard struggling with injuries of his own this early into the season. Against New Orleans, Grant showed out for 27 points including shooting 50% from deep. One of the more underrated shot-creators in the entire league, there are worse things in the world than having to rely on Grant to carry the team offensively.
Why The Mavericks Could Cover The Spread
At first glance, it appeared that Dallas had finally mustered up enough momentum to go on a bit of a winning streak after coming up with four consecutive victories, but since then, Dallas has dropped back-to-back games to a pair of lowly teams in the Magic and Wizards. Now, it is vital for the Mavericks to come out with their hair on fire and avoid the losing streak to get any longer.
In order for the Mavs to get back in the win column and cover the spread in doing so, they need to find a way to get Doncic cooking like he was in the team's first nine games of the season. Simply put, Doncic was celebrating Thanksgiving early by feasting on teams with at least 30 points in all of those contests. Since then, Dallas' superstar has been limited to 24 and 22 points respectively. Regardless, it is nearly impossible to stop Luka altogether, as he is still capable of filling up the stat sheet by dishing out assists and coming down with numerous amount of rebounds.
Not to mention, the Mavericks' defensive onslaught is better than what many believe it to be. In fact, Dallas has been so lethal on the defensive side of the ball that is holding opposing teams to only 106.7 points per game and even excels at not giving up second chances by allowing offensive rebounds. The key in this matchup with an athletic Portland squad will be to get a body on someone when the shot goes up to corral the rebound and limit the scoring opportunities for the Blazers.
Final Trail Blazers-Mavericks Prediction & Pick
With the Blazers compiling a 10-2 record against the spread in comparison to a Mavericks bunch that has only covered three times this year, keep putting your trust in Portland until they give you a reason not to.
Final Trail Blazers-Mavericks Prediction & Pick: Trail Blazers +5 (-114)
