NBA Basketball Free Picks – Pistons, Celts and Lakers, Suns
Detroit Pistons (8-3) @ Boston Celtics (10-2)
Although the Detroit Pistons took a few games to adjust to their new backcourt weapon, Allen Iverson, all seems to be good in Motown as the Pistons head to Boston to face the Celtics in a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Finals.
The Pistons have won four of their last five games including three of four on their West Coast swing. The Pistons were also the first team in the NBA to hand the Los Angeles Lakers a loss.
While the Pistons have been good, the Celtics have been even better. The Celtics have won 10 of their 12 games to start the season with their only home loss coming this past Friday at the hands of the Denver Nuggets.
Sports betting odds have the Celtics listed as a big favorite in this contest and that’s not a surprise given the way the first meeting between these two teams went.
On November 9th, the Pistons were throttled at home by the Celtics, losing 88-76 in a game where the Celtics were leading 69-49 after three quarters.
The Pistons should be a better team now that they have had more time to integrate Allen Iverson into the lineup but look for the Celtics to dominate once again. Their defense is too much for the Pistons to handle.
Pick: Celtics -7
Los Angeles Lakers (8-1) @ Phoenix Suns (8-4)
The Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns square off as the late night part of the TNT double-header in yet another matchup of Kobe Bryant versus Shaquille O’Neal.
The Lakers have looked unstoppable at times this season simply because their team is so deep.
With a starting five that comprises Derek Fisher, Kobe Bryant, Vladimir Radmanovic, Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum, the Lakers already have one of the best group of starters in the league. But their bench includes Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic, Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza, who combine to chip-in 32 points per game.
For the Suns, depth is a weakness opposed to a strength. The Suns bench includes only Boris Diaw, Grant Hill, Robin Lopez and Leandro Barbosa, but Barbosa is not with the team as he is away grieving the death of his mother.
The Suns really struggle when they have to start subbing in their starters while the Lakers don’t seem to skip a beat regardless of who is in the lineup.
The Lakers are a very versatile team. They can pound it inside with Gasol and Bynum, they can run with Farmar and Bryant, and they can sharp-shoot with Radmanovic, Vujacic and Fisher. For the Suns to win tonight, they’ll have to take advantage of their home court and their starters will have to outshine the Lakers starters by a long shot.
Pick: Lakers -4.5
