Philadelphia got back to winning ways on Thursday, beating Indiana 114-109 to improve to a 4-1 record. It also kept their unbeaten road record in tact, with one of those away wins coming against New York in the season opener, and they’ll be hoping for a repeat dose on Saturday. It was a real game of runs in Indiana, as Philly shot out to a double-digit lead in the second quarter and had a buffer as big as 15 points, but the hosts stormed back with an 11-38 run of their own to go up 70-82. However, Philly showed their class in the fourth quarter, starting the period on a 24-6 run and that again showed off their defence that has earnt them such a strong start to the year. It was also a red-hot Tyrese Maxey that got them home, with 17-point fourth quarter, as he finished with 27 points, five rebounds and four assists. Jaylen Brown had 10 points and 10 boards, Joel Embiid had 21 points and 11 rebounds and LeBron James had 13 points and 10 assists, but perhaps the most important contribution outside of Anfernee Simons. The bench guard had a very efficient 20 points in 27 minutes, providing some influential buckets to get Philly back into the game in the third, ultimately helping them get the dub.
New York have worked their way into some winning form, with consecutive victories elevating them to a 2-3 record. Despite leaving with the win, it wasn’t all that convincing of a performance from the defending champions, who trailed by 19 points midway through the third quarter as their offence dried right up coming out of the locker room. However, they rediscoverd their groove late in the quarter, with a 22-7 run to end the period, before a 17-5 run midway through the fourth broke Chicago’s backs. It was a return to form for Jalen Brunson, who had 38 points on a good shooting night, while Karl-Anthony Towns had a bust showing with 19 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. OG Anunoby had 23 points and Jordan Clarkson was locked in off the bench, scoring 18 points.
Brown (knee) is questionable for Philadelphia, while Jose Alvarado is out for the fourth game running for New York. That’s seen Philly come into this game as home underdogs, and I am not expecting much from their offence once again here. New York are well tooled to combat Philly’s perimeter threats and with Brown potentially out, that’s a big offensive hit. New York have also had a slow start to the season offensively, and neither team has pushed the pace a lot this season. I am taking the under here.
Best
Under 228.5 ($1.90)
Toronto bounced back from their first loss of the season to beat Orlando 129-99 on Thursday. It was another elite defensive showing from Darko Rajakovic’s side, with them owning the best defence in the league through the first week and a half, as they kept the visitors to a lowly 96.1 offensive rating, even without Kawhi Leonard (knee). Their starting unit looked very good on that end once more, with Scottie Barnes, Ja’Kobe Walter and Immanuel Quickley being switched on throughout. Trayce Jackson-Davis isn’t known for his defence but he was also impressive off the bench, contributing a couple of blocks, but it was Barnes who was the star of the show. The star forward had 28 points, six rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks, while RJ Barrett followed closely with 25 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Quickley added 16 points, Walter had 14 and Jamal Shead was handy off the pine again with 13 points and seven dimes.
Orlando will be wanting to turn that result around in Saturday’s rematch after being comprehensively outplayed in the first of the two-game mini series in Ontario. Offence did not come easily for the visitors on Thursday, partially thanks to a 47.5% eFG% and partially thanks to their 20 turnovers, which generated a slew of transition opportunities for the hosts. Franz Wagner was particularly loose with the ball, committing seven turnovers to go with his 15 points and five assists, whole Anthony Black also had a sloppy night with eight points and four turnovers as he works his way back from injury. Tristan da Silva looked sharp again, shooting well for his 20 points, but with Desmond Bane struggling to produce and Paolo Banchero on the sidelines, it’s been a tough start to the season for Sean Sweeney and his team.
I don’t see that changing on Saturday. Banchero and Jalen Suggs are still out and I have seen nothing to think that Orlando’s offence can be antyhing close to competent, especially against this Toronto defence. Wagner is going to be pressured a lot as their main ball handler again and Barnes is going to have a field day, making for a comfortable Toronto win.
Best
Toronto -5.5 ($1.90)
Golden State won the last two games of their three-game road trip in impressive fashion, first defeating Denver 134-114 before beating Minnesota 119-114 on Thursday. We got a classic Steph Curry performance in Minnesota, as the star guard went off for 44 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals to guide his team to victory. He was scoring from all three levels, with a three-point barrage coming in the second quarter before going 14/14 from the free throw line in the second half to keep Golden State’s offence ticking. Importantly, it was a good defensive showing from the visitors too, helping keep the Anthony Edwards-less Minnesota to just a 106.5 offensive rating. Draymond Green had his best display of the season on that end, while Georges Niang was effective, as were Yaxel Lendeborg and De’Anthony Melton. Landeborg was also strong offensively, with 26 points, nine rebounds and one block, but he did have seven turnovers.
The Lakers comfortably took care of the Clippers on Thursday in a 103-87 victory. Even with Luka Dončić taking the day off, the Lakers had no worries as their defence kept the hosts to just an 88.8 offensive rating. That saw the Clippers stay well behind for the majority of the game, as a 25-5 run from the Lakers in the second quarter opened up an 18-point lead and there was no coming back for Ty Lue’s side from there. Austin Reaves was well off his game in this one, with just 16 points and one assist, to go with eight turnovers as he struggled as the lead man. However, Quentin Grimes stepped up with 23 points, five assists and four steals and Matisse Thybulle’s hot shooting continued, draining four threes to finish with 15 points. Collin Sexton had an important 21 points off the bench and Sandro Mamukelashvili was one of the Lakers’ best with 13 points, eight rebounds, two steals and one block.
Gui Santos is questionable to return for GS, and they could do with his offence in this matchup. Luka will be returning for Los Angeles, and with the form that he is in, he is set to be a real issue for this Golden State defence, which lacks the combination of size and strength to slow down the Slovenian. Of course, Curry has shown that still at the age of 38, he can explode for big scoring nights, but I am going to bet against him repeating his heroics in Minnesota, and pick a rather comfortable win for the visitors.
Best
Los Angeles Lakers -2.5 ($1.90)