Utah have been a mixed bag through their opening two contests, with a 1-1 record. It has been a rather soft schedule, with games against at Memphis and vs New Orleans as their openers, and while they came away with a win in New Orleans, it wasn’t all that convincing. The 103-123 loss in Memphis got their season off on the wrong foot, as they recorded a lowly 99.0 offensive rating with the likes of Lauri Markkanen and Isaiah Collier having poor shooting nights and the team conceding 18 turnovers. More importantly, they were pounded on the glass, giving up 19 offensive rebounds and 17 second chance points, seeing Memphis cruise to victory. Saturday’s 120-119 triumph over New Orleans was more cohesive, at least on the offensive end, as Darryn Peterson hit a couple of clutch free throws before Keyonte George drew a charge on Zion Williamson to keep Utah in front, and misses from Jaren Jackson Jr and then Dejounte Murray saw the store stay that way at the final horn. Markkanen was better this time around with 16 points, while Jackson top-scored with 24 and 10 boards, while George and Peterson had 19 and 15 respectively.
The Lakers are 2-0 after squeezing their way to a 125-117 victory over the Clippers on Saturday. Following a 127-105 romping of Golden State in their season opener, LA weren’t quite as sharp defensively in the LA derby, giving up a 113.6 defensive rating, but they took control of the game in the third quarter to ultimately bank the win. It was a good shooting night from the hosts, as they went 14/32 from deep, with Austin Reaves shooting the lights out on his way to 28 points, nine assists and two steals. Wings Matisse Thybulle (5/8 FGs) and Zaire Williams (5/7) also shot well and Walker Kessler was very tidy in close as he racked up 22 points, eight rebounds, three steals and six blocks in a dominant performance. Luka Dončić was off his game, with just a 47.9% TS% and 11 turnovers, but it didn’t end up mattering against a weak Clippers unit.
With a fully-healthy team, the Lakers are deserved favourites in this matchup, but it’s not going to be a walk in the park. Markkanen presents a tough matchup for him, with a lot of LA’s wings being on the thinner side of things, and that’s going to help balance out the impact that Dončić are set to have. As hefty underdogs at home, I am happily siding with Utah.
Best
Utah +6.5 ($1.90)
Minnesota have started 2-0 this season and have looked impressive in doing so, first toppling Miami 131-106 before beating Orlando 115-93. They now get to enjoy their first home game of the season against another Eastern Conference opponent, and they will be hoping that their defensive prowess that they have showed off early on will carry over to this contest. With a 92.1 defensive rating on Saturday, Minnesota definitely benefitted from a poor Orlando shooting night, but they also made the hosts work hard for a lot of their shots as Jaden McDaniels and Terrence Shannon Jr toiled away on the perimeter. With Rudy Gobert continuing to be a defensive force in the paint, Minnesota have looked good on that end, while Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball have seemingly clicked from the very beginning. It was a poor shooting night for the duo, going just 9/36 from the floor, but they created a lot of offensive opportunities and the likes of McDaniels, Shannon and Ayo Dosunmu benefitted.
Toronto are also 2-0 after a soft fixture to start their season. Their first victory came against Chicago, humiliating the visitors 135-92 before heading to Washington and picking up a 112-102 win. It was an excellent two-way performance in their opener, before their offence cooled off a little in DC, but their defence has been stellar in both games. A 96.2 defensive rating got them the win in Washington on Saturday, holding the hosts to just 21 first quarter points to set the tone, and although Trae Young and co. mounted a comeback in the third, Toronto kept their cool with a 31-25 fourth quarter to ice the game. Scottie Barnes was outstanding in the fourth, with 11 of his 28 points coming in that period, also adding 14 points, five assists, two blocks on the night, but he was marred by eight turnovers. RJ Barrett had a very efficient 23 points and nine boards, while Kawhi Leonard wasn’t so tidy on his way to 16 points and nine boards.
It’s interesting to see the market continue to be somewhat against Minnesota, even after two very comfortable first-up wins on the road. Now back at Target Center, I am expecting a big showing from Chris Finch’s side. Toronto are yet to face even a playoff-calibre team this year and that makes it hard for me to entertain them as narrow favourites. Kawhi has only looked okay, Jakob Poeltl has been below-par and the second unit of Toronto are going to find this matchup difficult.
Best
Minnesota +1.5 ($1.85)
Philadelphia are flying high having started 3-0 this season. Their first two wins were against impressive opposition, first toppling New York before defeating Cleveland, before Sunday’s 127-116 victory over Milwaukee. Without LeBron James (rest), Philly were made to work hard for their win, especially as Milwaukee came back from a 105-89 deficit early in the fourth quarter to trail just 117-114 with less than two minutes to play. VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope then came up with some huge plays for the hosts to end the game on a 10-2 run to keep their unbeaten run going. Joel Embiid wound back the clock to produce a big triple-double of 28 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, while Brown followed closely with 27 points, five assists and three steals. Tyrese Maxey added 26 points and four assists and Edgecombe had 17 points and 13 rebounds in a big stint for four of Philly’s stars. Dean Wade was quiet in his season debut, and KCP stood up instead to drop 12 points and three steals.
Detroit also head into Monday’s battle unbeaten, with wins against Boston and Miami to start their season. It’s been the dream start for last season’s #1 seeds, and after a nail-biter against Boston, it was a much easier watch for Detroit fans against Miami. A 41-point first quarter started the onslaught, and the hosts never got all that close to leading from that point on, with the margin blowing out to 103-80 by three-quarter time for the game to effectively be over by then. While it was Detroit’s defence that got them so far in the regular season last year, it’s been their offence that has been behind their 2-0 start this time around. A 126.7 offensive rating carried them to victory on Saturday, as John Collins shook off his game one rust to drop 23 points and seven rebounds to lead the scoring. It was a very spread effort otherwise, partially due to Ausar Thompson and Jalen Duren exiting with injuries. Cade Cunningham had 16 points, eight assists and three blocks, Duncan Robinson scored 17 points, Paul Reed chipped in 19 off the bench, along with 12 from Isaiah Joe and 15 from Daniss Jenkins. That all combined to form an excellent shooting night from Detroit, with a 62.9% eFG% as a team, and that’s put them in good stead heading to Philly.
Monday’s game shapes up to be a mouth-watering clash, as two of the East’s three unbeaten teams square off. Philadelphia have obviously been the ones in the headlines, thanks to their offseason activity and their bigger marker, but Detroit have been equally as impressive. Importantly, Monday’s game is Philly’s third in four days and may well see Embiid be rested, but Detroit will be without Duren (hamstring) and Thompson is questionable. Those are significant losses for Detroit, especially defensively, and the multi-headed monster of Philadelphia’s offence is going to be too much for them to handle.
Best
Philadelphia -2.5 ($1.90)