Perry Perspective: Jan 18
Pistons firing on all cylinders
We?re not even halfway through the NBA season and it?s pretty clear who is going to win this year?s championship.
Last Thursday, the visiting Detroit Pistons humiliated the San Antonio Spurs 83-68 in front of their hometown fans. It was the first time the two teams had met in San Antonio since last June, when the Spurs beat the Pistons 81-74 in Game 7 to capture the league title.
On paper, it looked like the game was going to be close ? the leader in the East versus the leader in the West, both with similar records. Because the game was being played on the Spurs? home court where they were 17-1 straight up, the odds favored the defending champions by 4 points.
But the game turned out to be a slaughter.
The aggressive Pistons muscled their way to a 20-point lead by the half and never looked back, holding San Antonio?s offense to a season-low 68 points. With the win, the Pistons swept the two-game regular-season series with the Spurs ? they won the first meeting on Christmas Day in Detroit 85-70 as 6.5-point favorites.
With 30 wins and only five losses as of Tuesday (20-15 ATS), Detroit is on the verge of separating itself from the pack much like the NBA dynasty teams of the past.
Not surprisingly, the Pistons are the odds-on favorite to win the NBA championship in our futures listings. Yet, the odds are still fairly attractive at +140, which are the same odds we?re currently giving the Spurs.
On Thursday, in the opener of TNT?s weekly doubleheader (8 p.m. ET), Detroit will be visiting New York to play the Knicks, a team that?s among the least-favored to win the NBA championship at +15000.
This game might have been a bit more intriguing had it taken place last week when the Knicks were in the midst of a six-game win streak.
Three of those six wins came against respectable teams including the Suns, Cavaliers, and Mavericks. The high point likely was the win in Cleveland, where the Knicks were 9-point road dogs.
With the streak, it looked like coach Larry Brown might be breathing new life into a team that lost five straight to start the season, and lost 12 of 14 during a disastrous December. But the Knicks crashed back to earth on Sunday when they were whipped 129-103 on the road by the Toronto Raptors as 1.5-point favorites. They then followed that up with a loss to the T-Wolves on Monday.
As of Tuesday, the Knicks were 13-23 SU (19-17 ATS) and on the verge of falling back beneath the Raptors in the basement of the Atlantic.
Thursday?s game will feature one of the weakest defenses in the league against one of the strongest. The Knicks are allowing more than 100.8 ppg (fifth-most overall) whereas the Pistons are allowing less than 91 ppg (fourth-fewest overall).
This will be the second meeting of the season between these two teams. On Dec. 2, the Pistons beat the Knicks 106-98 but failed to cover as 12-point home favorites.
As of Tuesday, New York was 9-9 SU (9-9 ATS) at home; Detroit was 14-3 SU (10-7 ATS) on the road.
LA Lakers at Sacramento
In the second game of TNT?s double-bill, the Lakers will head into the California capital to take on the crummy Kings.
LA is still trying to figure out what sort of team it wants to be this season. Just when you think Phil and Kobe may have put things together, they fall apart.
The Lakers began the season winning three of four, but then lost seven of nine to finish November. They then won 10 of their first 13 in December before going on a five-game losing skid. They have since won six of seven including three-straight as of Tuesday. Of course, this could mean they?re just about ready for another losing skid.
As of Tuesday, the Lakers were 21-17 SU (21-17 ATS) and sat third in the Pacific. The Kings, meanwhile, were 15-21 SU (16-20 ATS) and last in the same division.
With a 10-11 record at the Arco Arena, the Kings have been harder to beat at home, but the Lakers have been solid on the road having gone 11-9 SU.
To have any chance of beating the Lakers or the spread, the Kings will have to try to contain Kobe Bryant, who is leading the league in scoring with more than 34 ppg.
Bryant, who is averaging more than 40 minutes per game, is scoring more than 1/3 of the Lakers? points this season.
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Pistons firing on all cylinders
We?re not even halfway through the NBA season and it?s pretty clear who is going to win this year?s championship.
Last Thursday, the visiting Detroit Pistons humiliated the San Antonio Spurs 83-68 in front of their hometown fans. It was the first time the two teams had met in San Antonio since last June, when the Spurs beat the Pistons 81-74 in Game 7 to capture the league title.
On paper, it looked like the game was going to be close ? the leader in the East versus the leader in the West, both with similar records. Because the game was being played on the Spurs? home court where they were 17-1 straight up, the odds favored the defending champions by 4 points.
But the game turned out to be a slaughter.
The aggressive Pistons muscled their way to a 20-point lead by the half and never looked back, holding San Antonio?s offense to a season-low 68 points. With the win, the Pistons swept the two-game regular-season series with the Spurs ? they won the first meeting on Christmas Day in Detroit 85-70 as 6.5-point favorites.
With 30 wins and only five losses as of Tuesday (20-15 ATS), Detroit is on the verge of separating itself from the pack much like the NBA dynasty teams of the past.
Not surprisingly, the Pistons are the odds-on favorite to win the NBA championship in our futures listings. Yet, the odds are still fairly attractive at +140, which are the same odds we?re currently giving the Spurs.
On Thursday, in the opener of TNT?s weekly doubleheader (8 p.m. ET), Detroit will be visiting New York to play the Knicks, a team that?s among the least-favored to win the NBA championship at +15000.
This game might have been a bit more intriguing had it taken place last week when the Knicks were in the midst of a six-game win streak.
Three of those six wins came against respectable teams including the Suns, Cavaliers, and Mavericks. The high point likely was the win in Cleveland, where the Knicks were 9-point road dogs.
With the streak, it looked like coach Larry Brown might be breathing new life into a team that lost five straight to start the season, and lost 12 of 14 during a disastrous December. But the Knicks crashed back to earth on Sunday when they were whipped 129-103 on the road by the Toronto Raptors as 1.5-point favorites. They then followed that up with a loss to the T-Wolves on Monday.
As of Tuesday, the Knicks were 13-23 SU (19-17 ATS) and on the verge of falling back beneath the Raptors in the basement of the Atlantic.
Thursday?s game will feature one of the weakest defenses in the league against one of the strongest. The Knicks are allowing more than 100.8 ppg (fifth-most overall) whereas the Pistons are allowing less than 91 ppg (fourth-fewest overall).
This will be the second meeting of the season between these two teams. On Dec. 2, the Pistons beat the Knicks 106-98 but failed to cover as 12-point home favorites.
As of Tuesday, New York was 9-9 SU (9-9 ATS) at home; Detroit was 14-3 SU (10-7 ATS) on the road.
LA Lakers at Sacramento
In the second game of TNT?s double-bill, the Lakers will head into the California capital to take on the crummy Kings.
LA is still trying to figure out what sort of team it wants to be this season. Just when you think Phil and Kobe may have put things together, they fall apart.
The Lakers began the season winning three of four, but then lost seven of nine to finish November. They then won 10 of their first 13 in December before going on a five-game losing skid. They have since won six of seven including three-straight as of Tuesday. Of course, this could mean they?re just about ready for another losing skid.
As of Tuesday, the Lakers were 21-17 SU (21-17 ATS) and sat third in the Pacific. The Kings, meanwhile, were 15-21 SU (16-20 ATS) and last in the same division.
With a 10-11 record at the Arco Arena, the Kings have been harder to beat at home, but the Lakers have been solid on the road having gone 11-9 SU.
To have any chance of beating the Lakers or the spread, the Kings will have to try to contain Kobe Bryant, who is leading the league in scoring with more than 34 ppg.
Bryant, who is averaging more than 40 minutes per game, is scoring more than 1/3 of the Lakers? points this season.
BetWWTS.com
