SPORTS BETTING

• NBA Preview – Monday/Tuesday Games

  Posted on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT by GetChalk

  
  

  Life after football begins Monday morning. With the party on Bourbon Street still going, the sports betting scene quickly shifts its focus to basketball. The NBA is hoping to capture those bettors riding high or low off Super Bowl XLIV with an interesting slate of games Monday and Tuesday. Here’s a look at the best bets on the board.
   
  Monday - New Orleans Hornets at Orlando Magic
   
  New Orleans’ other professional sports franchise is hoping to take some inspiration from the Saints’ big win at Super Bowl XLIV. The Hornets need all the help they can get. They’ve lost four of their last six games, snapping a three-game skid with a 104-99 win over the Charlotte Bobcats as 8.5-point road underdogs Saturday. That marked just the second time in those six games that New Orleans covered the spread.
   
  The Hornets are still reeling from point guard Chris Paul’s knee injury, which is expected to sideline the All-Star until at least late March. While Paul sports a set of crutches, New Orleans will hand the reigns over to rookie point guard Darren Collison, who scored 24 points, dished out five assists, and grabbed four rebounds in Saturday’s victory. Since Paul’s injury, Collison is averaging 14 points per game.
   
  The Magic are coming off a huge win over Eastern rivals, the Boston Celtics, Sunday. Orlando came back from an 11-point halftime hole to take a 96-89 victory as a 3-point road underdog in Boston, giving loyal backers their fourth payday in the past five games. The Magic are currently 8-2 in their past 10 outings with a 6-4 mark against the spread.
   
  Orlando is starting to find its groove offensively. It was the best three-point shooting team in the NBA last year, but has struggled to find the same success from beyond the arc this season. However, the Magic buried 11-of-22 three-point attempts against the Celtics with three of those coming from Vince Carter. The veteran shooting guard finished with 20 points and has averaged just over 19 points in his past three starts, snapping Carter’s poor shooting streak that began at the start of 2010.
   
  Tuesday - Oklahoma City Thunder at Portland Trail Blazers
   
  Two of the NBA’s promising young teams take the court Tuesday night. However, after a season’s worth of injuries piling up, the Trail Blazers don’t feel so young heading into the All-Star Break. Portland announced last week that All-Star guard Brandon Roy will sit out until after the All-Star Game while nursing his nagging hamstring injury. The team is 6-7 (8-5 ATS) since Roy went down back on January 13 and has lost five of its past eight games.
   
  Portland fell 99-82 to a hobbled Los Angeles Lakers squad Saturday, allowing a Kobe-less L.A. lineup to shoot 49 percent from the field. The Blazers’ offense fell apart in the second half, scoring a total of just 34 points and finishing with 43.7 percent shooting from the field. Portland was also a disastrous 5-of-18 from the perimeter, with Martell Webster going 0-for-4 and reserve Steve Blake shooting 1-for-5 from outside the arc.
   
  Oklahoma City is picking up steam, winning five straight games while covering the spread in four of those contests. The Thunder’s most recent victory was a 104-95 win over the Golden State Warriors as 3.5-point road favorites Saturday. They wrap their current three-game road trip in the Rose Garden Tuesday, where they have yet to win since moving the franchise from Seattle in 2007. Oklahoma City fell to former Pacific Northwest rival Portland earlier this season, losing 83-74 at home as a 3-point underdog.
  The way Kevin Durant is playing right now, the Thunder may end their troubles in the Rose Garden. The lanky small forward is putting on an MVP-caliber performance heading into the All-Star break. He’s averaging more than 33 points during the team’s winning streak and is coming off a 29-point showing in Oklahoma City’s win over Golden State. Durant isn’t the only member of the Thunder stepping up his game. Bouncy guard Russell Westbrook is pouring in almost 19 points a game in his last seven outings and has totaled 10 assists in back-to-back starts for OKC.