Hoop Hopes – Ricky Rothstein makes his picks for tonight’s NBA action!
Minnesota at Indiana The congregation at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse will be treated to a clash of styles tonight when Minnesota visits to take on the home-town Indiana Pacers. Minnesota is one of the top offensive teams in the League, with the T-wolves’ 106.9 points per game bettered only by the Clippers and the Rockets. Indiana take the opposite approach – the Pacers’ lead the League in defense, conceding only 87.6 points per game. Tonight, something’s got to give.
The total is set at 194 points, which seems a little high. Minnesota doesn’t like being on the road, and the last place anyone wants to play right now is at Indiana. Under 194 points is the pick.
Hoop Hope 1 | Under 194 points
Houston at Memphis Tonight’s game at Memphis is noticeable for who won’t be there as much as who will. Houston has to do without James Harden, sidelined by a broken foot, while Memphis has to do without Marc Gasol. Gasol hurt his left knee on Friday against San Antonio, with an MRI sprain diagnosed the following day, leaving the center on the IR indefinitely.
Harden is a better player than Gasol but Gasol’s is the greater loss to his team. Houston certainly wouldn’t like to lose Harden for as long as Memphis will have to do without Gasol, but for tonight Houston has the weapons to make do. Memphis doesn’t, and it’s hard to see them being able to defend the highest-scoring team in the League without their best defender – not least as Dwight Howard is doing so much better at the charity stripe than he had been earlier this season.
New York at Portland Two teams that seem to be travelling in different directions on the NBA escalator meet tonight when the Knicks travel to Portland to take on the Trailblazers. The Knicks are mired in a five-game slump while Portland has won an astonishing ten straight. The Knicks’ defense has been an open door since the injury to Tyson Chandler, and now point guard Raymond Felton is listed as day to day.
Even though Portland has some high quality wins over those ten games, the Blazers have been finding it harder and harder to get going in games. Carmelo is the only scoring threat for the Knicks, but his shooting percentage is down. The total is set at a 195.5, which seems high for a game that might not be very pretty.
Hoop Hope 3 | Under 195.5 points
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