Posted on
3/27/2008 5:23:59 PM
NBA Basketball Betting - Power Poll Week 22 – Part One
By Mike Rose
(CURRENT) (TEAM) (W/L OVERALL & W/L FOR WEEK) (ATS RECORD) (LAST WEEKS RANK)
1) Boston Celtics (56-15/2-2) (43-26-2 ATS) (LW: 1) The Celtics wrapped up a Texas triangle sweep by disposing of the Mavs to start the week, and finished it off with a beatdown of the Phoenix Suns. This club is scary good, and remains at the top of the heap even though they split their four games this week. Busy week ahead with three of four being played at home, but the only substantial opponent of the quartet is New Orleans.
2) New Orleans Hornets (49-21/3-0) (44-25-1 ATS) (LW: 5) CP3 and the Hornets continue to plug along after putting forth another winning week at 3-0 both SU and ATS. They started the week off in style with a comeback win over Boston at home, and ended it by taking over the top spot in the Western Conference after knocking off Lebron and company at the Quicken loans Arena. They’ll close out their six-game road trip this week starting with Friday night’s doozy in ‘The Garden’.
3) LA Lakers (49-23/3-2) (43-27-1 ATS) (LW: 3) The Lakers might have churned out a winning mark at 3-2 SU and ATS, but the pair of losses they suffered at home to Golden State and Charlotte allowed New Orleans to surpass them as the top dawg in the West. The Lakers excellence this season has really come from out of nowhere, and I’m not sold on them being as good as their record indicates. Seven of their final 10 games come in the comfy confines of the Staples Center, so look for LA to go through the motions and look to get 100% healthy before turning it on again in the post-season.
4) Utah Jazz (47-25/2-1) (38-34 ATS) (LW: 4) Utah’s 19-game home winning streak was snapped by the Lakers to start the week, but they bounced back with commanding home wins over Seattle and Charlotte for a 2-1 SU & 1-2 ATS mark. Look for the Jazz to hit the 50-win plateau this week with games scheduled against Clippers, Timberwolves, and Wizards.
5) Detroit Pistons (50-21/1-2) (38-32-1 ATS) (LW: 2) It’s clearly evident that Detroit’s going through the motions until the Playoffs start, and it might even get worse to close out the season since they clinched the Central Division after Cleveland lost to New Orleans Wednesday night. Look for Head Coach Flip Saunders to get a bunch of his role player’s valuable minutes throughout the remainder of their regular season schedule. Four of their next five come against losing teams.
6) Houston Rockets (49-23/3-1) (41-29-2 ATS) (LW: 6) The Rockets got back to their winning ways this week by going 3-1 SU, but cheated their backers for the second week in a row by going 1-2-1 ATS. The Rockets will only play four winning teams throughout their last 10 games of the season, so look for them to keep the hest turned up on both the Hornets and Lakers for the #1 seed.
7) San Antonio Spurs (49-23/5-0) (32-38-2 ATS) (LW: 10) Alright, so the defending champs didn’t like what was said in this column last week and proceeded to win all five of the games this week and cash 4 of 5 ATS for their backers. Now those are the Spurs we’ve all come to know and love. They’ll close out their four-game home stretch with the Timberwolves, Rockets, and Warriors this week before hitting the road to take on the Jazz and Blazers.
8) Philadelphia 76ers (37-35/2-1) (39-30-3 ATS) (LW: 12) The Sixers have done it. They’ve clawed themselves all the way back to .500 and now sit two games over after compiling a 2-1 SU & ATS mark this past week. The win at Boston was fantastic, and for them not to letdown in their following game against Chicago leads me to believe this club is playing its best ball at the perfect time of the season. They’ve beaten Boston, Denver, San Antonio, and Detroit during their 8-2 SU mark over their L/10, and the Sixers should be considered a lock to qualify for the post-season if they continue to play like this.
9) Phoenix Suns (47-24/1-2) (33-35-2 ATS) (LW: 7) The Suns cooled off dramatically this past week losing 2 of 3 both SU and ATS. Their seven-game winning streak was snapped in overtime at Detroit, and then they let the game get away from them in the second half against Boston. A tough week lies ahead with four games against Philly, New Jersey, and Denver of which all are making playoff pushes or looking to improve its seeding over the next couple weeks.
10) Golden State Warriors (43-27/1-2) (30-40 ATS) (LW: 8) The Warriors have to be considered one of the most disappointing teams in the NBA this year to the pointspread player. This club is 16 games over .500, yet they come into this week’s action a pathetic 30-40 ATS. Their OT loss at home to the Lakers after stealing one in LA the night before epitomizes the highs and lows this club has experienced all season long. They’re clinging on the #8 seed right now, but it wouldn’t come as any shock if they relinquished that position and failed to qualify for the post-season after last years memorable run.
11) Dallas Mavericks (45-26/2-1) (30-37-4 ATS) (LW: 9) Uh-oh, better get Maaco!!! The Mavs will be without Dirk Nowitzki for what looks to be at least a couple of weeks after he hurt himself badly in Sunday’s loss at home against the Spurs. His injury couldn’t have occurred at a worse time as the Mavs find themselves in the 7th seed and in danger of missing the post-season. To make matters worse, they’ll square up against both clubs chasing them (Denver, Golden State) this week. If indeed the Mavs hold on they will have earned it, but I don’t foresee them making much noise after that.
12) Denver Nuggets (43-28/3-0) (39-32 ATS) (LW: 14) The Nuggets played some exceptional ball this week that saw them win all three games SU and ATS. Most impressive though was the fact that all three were on the road, and now they get the pleasure of returning home to face both teams ahead of them in the standings (Dallas & Golden State). If ever they were to make a push to grab one of the final two spots, this is the week!!!
13) Orlando Magic (46-27/1-2) (44-27-2 ATS) (LW: 11) It’s hard to go out and give it your all every given night when you’ve pretty much had the division wrapped up the entire season. Just take a look at how Detroit’s played of late for reference. That said, it had to bother the Magic that they lost to the Spurs in their own house making it two losses in a row at home against Western Conference representatives. Nobody really takes this team seriously, but I believe the Magic will put a serious scare into one of the top seeds this post-season.
14) Cleveland Cavaliers (40-32/1-2) (34-38 ATS) (LW: 13) The Cavs proved they’re by no means as good as they were a year ago when they lost in the last second against New Orleans. They’ve now dropped 11 games in the Quicken Loans Center this year, and the top teams in the East are closer to five losses at home than they are 10. Injuries just haven’t allowed this team to play at its best all season long, and it doesn’t look like this team will be at full strength until the start of next season.
15) Washington Wizards (37-34/3-1) (40-31 ATS) (LW: 15) The Wizards are getting healthier with every passing week, and they’ve done a heck of a job putting money in their backers pockets throughout. That said, they only went 2-2 ATS again this week even though they won 3 of 4 SU. This once hot ATS club is now only 4-6 ATS their L/10. Seems oddsmakers have caught on to this group.
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