NBA Betting Preview - Weekend's Best Bets

The weekend schedule has many basketball teams making the cross-country leap. NBA online betting has some terrific East vs. West battles to choose from. Here's a few of the highlights:

Chicago Bulls at Denver Nuggets

The Bulls continue their annual “Circus Trip” in the Mile High City. This yearly trek, which takes Chicago on an extended road run due to the circus coming to the United Center, has historically been a disaster. The Bulls started this year's run with a win over Sacramento but will face the Los Angeles Lakers before visiting the Nuggets this weekend.

Denver is a physical team that takes its toll on opponents, banging inside with Kenyon Martin and Nene. The Nuggets also go deep into their bench with production from J.R. Smith and Chris Anderson. That's bad news for Chicago, which is playing with a thin frontcourt and goes just four players into the pine.

Washington Wizards at San Antonio Spurs

The Wizards grabbed an impressive win over the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this week, proving that they can compete in the East despite starting the season just 3-7 straight up and against the NBA point spread. The return of forward Antawn Jamison is helping. He scored 31 points in his return and will present matchup issues for the Spurs.

San Antonio is juggling its lineup with the recent injury to Manu Ginobili. The slashing sixth man is suffering from a strained groin while his backcourt mate, Tony Parker, could miss time with a lingering ankle injury. That would leave the Spurs to start George Hill along with veteran Michael Finley or Roger Mason.

Detroit Pistons at Utah Jazz

The Pistons have had some time off to get themselves sorted out before this weekend. Detroit has dropped three straight games, failing to cover in two of those contests. The injuries to Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince are beginning to take their toll. The Pistons have struggled to score during this skid, averaging just 88 points per game.

The Jazz are winning again after getting point guard Deron Williams back from dealing with family issues. He helped lead Utah to a win over the Toronto Raptors earlier this week. While Williams was away, the Jazz got a good look at rookie Eric Maynor. The VCU product stepped into the starting lineup in Williams’ absence and is scoring more than 17 points per game in the last three contests.