Saturday’s eight-game NBA schedule sees an inter-conference battle take place between the Portland Trail Blazers and Miami Heat. Both of these teams are above the .500 marks through the early weeks and playing some impressive basketball, but only one can emerge with a win tonight.
Here’s a Trail Blazers vs. Heat prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for this Saturday special.
Trail Blazers vs. Heat prediction, preview
The Trail Blazers sit 5-3 on the young season behind growth from young talent and contributions from established veterans. Deni Avdija looks in line to take an All-Star leap with 24.4 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game as the lead option, Shaedon Sharpe averages 18.1 points with elite athleticism, and veteran Jrue Holiday posts 17.4 points with a team-high 7.6 assists. Toumani Camara and Donovan Clingan provide defensive talent in the frontcourt, and Jerami Grant shows potential as a Sixth Man of the Year candidate with 20.3 PPG off the bench. Overall, the Trail Blazers are 11th in NETRTG while sitting second in pace, so they push the tempo, score plenty of buckets and hound opponents on the defensive side of things.
The Heat are 5-4 heading into Saturday and may surprise some folks who aren’t quite as tuned in. Typically, one thinks of “Heat Culture” and defensive hoops, but Miami is first in pace while averaging the fifth-most PPG as a team. Bam Adebayo (toe) won’t play tonight, marking a significant loss, but there’s still talent in the lineup. Norman Powell is enjoying a career-best start with 23.5 PPG on 50.0% shooting from deep range, while Andrew Wiggins and Jaime Jaquez Jr. are contributing 17.6 and 17.4 points apiece with a handful of dimes and boards. Simone Fontecchio is also playing well with his new team, and Kel’el Ware has shown the ability to pop when given a larger role in the starting lineup. Miami sits seventh in NETRTG while also playing up-tempo basketball, so they’ll likely keep up with Portland tonight.
Trail Blazers vs. Heat pick, best bet
On DraftKings Sportsbook, the Trail Blazers are -4.5 favorites with -175 odds to win on the Moneyline. The Heat hold +145 odds to upset with a game total of 236.5.
With Adebayo sidelined, Miami already lands at a disadvantage without its best defender. With that in mind, it’s not shocking to see Portland enter as the favorites, but the Heat could face even more of a test with Jaime Jaquez Jr. (ankle) questionable to play. If he’s declared out, the situation only becomes more dire.
Both of these teams are quite good through the early weeks, each performing better in some aspects than the other. The Trail Blazers create more turnovers and are better on the boards, while the Heat are more efficient in TS% as well as AST/TO ratio. Portland has a deeper roster though, and Adebayo’s absence probably has his opponents breathing a sigh of relief. This could be a close one, and while both sides play at a fast pace, I’m leaning towards the under on the total since 241.5 is such a high mark. With Miami coming off a back-to-back without its star, there may be some tired legs here.
