The 15-42 Nets will host the 42-16 Spurs tonight, and it should be a fairly lopsided affair with these two inverse records. The Nets dwell near the bottom of the East while the Spurs are closing in on OKC’s first seed, a feat that seemed impossible a few months ago given how hot the Thunder stormed out of the gate this season.
The Spurs are 12.5-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook with the total for this game set at 224.5 points.
Nets vs. Spurs prediction, preview
San Antonio looks to be a legitimate contender this season. They’re on a ten game win streak, the longest in the NBA, and are playing their cleanest two-way basketball of the season. In these last ten games, the Spurs are +13.9 in net rating and pouring in 120.8 OFFRTG off a fast moving offense that’s also generating plenty of assists. And it’s tough to talk about the Spurs without discussing the young phenom Victor Wembanyama, who is statistically not looking too different from last season on the surface, but there are clear signs of growth. He’s playing fewer minutes this season. The Spurs have notched him down from 33.2 MPG last season to 29.1, but per-36, he’s looking improved. Per-36 minutes, he’s averaging 29.6 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks and shooting a career-high 50.3% from the field. His blocks have come down from last season, but that’s not an indication of him losing a step defensively, but rather teams are trying to avoid him at the rim, which naturally reduces block opportunities. Given Wemby’s terrifying rim presence, opposing players would prefer to avoid challenging him and instead shoot floaters or pass the ball out away from Wemby’s reach.
Brooklyn’s season has been the opposite story. They’ve gone 2-8 in their last ten games and are putting up a -14 net rating, which suggests that they’ve been inadequate on both ends of the floor. Michael Porter Jr. has had a successful first season with the Nets individually, bringing up his scoring numbers while maintaining his efficiency for the most part (slight dip due to higher volume), but is unable to make this team competitive. They’re the victim of blowouts and players resting on back to backs, and will look to retool their roster during their rebuilding phase. Brooklyn has a promising future in its young players such as rookie Egor Demin and Nolan Traore, but this season they’ll be uncompetitive.
Nets vs. Spurs pick, best bet
Best Bet: Halftime/Fulltime SA Spurs/SA Spurs (-400)
I’m expecting the Spurs to handle a comfortable lead all the way through. It’s difficult to envision them losing this game, even if it could be close at times. We’re also getting better value on this bet than a straight up Spurs Moneyline; San Antonio should have no problem getting a comfortable win tonight in their quest for the Western Conference first seed.
