Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week – November 12th Edition

The hottest team in the NBA right now is the Toronto Raptors, who have won six in a row and lead the Eastern Conference standings with a 12-1 record. Two games behind them are the surprising Milwaukee Bucks, who went to Golden State and won by 22 points over the weekend. After them come a collection of seven teams who are within 1 ½ games of each other, as the conference is turning into a competitive grind already. Out west, Portland has won four in a row to shoot past Denver into second place in the conference, a game behind the Golden State Warriors. The ageless San Antonio Spurs have shot out to a 7-4 record, but the biggest surprise may be the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have won seven of their last 10 despite having Russell Westbrook on the shelf. Check out our top three NBA betting picks from the Association for the coming week.

Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week – November 12th Edition

There’s a new No. 1 in Week 5’s Power Rankings 👀 The full list: https://t.co/3M1LeTZeZu pic.twitter.com/3vWk0fNKvS

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) November 12, 2018

Monday, November 12

Phoenix at Oklahoma City (8:00pm ET)

Phoenix arrives in Oklahoma City in the middle of a three-game losing streak and having only won two games on the young season. Their three losses have been by a combined 31 points, including a 24-point home rout at the hands of the Brooklyn Nets. Devin Booker remains one of the most talented scorers in the NBA, and Deandre Ayton is one of the front runners for Rookie of the Year so far, but the Suns are having a hard time on defense, and it’s hard to outscore the number of mistakes they’re making in coverage. Oklahoma City had won seven in a row before losing in Dallas on Saturday night. Oklahoma City did grab 26 offensive rebounds in the loss, but fatigue was showing — as was the absence of Russell Westbrook, who could return for the game against the Suns, so check injury reports before finalizing your wager on this one. There were some impressive victims in that winning streak, including the Wizards, Pelicans and Rockets. Even without Westbrook, the Thunder have the personnel to get back on a winning streak at home. NBA Betting Prediction: Oklahoma City 108, Phoenix 101

Tuesday, November 13

Houston at Denver (9:00pm ET)

The Houston Rockets continue to have a bumpy start to 2018-19, with GM Daryl Morey even having to call a pre-game press conference before the team’s win over Indiana to announce that Carmelo Anthony was still on the team. The enigmatic star has only played in 10 games so far this season for Houston and was on the shelf with an unidentified illness. The Rockets have still won four of six, knocking off the Nets, Bulls and Pacers on the road, and then beating Indiana again at home. In between, they lost in Oklahoma City and San Antonio. Denver has dropped three in a row after a terrific start, losing in Memphis by two, and then at home to Brooklyn by two and to Milwaukee at home by seven. That loss to Milwaukee was the second night of a back-to-back for the Bucks, and that usually means a win for Denver because of the challenge of adapting to the altitude. The Nuggets are seeing their offense fade at just the wrong time, but having a drama-tossed Rockets team come to town should be just what the doctor ordered. NBA Betting Prediction: Denver 101, Houston 96

Wednesday, November 14

Portland at L.A. Lakers (10:30pm ET, ESPN)

Portland has knocked off some impressive foes lately, beating New Orleans by 13, Minnesota by 30, Milwaukee by 15 and, most recently, Boston by six. Now that their six-game homestand is over, they head down the coast to take on the Lakers on Wednesday night. Damian Lillard had 19 points and 12 assists in the win over Boston, and the interior defense (a major problem for Portland a year ago) has improved significantly. The Trail Blazers visit a Laker team that is beating the bottom-feeders lately, with wins over Dallas, Minnesota, Sacramento and Atlanta lately, and even holding their own with top teams occasionally, as with a four-point win in Portland. However, their 14-point home loss to Toronto shows that they still have some work to do. Even so, they have a winning record right now and would make the postseason if the regular campaign came to an end today. However, I’m confident the Trail Blazers will be more than ready to get some revenge for their home loss to the Lakers last week. NBA Betting Prediction: Portland 111, Los Angeles 106