Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week – November 19th Edition

The two hottest teams in the NBA right now are the Los Angeles Clippers and the Dallas Mavericks, each riding four-game winning streaks. Dallas broke a nine-game losing streak against Golden State over the weekend, although it helped that Stephen Curry and Draymond Green were out for the warriors. Oklahoma City is also rolling right now, winners of three in a row and nine of their last ten. In the Eastern Conference, Toronto still leads the pack with a 13-4 record, with Milwaukee a game back and Indiana and Philadelphia 2 ½ games back. Now that we’re entering the week of Thanksgiving, let’s take a look at your three best NBA betting picks from the court.

Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week – November 19th Edition

🚨 NBA POWER RANKINGS 🚨 Paul George and the Thunder rise in Week 6 ⚡ pic.twitter.com/wmJjvZ6jmC

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) November 19, 2018

Monday, November 19

Oklahoma City at Sacramento (10:00pm ET, NBATV)

Oklahoma City star Russell Westbrook has missed six straight games, five with an ankle sprain and Saturday’s game against Phoenix to be at the birth of his daughter, but the Thunder have not missed a beat. On Saturday, Oklahoma City trounced the Suns on the road, 110-110, thanks to 32 points from Paul George and 26 from Steven Adams. That makes three wins over Phoenix already for the Thunder — two of them without George. The biggest burst for Oklahoma City was a 17-4 run to open the second half, including an 11-0 spurt that gave the Thunder an 18-point lead that would shrink to six but that the Thunder would eventually protect. Sacramento comes in having dropped three of four, including an eight-point loss in Memphis on Friday and a 20-point loss in Houston on Saturday. In addition to some drama that may involve Kings coach Dave Joerger and the Sacramento front office, the team isn’t defending well. In that loss to Houston, James Harden put up 34 points and eight assists, going 10 for 17 form the field and scoring 15 points in the third quarter alone. Chris Paul scored 24 points and dished out nine assists, and Clint Capela had 23 points and 16 boards. If Sacramento can’t rebound or defend any better on Monday, this could turn into a rout as well. NBA Betting Prediction: Oklahoma City 109, Sacramento 98

Wednesday, November 21

New Orleans at Philadelphia (7:00pm ET)

New Orleans has won two in a row and five of six, including an impressive ten-point home win over Denver on Saturday night. Anthony Davis put up 40 points, including a 20-for-21 performance from the free-throw line, and he also grabbed eight boards and dished out eight assists. That comes after a 43-point performance the night before in a home win over the Knicks. Julius Randle had 21 points and 10 boards, Nikola Mirotic had 20 points and 10 boards and Jrue Holiday had 19 points despite a bout of foul trouble. Now the Pelicans head to Philadelphia to face another intriguing, young team that has won two in a row and three of four. The Sixers had an impressive comeback win over Utah on Friday night and then overcame a 60-point night from Charlotte’s Kemba Walker to deliver a 122-119 overtime win the next night. I’m not sure the Sixers have the interior presence to match up with the Pelicans when they are on a roll, and the inconsistent defense that Philadelphia has played will not serve them well. NBA Betting Prediction: New Orleans 108, Philadelphia 104

Los Angeles Lakers at Cleveland (8:00pm ET, ESPN)

The Lakers have won four of six, including a 113-97 win in Miami that featured 51 points from LeBron James, who won a game in Miami for the first time since he left the Heat for Cleveland back in 2014. He started out going 8 for 10 and putting in 19 points. That was a nice bounceback from the Lakers’ loss to Orlando on Saturday night, in which James went just 8 for 19. The Cavaliers last played on November 14, when they went down to Washington and lost by 24 to a 5-9 Wizards team. Cleveland is missing Kevin Love (foot), starting point guard (hamstring), forward Kyle Korver (sore right foot) and forward Sam Dekker (ankle). Rookie point guard Collin Sexton was the lone bright spot, putting up a career best 24. Will the Cavaliers get motivated to play against their former star? Do they have the manpower to make it matter? NBA Betting Prediction: Los Angeles 100, Cleveland 88