NBA Picks for October 31'st
Afternoon and evening fellas. The NBA and the best sport in the land tips off tonight. Can't wait for college, but a big fan of the NBA as well. Anyways, here's my best bet for tonight;
BEST BET: ROLL WITH ME ON UNDER 208 in the NBA nightcap of the LA Lakers @ Phoenix.
Guys, I want to share with you one of my early season thoughts on playing totals. As a former cager, basketball is 2nd only to baseball in superstition and not wanting change. The NBA and it's politicians agreed this year to use a "technologically advanced" new ball that is designed to absorb sweat and have that "used" feel that shooting guards and small forwards across the country just love. Well, the new ball has been dissected and insulted since it came out. DWade, Rip, Billups, and some other of the league's best guards have said it will affect both their shooting and passing until they get used to it. So, early in the year, teams that have good perimeter shooting (the Suns and Lakers..Kobe still hasn't met a shot he doesn't like) will not light it up like year's past. Remember last year we slammed the Suns over early..well this year I'm going the other way. Word out of Phoenix is that the Suns will try to "blueprint" the Mav's title series run of last year by stepping up the defense. They will still play their frenetic type of basketball, but you'll see a better defensive effort and more stability now that the bench and it's players are defined.
Kobe will go off tonight, but I think you'll see a gradual pull away from the Suns in the 2nd half.
NBA record 0-0 ATSs
Play #1: ROLL WITH ME ON UNDER 208 in the Suns/Lakers.
stats and trends:
Last year's matchups:
PREVIOUS MEETINGS
Date Matchup Line Total ATS Result
10/22/06 PHO 91 @ LAL 94 NA NA/O
10/15/06 PHO 99 @ LAL 91 NA NA/O
05/06/06 LAL 90 @ PHO 121 PHO -5.5 206.5 PHO/O
05/04/06 PHO 126 @ LAL 118 PHO -6 206 PHO/O
05/02/06 LAL 97 @ PHO 114 PHO -7 206 PHO/O
04/30/06 PHO 98 @ LAL 99 LAL -1.5 207.5 PHO/U
04/28/06 PHO 92 @ LAL 99 LAL -2.5 210.5 LAL/U
04/26/06 LAL 99 @ PHO 93 PHO -5 214.5 LAL/U
04/23/06 LAL 102 @ PHO 107 PHO -7 216 LAL/U
04/16/06 PHO 89 @ LAL 109 LAL -8.5 215 LAL/U
Interesting note in tonight's game and one of the reasons I'm on the under:
Player News
On Sunday, two days before the season opener, Kobe Bryant was figuring out just how much he could "trust" his knee. According to the Los Angeles Daily News, Bryant practiced with the starters and compared the process to dipping a toe in the water to see how cold it was. He declared his knee better than the day before. "I think it's the best I've scrimmaged," Bryant said. "I scrimmaged like this a couple practices ago that we had here (at Staples Center). But it was much stronger today."
(Updated 10/30/2006).
Injury Report
Knee - Questionable for Oct. 31 vs. Phoenix
(Updated - 10/30/06)
Fantasy Analysis
The Lakers haven't determined whether Bryant will play Tuesday against Phoenix, but the sight of him fighting for a rebound with forward Brian Cook, then rising again to put back the ball was encouraging. For the time being, Bryant will rely more on his outside shot and less on his quickness. He has had trouble turning the corner and accelerating off the knee. How much Bryant would be able to play Tuesday is another question. The final decision will likely come on Tuesday, continue to monitor this situation
I have a re-constructed knee from 3 knee operations. I'm tellin ya right now that if Kobe does play, they will slow down the frenetic pace and set up the infamous triangle. They will get their "showtime" fast break opportunities, everyone does against the Suns, but I still see them slowing it down a bit to utilize Kobe in 1/2 court sets.
Good luck boys..the UNDER 208 is the play for me.
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