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A third straight night of NBA picks perfection was well within our grasp on Tuesday night, but the San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns burned us. The Spurs falling to the lowly Jazz and the Suns losing at home is a pretty terrible way to go 6-2, especially when you correctly pick the Los Angeles Lakers to nab a win.
No matter, we’ll attempt picks perfection again on a fully loaded Wednesday night. Yeah, that’ll happen. Still, we carry a stout 161-77 season record into tonight’s 10-game slate:
Wizards @ Magic
Orlando and Washington tip the night off at 7:00 pm ET, as the Magic play host. They’ll hold out hope that big man Nikola Vucevic (back) can return, and if so they’ll have a shot to compete against Washington’s long line of steady post players. The Wiz have the upper hand across the board, though, so the Magic are probably looking at a loss, either way.
Pick: Wizards 104, Magic 102
Clippers @ Pacers
Los Angeles is playing really solid basketball these days and aren’t any worse on the road, which should be bad news for the hosting Pacers. Chris Paul should slap Rodney Stuckey around and Blake Griffin should have a nice night against David West. Indiana just won’t be able to keep up in this one.
Pick: Clips 106, Pacers 99
Celtics @ Hornets
Boston plays some of the worst defense in the league, so even the offensively challenged Hornets should be able to score the ball tonight. The Hornets also get Michael Kidd-Gilchrist back tonight, which could dramatically boost their perimeter defense. If so, Charlotte might be able to build a two-game winning streak.
Pick: Hornets 103, Celtics 101
76ers @ Hawks
Philly has been pretty competitive and actually has two wins in their past 10 games, but they’re on the road against a quietly solid Hawks team. They might keep it close for a while, but the Hawks should pull away late.
Pick: Hawks 104, 76ers 97
Pelicans @ Mavericks
The Pellies have been very average over the last week and that certainly won’t be good enough against the Mavs on the road. Dallas is one of the best offensive teams in the league, so we can expect a nice back and forth affair. Dallas gets the edge at home, though.
Pick: Mavs 113, Pelicans 105
Nets @ Bulls
Brooklyn is ready to trade just about everyone in a sinking season, while the Bulls play host without Joakim Noah. The Nets are also down Brook Lopez, so the losses cancel out and the better team prevails.
Pick: Bulls 102, Nets 96
Blazers @ Timberwolves
Minnesota is in free fall mode right now and despite being at home, may not be able to put up much of a fight against a very deep and balanced Trail Blazers squad. LaMarcus Aldridge shall feast tonight.
Pick: Blazers 109, Timberwolves 101
Knicks @ Spurs
New York can’t catch anything remotely close to a break. The Spurs already coughed up a pathetic loss to the Jazz last night, so there’s no way they take a breather and let the Knicks get by them – especially at home.
Pick: Spurs 104, Knicks 94
Rockets @ Warriors
Houston is getting a little healthier at point guard and Dwight Howard might even make a return tonight. The Warriors are probably still the better team even when Howard gets back in the lineup, while winning in Golden State is about as difficult as a task as they come.
Pick: Warriors 107, Rockets 104
Heat @ Nuggets
Miami burned us last night by beating the Suns on the road, so they’ll surely burn us again. However, they’re actually solid on the road (6-5) and the Nuggets are on a four-game skid, so we’ll go against the grain a bit and take the Heat in Denver.
Pick: Heat 98, Nuggets 95
