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Welcome to a special NBA Cup Quarterfinals-focused edition of Newsweek Sports Betting!
Tonight, we’ve got two matchups that are the closest we are going to get to meaningful mid-December action — at least until Saturday night’s NBA Cup semifinals.
So, who will join New York and Orlando in action on NBA Cup Semifinal Saturday Night?
The winners of the matchups below will square off on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas at 9 p.m. (all times ET) on Prime Video following Knicks-Magic at 5:30 p.m.
The odds here come from FD as of 6 p.m.:
Suns at Thunder (-15.5) — 7:30 p.m. (Prime Video)
Spurs at Lakers (-7) — 10 p.m. (Prime Video)
Stay with me below for a breakdown and a best bet in Spurs-Lakers.
All I have to say about Suns-Thunder is that no, I do not expect OKC (23-1) — which is not only 23-1, but has won 17 of its games by double-digits — to lose, or be challenged from start to finish (and yes, I’m aware that Phoenix nearly upset OKC at Paycom Center in NBA Cup group play on November 28).
That being said, I don’t quite love them to cover 15.5 points, either, so I’d recommend either staying away or throwing a half-unit on the scrappy, 14-10 Suns 1H* at +9.5 (-114 at FD).
*first-half spread
Spurs vs. Lakers NBA Cup Quarterfinal Odds, Best Bet
Spurs (16-7) vs. Lakers (17-6) Betting Odds (via FD)
Spread: SAS +7 (-106); LAL -7 (-114)
ML: SAS +225; LAL -275
Total: 241.5 (over -106; under -114)
San Antonio turned heads with an 8-2 start featuring several dominant performances by Victor Wembanyama. The Spurs have more than stayed afloat since he was injured on November 14.
In fact, in 11 recent games without Wemby (dating back to Nov. 16), the Spurs have gone 8-3, and they’re just one game behind the current 2-seed in the loaded West, the Lakers.
The Lakers have also gotten off to a strong start that is even more impressive considering they’ve been at less than full strength for most of the season. LeBron James has only played in seven games this year. L.A. is 6-1 in those contests, but only three of those came against teams with winning records.
Against the best team the Lakers have faced with LeBron in the lineup, they lost to Phoenix 125-108 on December 1.
At the risk of oversimplifying things, that makes the Spurs awfully tempting at +7, doesn’t it??
San Antonio boasts recent wins over the Nuggets on Nov. 28 and the Magic on Dec. 3. I expect this team to keep tonight’s game close, as I just don’t see much separating the Lakers-with-LeBron from the Spurs-without-Wemby.
Best bet: Spurs +7 (-106 at FanDuel) — 0.5 units
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NBA Cup Quarterfinal Preview: Spurs vs. Lakers Betting Odds, Best Bet 📩
