Yesterday: 4-4

Overall: 16-15

Greetings fellow readers of Chrispi's blog. I'm Middlefingz and i'll be filling in today . Let me start by saying that I got to see Kevin Durant play yesterday afternoon in Austin as the Longhorns hosted the Iowa State Cyclones. Although DJ Augustin stole the show offensively, Durant displayed a diverse skill set highlighted by defensive rebounding, agressive inside shooting and steals. Most people are assuming that he will go # 1 or 2 in the draft and after seeing him today I can see why Rick Barnes and the rest of UT will be sad to see him slip away after only one year.

Ok, let's take a look at today's action.

NBA (9-5)

For today's post, we'll look at 3 games

Spurs (-1.5) at Heat: You have to like a San Antonio team that has beaten Miami in 9 out of their last 10 meetings. Heading into today's game, both teams are 6-4 in their most recent 10. Surprisingly, the Heat have gone 7-3 ATS in the same timeframe while the Spurs have only covered 3 times out of 10. There's a good reason for this. The Spurs have been playing on the road (their "Rodeo" trip) against tough teams like Phoenix and Utah, while the Heat have been running up their record against lessor opponents such as Milwaukee (twice), Charlotte and Boston. Over their last 2 games, the Spurs boast a better than 50% field goal percentage. Look for the good shooting to continue today as the Spurs look to forget a devastating last second loss to the Magic on Friday night.

Lakers at Cavs (-3.5) Cleveland should probably be favored by 4 in this contest but since the public often backs the Lakers, you can consider it a gift today. Both teams have put up strikingly similar numbers on the year. LA is 30-21 overall and 31-19 ATS, while the Clevland is 29-21 on the year with a an identical 31-19 record ATS. As the Lakers wind down an exhausting road trip, they meet a Cavs squad that plays exceptionally well at home. It's worth noting that the home team has won the last 4 times these teams have met. Look for Lebron James to be at his best today as he leads the Cavs to victory over a tired Lakers team

Mavericks (-8) at 76'ers: In my opinion, this is a non-sensical line. Seriously, there is no reason for the Mavericks to be favored by less than double digits against a 76'ers team that struggles so badly at home. What's more, as an underdog, Philly is a dismal 7-29 ATS. Dallas has won 6 in a row and there's no reason to think that the streak won't reach 7 after today.

One footnote to today's analysis. There are several different types of traditional wagers to consider when betting on basketball. Those include 1'st quarter lines, 1'st half lines, 2'nd half lines, the money line on the entire game or the entire game against the spread. Choose your plays wisely. For example, it might be worth it to make a 1'st half play on a home team that's rested when they're playing a team that's been on the road playing back to back games. It's worth your time to research both recent and historical statistics to try and get a better feel for what to expect in the contest you're wagering on.