NBA Sunday Tips: Slumping Nets require a Nugget of hope

The NBA’s pre-season favourites look lost with a part-time star.

Brooklyn Nets @ Denver Nuggets

(Sunday, 8.30pm GMT)

Three straight losses have squashed the feelgood factor glistening over the Denver Nuggets. But that feels like a pebble in the road compared to the bump that has juddered the Nets.

Seven consecutive defeats. On a negative points differential of -10.7. Sure, it was a tough schedule run, undertaken without Kevin Durant. But it also incorporates an extended five-game road swing when Kyrie Irving has been available and in uniform.

More evidence, perhaps, that a Brooklyn squad which only has its premier point guard for a mere 50% of the time does not deserve to be 2.66 favourites for the Eastern Conference title. Laying off them at 4.8 for the NBA title may be the safest bet of all.

The Nets have already lost to Denver, by 124-118, during this barren stretch and that has been a typical outcome of late.

Unable to gain momentum with rotations constantly altered due to absentees, Brooklyn has still not found the sorts of ways to adapt and regroup on the fly that most great sides can manage.

Against lowly Sacramento last week, James Harden was held to four points and the Nets posted a disastrous 96.0 offensive rating with the scorer supreme on the floor.

In the deep field in the East, challenges will come thick and fast, even when they head back to NYC. With rumbles over Harden’s future, maybe it is time to accept that the Nets - priced at 2.8 for a win in Denver - are punctured and in need of a sizeable repair.

Tip: Back Denver on a handicap of -6.0 against Brooklyn at 1.97

Nets seeking a change in fortunes

Philadelphia 76ers @ Chicago Bulls

(Sunday, 8.30pm GMT)

There is quite the incentive for the Chicago Bulls to maintain their leadership of the Eastern Conference with victory over the 76ers on Sunday.

Win - at odds of 2.06 - and Billy Donovan will coach at the forthcoming NBA All Star Game. Lose, and the Miami Heat’s Erik Spoelstra will steal the seat.

No pressure then.

Winners in five of their last seven, the Bulls have recovered from the injury / Covid-driven New Year slump that dropped them back towards the chasing pack.

In that spell, their net points differential is +3.3 - a slim margin, but still an improvement on the season mark of +1.9 that is the lowest among the top-10 ranked teams in the league.

Philly is 5-2 in its last seven with a similar differential of +3.9 but the approaches between the rivals differ immensely.

Chicago has averaged an explosive 120.3 points per game in that recent period. The Sixers a mere 109.0, relying instead on defence. This campaign, they are 17-19 while conceding 100 points. The Bulls are 31-10 when scoring a century or more.

But while the 76ers are over-achieving on expectations in the continued absence of Ben Simmons and have dropped to a tempting 8.0 for the Eastern crown, Chicago’s true testing ground will come post-All Star when we discover whether they are true contenders or simply a team on the rise with a limited ceiling.

Tip: Take under 219.5 total points in Philadelphia – Chicago at 1.98

Atlanta Hawks @ Dallas Mavericks

(Sunday, 11pm GMT)

The Atlanta Hawks have regained some of their mojo since 2022 began.

8-2 over their past 10 appearances on a net differential of +7.6 that is fourth in the whole NBA, there has been some of the swagger that was on display in last year’s NBA Playoffs.

And yet, they are still below .500 and only in 10th place in the East. Making up the gap to sixth place will need a continued ascent.

As ever, a reunion between Trey Young and Luka Doncic will be one to savour on Sunday night, their fates forever linked by their proximity in the 2018 NBA Draft. But it is also a match-up that could swing the Hawks-Mavs duel.

Doncic is sixth in the NBA with 26.2 points per game with Young third on 27.9. And while Dallas, 1.72 for a win, is 16-7 against opponents with losing records, the Hawks - very generously available at 1.97 on a handicap of +2.0 - are no sinking ship.

Tip: Go over 219.0 total points in Atlanta-Dallas at 1.96

Recommended Bets:

Back Denver on a handicap of -6.0 against Brooklyn at 1.97

Take under 219.5 total points in Philadelphia @ Chicago at 1.98

Go over 219.0 total points in Atlanta @ Dallas at 1.96