Top NBA Betting Picks for the Week – February 26th

The new-look Cleveland Cavaliers have won six of heir last 10 and have slipped into third in the Eastern Conference standings. They sit 6 ½ games behind the Toronto Raptors, winners of eight of their last 10 — but just two games ahead of Milwaukee, who are in sixth — so there’s a bit of a logjam in the middle of the East table. Philadelphia continues to climb the standings, winners of 8 of their last 10, while the Brooklyn Nets are trying to end an eight-game losing streak. Out West, the Memphis Grizzlies have tumbled down the table with a nine-game losing streak, matching the futility of the Phoenix Suns. Houston won their 12th in a row over the weekend, keeping them a half-game ahead of Golden State atop the conference standings. Let’s take a look at your best NBA betting picks for the week ahead.

Top NBA Betting Picks for the Week – February 26th

New Power Rankings via @NBAcom! ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/qMIIpaYkCq

— NBA TV (@NBATV) February 26, 2018

Tuesday, February 27

Philadelphia at Miami (7:30pm ET, CSN / SUN)

Miami is clinging to the edge of the Eastern Conference playoffs, but they have dropped eight of their last 10. After losing in Toronto by three, Philadelphia by two and New Orleans by one, though, all on the road, they came home and dealt a 26-point thrashing to the Memphis Grizzlies, behind 23 points from Tyler Johnson on a night when six different Heat players hit double figures. Of course, the Grizzlies have a lot of their talent on the shelf right now, while the 76ers are firing on all cylinders at the present time. Philadelphia had won seven in a row until they lost by 15 in Washington on Sunday night. In fact, no Philadelphia team (meaning the 76ers or the NHL Flyers) had lost a game since the Philadelphia Eagles won Super Bowl LII, making a huge streak for the entire city. Joel Embiid had 25 points and 10 boards for the Sixers, and Ben Simmons chipped in 16 points. It was a 37-20 second quarter for Washington that set the tone for the game, and the 76ers simply couldn’t come all the way back. With an off travel day, can the 76ers make the adjustments to keep Miami reeling? NBA Betting Prediction: Philadelphia 108, Miami 105

Wednesday, February 28

Golden State at Washington (8:00pm ET, ESPN)

The Golden State Warriors had lost three of their last six before delivering home wins over the L.A. Clippers (by seven) and the Oklahoma City Thunder (by 32). That rout of the Thunder reversed a negative trend against Oklahoma City, who had delivered a pair of big wins over the Warriors already this season. The Warriors went on a 14-0 run to close out the last third of the third period. Some timely shooting from the Warriors (combined with a 1-for-14 night from Paul George) helped the Warriors put away the Thunder. However, Golden State showed a renewed commitment to defense to salt away their win. Now the Warriors head to Washington to face a Wizards team who will be coming back home from a game in Milwaukee the night before. Washington has won four of five, including wins in Chicago, New York and Cleveland, and a home win over the 76ers, sandwiched around a home loss to Charlotte. Otto Porter put up 24 points in the Sunday win over Philadelphia, and Bradley Beal chipped in 23. That sort of balance will help the Wizards against the video-game pace that Golden State plays, but can they outscore the Warriors? NBA Betting Prediction: Golden State 122, Washington 117

Thursday, March 1

Minnesota at Portland (10:30pm ET, TNT)

The Minnesota Timberwolves are holding onto fourth place in the West right now, despite the fact that they have lost four of seven. Two of those losses have come to the Houston Rockets, and another was a two-point overtime loss in Cleveland, but now the time has come for them to make some hay against the lower teams — and they’ll have to do it without All-Star guard Jimmy Butler, who had surgery on his right meniscus, according to reports from Sunday, and who will be out indefinitely. They visit a Portland team that needed every one of the 40 points that Damian Lillard gave them in their dramatic win over the hapless Phoenix Suns, as they prevailed 106-104 on the road. That made five wins in six games for the Trail Blazers, including a six-point win against Golden State and a 19-point win at Utah. With Minnesota losing Butler, the Timberwolves need to get scoring from other people — and can they get enough to outscore Portland? NBA Betting Prediction: Portland 110, Minnesota 101