NBA Picks #1 & #2: 803 Utah Jazz @ 804 Charlotte Hornets
Rating: 4 units - Regular Play
Pick: Utah Jazz (+4.5) (Play up to +4)
Odds: -106 / 1.94 on Pinnacle Sports OR -110 / 1.91 on BookmakerRating: 4 units - Regular Play
Pick: Over 206.5 (Play up to 208)
Odds: -105 / 1.95 on Pinnacle Sports OR -110 / 1.91 on Bookmaker
These two teams are at a similar level, so 4.5 points is way too much for this game. Charlotte's defense continues to have problems, especially against teams that shoot a lot from the 3pts line. Dallas crushed them like that with 15-36 3pts and Utah has a similar approach, with some inconsistency, but with Johnson back, the Jazz has been more solid as they have two decent ball handlers coming off the bench with Hood and Johnson.
Utah has been playing with small ball lineups and in the last three games, they scored 10, 16 and 18 fast break points. On the other hand, Charlotte depends too much on Kemba, who won't have an easy matchup tonight against a solid defender like Rubio. The Hornets could have some edge down low with Howard, but in my opinion Utah's edges on offense will be bigger than Charlotte's edges on their own offense. Both teams have been playing fast and so, this won't be a traditional slow paced game. I expect a super tight high scoring game and so, I'll be taking both the Jazz and the Over in here.