Season 2023/24, Saturday, 09.12.2023
In week 7 of the 2023/24 NBA season, the Trail Blazers (6-14) host the Mavericks (12-8) at home in the Moda Center. Dallas is currently in a direct playoff spot and naturally wants to hold on to it.
Portland, on the other hand, must be careful not to move any closer to last place in the West. According to the betting odds, the visitors are the clear favorites in this duel.
I come to the same conclusion in my Trail Blazers Mavericks betting tip and play the bet “Win Dallas with HC -4.5” at Betano with odds of 1.57.
The visitors are the favorites in the Trail Blazers Mavericks forecast with a spread of minus 8.5 points. Thus, an away win is only paid with odds averaging 1.32.
On the other hand, the bookmakers who offer their customers the best betting apps have average odds of 3.48 for a win for the home side.
After 171 duels, Portland is ahead in the direct comparison with 90 to 81 wins. The Mavs started a six-game winning streak against the Trail Blazers in March 2021.
However, the last two meetings in Oregon in January of this year went to the home side again (136:119 and 140:123).
After the franchise traded its icon Damian Lillard to Milwaukee, the rebuilding process could begin in Portland. In doing so, Oregon is relying on youth.
A new team is to be built around No. 3 pick Scott Henderson and last year’s rookie Shaedon Sharpe. However, this path will be rocky and difficult.
The start to the current season has shown that. Most of the six wins came against the weakest offenses in the NBA. The team also has major problems going forward and is in last place in the NBA with an offensive rating of 106.2.
However, the Trail Blazers at least ended their most recent five-game road trip with two wins. And at the end of the trip as guests of the Golden State Warriors, they put up a close fight against the home side.
Coach Chauncey Billups’ men were six points ahead with 5:32 on the clock in the fourth quarter, but were ultimately beaten 106:110.
The away team only conceded ten turnovers (17 for the Warriors). Anfernee Simons returned from injury and put 28 points on the board.
Portland also had the edge in 3-point shooting (16-10). However, the Blazers had to make do without five of their top eight over the course of the game. In addition, they only managed 12 points from free throws in 16 attempts, while the home side scored 28 points from 33 shots.
Robert Williams III and Ish Wainright are out for the game against Dallas. The appearances of Malcolm Brogdon, Jerami Grant and Deandre Ayton are still questionable.
When will Luka Doncic’s MVP season finally come? When will the Mavericks finally make the playoffs again? Last season, only 37 wins with the Slovenian top star in the squad were a big disappointment.
So far, Dallas is on target for fifth place in the West. And Luka Doncic is defending himself against the claim made on X (formerly Twitter) at the end of November that he is the “most overrated player in the NBA”.
With 31.8 points per game, the Slovenian currently ranks second in the league behind Joel Embiid. The guard had a particularly gala day in the recent 147:97 home win against the Utah Jazz.
The 24-year-old scored 40 points, 11 assists and ten rebounds in just 32 minutes of action. He thus notched up the 60th triple-double of his career and is now in 9th place in the all-time rankings.
Doncic also became the first player since the start of detailed play-by-play data recording (1996/97) to record a 25-point triple-double in one half of a game.
The Texans’ showpiece remains their offense (5th place) with an average of 119.7 points. The Mavericks are even in first place for “three-pointers made”.
However, the defense rating of 116.1 is only good enough for 23rd place in the NBA. The team also lacks consistency. They suffered two bitter defeats before the win against Utah.
A 94:108 against the Memphies Grizzlies (6-14) was followed by a 120:126 against the Oklahoma Thunder (13-7). Grant Williams, Josh Green and Maxi Kleber are currently missing through injury
Conclusion: It’s safe to say that Dallas keeps having lapses. They have also lost their last two games in Portland. But on Friday, the Mavs face the weakest offense in the NBA.
So it’s hard for me to bet against the Mavericks, who beat Utah by a 50-point margin in their last game. The Trail Blazers defend the 3-point line quite well.
But the visitors have enough weapons to still win the game. My Trail Blazers Mavericks tip is thus: Victory Dallas with HC -4.5.
