Macklin’s total NBA win recommendations
The start of the NBA regular season is just a week away (Tuesday, November 1) and season win totals haven’t been known for a while. Depending on the output, season win totals range from a high of 57 1/2 on the defending world champion San Antonio Spurs to a low of 19 1/2 on the sophomore Charlotte Bobcats.
Personally, I don’t do much with any kind of future season, as I prefer not to have a significant portion of my funds tied up for an extended period of time. However, for the recreational player, futures betting is fun, potentially profitable, and offers all the action of a season with just one bet.
Most of my NBA preseason work is done and at this point it’s just a matter of watching as many remaining exhibition games as I can. Below are my Top Five season win recommendations for the 2005-6 NBA season. Futures are listed in order of strength, and for the sake of this article, profit totals and lines are taken from Pinnacle and are available at 12:00 PST on Tuesday, October 25.
Los Angeles Clippers OVER 38 (-117): The Clippers did some good things during the offseason. If they can find a way to win on the road and avoid injury, they should make the playoffs! Sure they overpaid for Cutino, but with the Sam Cassell edit, the Clips now have the formidable defense they’ve lacked in the past. Elton Brand and Cory Maggette are given. Look for a potential breakout year from ex-terp Chris Wilcox.
New York Knicks UNDER 40.5 (+113): The roster is different, but the results are expected to be more or less the same. Getting Larry Brown was something of a coup (he left Detroit anyway), but I don’t see how even the Master is going to get this lineup of essentially one-on-one specialists for “D” and work as a cohesive unit on Insulted. The Knicks didn’t give up much to get Eddy Curry, but the move was a roll of the dice at best. The Knicks miss the playoffs again and Isiah is sent packing.
Toronto Raptors UNDER 28.5 (-109): Forget LeBron leaving Cleveland, it will be the ultra-talented Chris Bosh the first out of Toronto. The Raptors did nothing to improve their disgruntled group of underachievers from last year and even lost valuable Donyell Marshall. The Raptors’ No. 1 draft pick, Charlie Villaneuva, got out TWO full years early and will be a bust on the same scale as Kwame Brown. The one bright spot is Okie State’s Joey Graham, who will offer quality minutes right away.
Philadelphia 76ers OVER 41.5 (-134): The 76ers aren’t very deep but they have excellent first seven and exceptional young talent. Philly took over the business in the offseason keeping Korver and Dalembert and extending Andre Iguodala. Chris Webber will have a clearly defined role and the addition of Mo Cheeks as coach should not be overlooked. Allen Iverson should thrive in this system, and I hope that (what has been) a soft court at home immediately becomes harder under the Cheeks legacy.
Denver Nuggets OVER 49.5 (-113): I have to think the Nuggets will improve in their first full year under George Karl. The former Buck/Sonic boss led a team headed for oblivion, guiding them to a 32-8 mark in his first 40 games in charge. The Nuggets are rich in chemistry and have guys off the bench like Earl Boykins and now Eduardo Nejara accepting their roles. Carmelo should have a tremendous year after a sophomore slump throwing the ball. Everything is great when you’re winning and that should be the case here.
Have a look:
Orlando Magic UNDER 33.5 (-101)
Washington Wizards SUB 39.5 (+113)
Atlanta Falcons OVER 20 (-130)
Indiana Pacers OVER 52.5 (-121)
Milwaukee Bucks SUB 35 (+120)