My Pre-Game Predictions For Today’s Games – 2.14.21
It’s another day of NBA basketball on the weekend, and we have an action packed day in the NBA. I will be giving all my pre-game predictions for each game, and choose a winner.
Boston Celtics vs Washington Wizards
The Celtics have been struggling a lot lately, and it’s for a multitude of reasons. Their defense hasn’t been as good as it has been in years past, some of that is due to the injury to Marcus Smart, but Tristan Thompson hasn’t exactly been great this season. Kemba Walker looks like a shell of himself scoring wise, and the Celtics just rely too heavily on Brown and Tatum. I had high hopes for the Celtics this year, but they just don’t have a very deep roster. They have to be better on both ends, as they just haven’t looked like the same team. With all that said, they are playing the Wizards, so that kind of hides their flaws for a game.
The Wizards haven’t been great this season, mainly due to their poor defense. They aren’t very deep, and even their duo of Westbrook and Beal hasn’t been enough to help them win. This team is a mess, and they should be rebuilding, but until then they will get beat up by the rest of the NBA.
Final Verdict: This should be an easy win for the Celtics. Despite all the problems I outlined that they have, they should still win this game.
Minnesota Timberwolves vs Toronto Raptors
Even with KAT back the T-Wolves have struggled, mainly due to their defense. They have offensive fire-power, but their defense is very poor. The T-Wolves don’t have a lot of good defenders, as they desperately miss Jarrett Culver on the perimeter. Still no D-Lo means they lose some scoring, but defense is their real problem.
The Raptors have been up and down this season, as both their offense and defense have looked good and bad. But their offense should be good in this game against the 23rd defense in the league. The Raptors offense can be explosive, as they have some scorers. Now their interior defense is very poor, as Aaron Baynes has been beyond bad defensively this season. KAT will be a problem down low, but I still think the Raptors should win this game.
Final Verdict: The Raptors should win this game handily. They should be able to score at will against a poor T-Wolves defense, and even though KAT is a mismatch down low, they should be able to overcome that and win this game.
San Antonio Spurs vs Charlotte Hornets
The Spurs are another team that has been up and down this season, but remain one of the quieter good teams in the West. They absolutely torched the Hawks on Friday, as they were able to shoot the ball well. The Spurs have one of the deepest backcourts in the league, from scorers like DeMar DeRozan to defensive specialists like Dejounte Murray. The Spurs are a little weak inside, but Jakob Poeltl is good defensively and he holds things down. The key for the Spurs is trying to throw off the Hornets explosive backcourt, and if they can hit some 3’s to spread everything out for their slashers.
The Hornets offense has taken off with Lamelo Ball in the starting lineup, as the Hornets finally have a very good passer to find all their weapons. But now they have a dilemma. They have 3 talented guards, but they aren’t great defensively together. In the two games where the Hornets have run out a Ball, Rozier, Graham, Hayward, and Zeller starting lineup, they’ve given up 138 points against Utah and 114 points against the T-Wolves. They aren’t good at all defensively, but very explosive offensively.
Final Verdict: I think that the Spurs will win this game. The Hornets defense is very poor when they run their current starting lineup featuring 3 guards, and the Spurs should be able to take advantage. This game will likely be high-scoring, but I am giving the edge to the Spurs.
New Orleans Pelicans vs Detroit Pistons
The Pelicans got torched by the Mavs, as their defense was exposed by the Luka and the Mavs. Lucky for the Pels they face a much easier task with the Pistons. The Pelicans are the better team, and really just have to shoot ok to win. But their defense has to be better than what it was the Mavs, otherwise they’ll be in for another shootout.
The Pistons seem to only beat good teams, as 30 from Saddiq Bey off the bench fueled them to a win. The Pistons have to continue to play their young guys, as they’ve played well this season. Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart have been promising, and they need to continue to play those two guys, and I’ll have no problems with this team.
Final Verdict: The Pelicans are clearly the better team and they should win this game.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Dallas Mavericks
The Blazers torched the Cavs, as they have been finding their rhythm even though they’ve been hit brutally with injuries. Portland’s offense is fine, led by Damian Lillard. Portland has a lot of shooters, and if guys like Gary Trent Jr. and Carmelo Anthony continue to shoot well, Portland is dangerous. The Mavs aren’t great defensively, so Portland should be able to score. But defense is the problem. Portland’s defense has been getting better, but still a problem. Portland has to throw all their wings at Luka, and they’d better not play drop coverage against the Mavs pick and pop. They have to make sure they cover Porzingis from deep. The Blazers have to contest Mavs shooters, and make sure they don’t shoot like they did against the Pelicans otherwise it’ll be a tough night for Portland.
The Mavs offense has been finding itself lately, thanks to the Luka and Kristaps show. Kristaps Porzingis has been aggressive, as he’s been shooting lights out from deep. I want to see him in the post more and take advantage of a smaller guy on him. Luka is a consistent jumpshot away from being an all-time great, as he has been hitting 3’s and tearing people up. But the key for the Mavs is if they can shoot well and get scoring from other guys like Richardson and Hardaway. The Mavs defense has been questionable lately, but if they can score it’s hard for anybody to stop them.
Final Verdict: I think that the Blazers will win this game. They have been good on offense, and the Mavs aren’t exactly great on defense. Defense will be a struggle for both teams, but if the Blazers can slow down Porzingis and make the Mavs make contesting 3-pointers, they have a chance to win this game.
Milwaukee Bucks vs OKC Thunder
The Bucks are good, but they aren’t going to win a ring with Budenholzer. He doesn’t know how to coach this team, and no matter how many wins the Bucks get in the regular season, they will eventually fail in the postseason. So you can take this free win card against the rebuilding Thunder, but it really won’t matter in the end.
The Thunder have mastered the art of remaining in competitive in games and losing. They are again without SGA, and it wouldn’t surprise me if this game is close. They will lose against the Bucks, but they make sure they’ll go down fighting.
Final Verdict: You can take this one Bucks, but I know all your tricks.
Orlando Magic vs Phoenix Suns
The Magic have been hit hard by injuries, and their offense has been poor because of that. They did get a big performance from Nikola Vucevic against the 30th ranked Kings defense, but they likely won’t find the same type of success against a very good Suns defense. Cole Anthony and Fournier are questionable, but even if they play I doubt the Magic will do much in this game.
The Suns have won their last 5 games, as they have found the right balance to win. They are very well coached, and they are good on both ends of the floor. Booker and Paul are masters of the mid-range, and Deandre Ayton can be a force down low, if the Suns give him the ball. The Suns are very deep, and they have a great bench. This Suns team is good, and a threat in the West.
Final Verdict: The Suns should win this game easily.
LA Lakers vs Denver Nuggets
The Lakers haven’t been playing great lately, but they’ve still been winning. But on national tv against a good team, I have no doubt they’ll show up. Lebron has been great as usual, but AD has been quiet offensively most nights. He is questionable again, but I think he will play after playing against Memphis. The Lakers need AD and Schroder to score, as the Lakers sometimes become just Lebron on offense (which isn’t a bad thing per say, he’s pretty good). Harrell has been good off the bench, but Kuzma has been pleasantly surprising. He’s playing with energy on both ends, grabbing rebounds and flopping on defense (some things never change). This Lakers team is good, and if they decide to turn things on, they are easily the best team in the league.
The Nuggets haven’t been great this season. Their offense is just Nikola Jokic, as guys like Jamal Murray and MPJ haven’t been anything special offensively this season. They are still without Harris and Dozier who are some of their best perimeter defenders, as their defense has been shaky this season. The Lakers dominated them in the 2nd half of their first matchup on February 4th, and I just don’t see the outcome being any different.
Final Verdict: The Nuggets aren’t the same team from last year. They are a little bit short-handed, but their offense is a one-man show, and their defense hasn’t been anything special. LA usually shows up in big games, and they should be winning this game.
Memphis Grizzlies vs Sacramento Kings
The Grizzlies have been struggling lately, as they seemed to have lost that edge that they had in the start of the season. Their defense has been getting torn apart, and because of that their already lacking offense has been not nearly enough for them to win games. They are still going to be missing Desmond Bane and maybe Brandon Clarke, but they should be able to score against the 30th ranked Kings defense. They just have to make sure they can keep up with the fast-paced Kings offense.
The Kings got torched by the Magic last time out, but they were missing Fox and Bagley, both of whom are questionable for this game. The Kings are solid, but really need Fox back for their offense. The Kings defense is still pretty bad, but if they get Fox back he brings a lot of speed to an already fast-paced lineup.
Final Verdict:
Cleveland Cavaliers vs LA Clippers
The Cavs struggle at the whole offense thing.
The Clippers have been good without PG, as their offense led by Kawhi hasn’t skipped a beat. The Clippers just need scoring from their bench, and they should be able to hold down one of the worst offenses in the league.
Final Verdict: The Clippers should easily win this game, even without PG.
Game Of The Day
Mavs vs Blazers will be very good. Two of the best offenses in the league, two of the biggest superstars in the league, should be a showdown.
Other good games could be Lakers vs Nuggets or Spurs vs Hornets.
What Are Your Predictions For The 10 Games Today? Leave A Comment Down Below!
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