Meatloaf, Meatloaf, Meatloaf! The Bat of Hell album by America’s favorite ballard blaster, is on constant play. More specifically ‘Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad’, has been stuck on repeat in the Compact Disc player. We are not complaining at Fantasy Alarm Best Bets either. We are joyfully dancing with the music!

The Cleveland Cavaliers took care of business against the Milwaukee Bucks, covering the 8 point spread and cashing the bet of the night. Tyler Herro did his part by scoring over 21.5 points, but the Oklahoma City Thunder and Miami Heat game did not cover their total. Still the day brought in a profit of +0.78 units, as this column closed out Autumn with a week of profitable days!

 

 

 

NBA Picks, Predictions & Best Bets Today, 12/21

Today is the first day of Winter, or the winter solstice, and it is also Saturday. For some reason the Happy Days theme song is going through my mind and Fantasy Alarm looks to make these happy days yours and mine.

 

 


Grizzlies vs Hawks Prediction: MEM -2.5 (-110 on Bet365) 

The Memphis Grizzlies do not earn the recognition they deserve, but are among the best teams in the NBA. They are finally healthy and are a young roster loaded with explosive talent. They have won eight of their last ten games, and enjoy a +9.9 point differential. 

They outscored the Golden State Warriors by 51 points in their most recent match, and had a response to Draymond Green’s criticism of them. The Grizzlies are second place in the Western Conference and on the road against the Atlanta Hawks who are seventh in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks have lost their last two games and need to recapture some of their earlier momentum.

Memphis outscores Atlanta with 122.9 to 116.5 points per game, while also allowing fewer points per game, 113.0 to 119.3. They are also .500 on the road this season, with a 6-6 record. Even if Ja Morant doesn’t play, Scottie Pippen Jr. is capable of leading the team.

The fact that Memphis put up so many points, have a better offensive and defensive points per game average, and have a good road record make this spread a bit confusing. Put a unit on them to cover the low spread at State Farm Arena. 
 

 

 

Celtics vs Bulls Prediction: Nikola Vucevic Over 1.5 Threes Made (-130 on Bet365) *2.0 U

Did you know the Chicago Bulls and Boston Celtics set a record for most three points attempted in their most recent game? Just two days ago the Bulls and Celtics combined for 108 three point attempts and missed 75 of them. Yes you are reading that correctly, 108 threes in one game and missing 75 of them.

That is like exclusively using your putter throughout the golf course, or only calling Hail Mary passes in a football game… It is asinine. Yet some call it analytics. Either way questioning the philosophy gets us nowhere, but betting on it does. That is why The Well, Nikola Vucevic, is set to deliver again with a two unit hammer. 

The odds have shifted depending on the sportsbook, but it is still worth a double unit wager. Chicago is almost purely an analytical team, hence why Vucevic attempts a few per game. Despite only attempting three and four his last two games, he has made two in both of them. 

He has been so dependable for us and this game is almost guaranteed to be another high scoring, back and forth paced game. Put a unit on The Well to deliver with two or more threes again.
 

 

 

NBA Player Props & Other Picks Today, 12/21

The third pick today is a player prop in the competitive Pacific division. Two teams that have played well but lack consistency, that is why this bet is on a player prop with plus odds.
 

 

 

Lakers vs Kings Prediction: LeBron James Under 7.5 Rebounds (+105 on Draftkings Sportsbook) 

The Los Angeles Lakers travel upstate to play at the Golden 1 Center against the Sacramento Kings. The Kings are last in the division but only three games away from first, currently held by the Los Angeles Clippers. They have lost their last two games, but it was not due to effort. 

The Kings have a +2.5 point differential which is much better than the Los Angeles Lakers with a -2.9. However the Lakers are on a two game winning streak and have the better record. They also have the better superstars, and when a game is giving conflicting data on a straight bet, go with a consistent superstar.

That star tonight is Lebron James. He is averaging 7.9 rebounds per game this season, but only managed 6 against the Kings two days ago. That was with 34 minutes of court time too. He is averaging 35 minutes per game this season and should see around that much time tonight. 

The logic for picking under 7.5 rebounds is that there are two elite rebounders in this game, Anthony Davis and Domantas Sabonis. Sabonis is averaging 13.0 per game, and Davis 11.7, and they combined for 32 rebounds in their game Thursday. That doesn’t leave several opportunities for James to earn eight rebounds. 

Put a unit on Lebron James under 7.5 rebounds in a match that features two great centers.
 

 

 

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