NBA

San Antonio Spurs vs New York Knicks

The 2025 NBA Cup Finals will take place tonight at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Although the accolade itself means little, it will represent bragging rights in the first of 3 matches this season. Both sides come into this one with an 18-7 record. The Knicks sit 2nd in the East, whilst San Antonio are 4th in the West (which looks to be the stronger conference this season).

The Knicks come into this in great form, with 5 straight wins and 9-1 record in their last 10 matches. The team is well balanced, averaging 121 PPG (3rd) and giving up just 112.2 OPPG (4th). Jalen Brunson has continued to build on his impressive resume since joining the Knicks in 2022-23, averaging a career high 28.8 PPG. He has been well supported by Karl-Anthony Towns in the centre position and several strong 3 point shooters (Bridges, Anunoby, & Hart). There is a genuine belief that this could be the Knicks’ year to reach a play off final.

As for San Antonio, they have navigated their schedule well after franchise star Victor Wembanyama was injured for a month. De’Aaron Fox has carried most of the scoring load in Wemby’s absence, averaging 23.9 PPG. San Antonio are 7-3 in their last 10 matches, but lack of consistency in their starting five will be a concern going into this one against a very organised Knicks team.

Key Matchups:

It seems that New York hold a significant advantage in being able to restrict the key scorers for San Antonio. Both sides will be dependent on their point guards (De’Aaron Fox- San Antonio, Jalen Brunson- New York) & centre position (Victor Wembanyama- San Antonio, Anthony Towns- New York.

L10 matches vs 2nd-6th seeds in the NBA:

New York give up 11.5 PPG for Centre’s (-2.4 PPG vs San Antonio)
New York give up 19.6 PPG for point guards (-3.7 PPG vs San Antonio)

Key Markets:

San Antonio ML (+110), New York Knicks ML (-133)
San Antonio +2.5 pts (-110), New York Knicks -2.5 pts (-110)
Over 234.5 pts (-110), Under 234.5 pts (-110)

Our Selection:

1u: New York Knicks ML (-133)

I think the dynamic scoring duo of Jalen Brunson & Anthony-Towns will be the difference tonight. They also come into this in great form as a collective, compared to San Antonio who have had a fair share of injury problems in the past month.

Cleveland Cavaliers vs Golden State Warriors

The Cleveland Cavaliers (14-10) will host the Golden State Warriors (11-12) tonight from Rocket Arena. The Cavaliers have been in poor form recently, winning just twice in their last six games. However they come into this one after a dominant victory over San Antonio Spurs (15-7). Donovan Mitchell has been in mesmerising form so far this season, averaging 30.6 PPG and shooting 50% from the field. Jarrett Allen, Max Strus, and Larry Nance Jr are among notable absences for Cleveland tonight.

Golden State will have to be tactical in their approach for the season. With the trio of Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler III, and Draymond Green, it is unrealistic to expect the team to be competitive across all 82 matches this season. Curry is the only player to be averaging over 20 PPG for the Warriors (27.9 PPG), but he will not be available tonight. Draymond Green & Jimmy Buttler III are also listed as questionable, but expected to play.

Key Stats:

Betting Tip:

1u: Cleveland Cavaliers -8.5 Pts (-110)

I think this will be a blowout victory for Cleveland who are looking to pick up momentum going into the festive period. Golden State will be depleted and missing key man Stephen Curry, but this could result in a faster paced offensive performance from Golden State, that will be positive for over the points spread of 230.5. Our statistics would supporting looking at this market, with both teams hitting the over on 70% of their L10 matches against similar teams.

Washington Wizards vs Atlanta Hawks

After blowing a 23 point lead last night against Denver Nuggets, the Atlanta Hawks (13-11) will be looking to bounce back against the Washington Wizards (3-18).

These two sides have already met once this season, the Wizards smashed the Hawks 132-113 in their own back yard. However tonight the team with the second worst record in the NBA will be without Alex Sarr, Bilal Coulibaly, Corey Kispert, & Tre Johnson.

The Atlanta Hawks have fluctuated a lot this season. After the loss of franchise star Trae Young, the Hawks have had to get used to distributing points across the board. This has seen them lead the NBA with 30.6 Assists per Game. Jalen Johnson & Nickeil Alexander-Walker have led the scoring for Atlanta, both averaging over 20 PPG.

The Stats:

Betting Tip:

1u: Washington Wizards +9.5 pts (-110)

The stats would suggest that the outcome on the points spread could go either way. I think there is bound to be some mental fatigue for the Atlanta players after blowing away a 23 point lead against Denver last night. Washington are without some key players, so I expect a shorter rotation and potentially more cohesion.

Brooklyn Nets vs New Orleans Pelicans

The New Orleans Pelicans (3-20) travel to the Barclays Centre to take on Brooklyn Nets (5-17) tonight.

New Orleans enter this on a five game losing streak. They rank 28th for Opposition PPG (123.4) and now face the tough task of scoring without lead man Zion Williamson who will be out until late December. They will take hope that their last match against a team seeded 11th-15th resulted in a 143-130 blowout victory over the Chicago Bulls, but things look bleak.

Meanwhile Brooklyn have started to see an uptick in form. With two victories in their last 3 matches against the Hornets (116-103 W) & Chicago Bulls (113-103 W) there are encouraging signs for this young group. In both of those games Michael Porter Jr recorded 30pt hauls and looked every bit worth the decision to sign him from the Nuggets.

The Stats:

Our Betting Tip:

1u: Brooklyn Nets -3.5 pts (-110)

Despite the stats suggesting that Pelicans should cover the spread in this matchup, we do not believe this is worth backing. The Pelicans look in dreadful form defensively and I think Michael Porter Jr will return with another big scoring night.