FREE NBA PICKS

BY PROFESSOR MJ

University Professor. PhD in stats. Proud dad of 2 boys.

My NBA picks have exceeded my own expectations thus far this season; 6-1 on bets rated 3 stars or above (9-3-1 overall). Perfect night yesterday by winning all three picks, including our second 5-star play of the season. Including last year, I’m now 10-2 on such plays; I couldn’t ask for any better!

I see one profitable bet out of the five games on the menu.

PICK: Sacramento Kings pick’em vs New Orleans Pelicans (rated 3 stars)

The big story here is the return of DeMarcus Cousins to Sacramento to face his former team. His attitude with coaches and teammates pretty much led to him being traded last year. How will the crowd react to his presence? Probably a mixed reaction, but there will definitely be some boos during the game. The crowd will be pumped for sure.

Another key factor in this game is Anthony Davis’ injury that will force him to sit tonight’s game. The other injured players are not game-breakers, except Rajon Rondo who is expected to be back in mid-November. I have penalized the Pelicans 12% for those two missing players.

Also note that New Orleans is playing on one day of rest, compared to two for the Kings. Not a huge deal, but that was still accounted for in my projected lines, which have the Kings as 2.75-point favorites.

What about recent meetings between these two teams? At some point the Pelicans had won six straight versus the Kings, but Sacramento won two of three last year, including both at home (beating the spread each time).

Both teams are posting a 1-3 record with New Orleans’ only win occurring at the Lakers, while the Kings prevailed 93-88 in Dallas six days ago.

Thanks for reading, we’ll talk again soon!

Professor MJ