The Brooklyn Nets (35-33) travel to Orlando to take on the Magic (18-51) in a Tuesday night NBA affair.
Brooklyn is clinging to eighth place in the East after narrowly edging out the Knicks on Sunday. The Nets might finally be starting to heat up as they have won three straight contests leading into Tuesday’s action.
The Magic covered the spread against the 76ers but ultimately lost by two points on Sunday. It was an impressive performance for the bottom dwellers in the East, and they will try to post a similar effort on Tuesday against the Nets.
Brooklyn defeated the Magic in the first two head-to-head matchups between these teams. However, Orlando earned their revenge by beating the Nets in Brooklyn in their third matchup. Tuesday’s game represents the final head-to-head meeting between Orlando and Brooklyn this season.
Matchup Information
Let’s take a look at our NBA picks for this contest.
Nets at Magic Stats
Looking at the Brooklyn Nets Stats
The Nets were defeated by the lowly Magic in their last matchup with Orlando. However, Brooklyn’s team was also in shambles at the time, and they are playing much better heading into this game.
Kevin Durant posted a jaw-dropping 53 points in Brooklyn’s Sunday 110-107 victory over the Knicks. KD also added nine assists and six rebounds in a truly remarkable effort. His effort made up for Kyrie Irving’s inability to play in Brooklyn.
Durant is now averaging 29.6 points per game on the season. He is firmly establishing himself in the MVP race as Brooklyn continues to tread water in the East standings.
Irving has been successful when he has been able to take the court. The veteran point guard has averaged just under 26 points and over five assists in limited action this season.
Durant, Irving, and the rest of the Nets will look to clinch the season series with the Magic in Orlando on Tuesday evening.
Looking at the Orlando Magic Stats
Orlando Magic were defeated 116-114 on Sunday at home by the 76ers. However, Philadelphia was favored by more than 11 points according to the majority of top sportsbooks, so Orlando’s effort was nothing short of remarkable.
Wendell Carter Jr. led the way for the Magic with a 23 point, 12 rebound double-double performance. Cole Anthony chipped in 19 points and eight rebounds in the contest. But Joel Embiid’s 35 points, 16 rebound effort led to Philadelphia’s win in the end.
But it was good to see some signs of life out of the 18-win Magic. Carter Jr. is now averaging 14.6 points and 10.4 rebounds per game following his strong game on Sunday. Orlando’s leading scorer is Anthony, who has posted an average of 17.3 points per game.
Orlando’s young core is still quite a ways from winning on a consistent basis, but they could play the role of spoiler down the stretch. For now, they will try to upset the odds at their home arena.
Betting Trends for Nets at Magic
- Brooklyn is a league-worst 26-40-2 ATS this season.
- Orlando is 33-36 ATS this year.
- The Magic are 12-20 ATS at their home arena.
- The Nets are 20-15-1 ATS on the road.
Brooklyn’s league-worst ATS record is deceiving. Irving can’t play home games, so covering spreads at their home arena has obviously been difficult. But their respectable 20-15-1 ATS road record is more telling of what kind of team they are when it comes to the spread.
Meanwhile, the Magic have labored ATS at home.
Nets at Magic Betting Prediction
The NBA betting odds are in Brooklyn’s favor without question. They are listed as anywhere from an 8.5-10.5 point favorite according to most top sportsbooks. The Nets are finally playing a consistent brand of quality basketball, so I like them as the pick for Tuesday’s contest.
Go ahead and roll with Brooklyn as your spread NBA betting selection.
If you love sports and want more sports betting information follow us as @InsidersBetDig on Twitter and sign up to our mailing list for free betting picks.