Betseeker’s expert tipsters have you covered for the best NBA tips and predictions for every game of the NBA season.
The Clippers and Bucks open their 2022/23 season with the return of Kawhi Leonard for LA, but it won’t be smooth sailing for Giannis’ men.
Best Bet
Clippers @ Lakers (1:00pm)
It’s incredible that we’re getting the line of -5.5 for the Clippers in the battle of LA off the back of how poor the Lakers’ showing was against the Warriors in the season opener.
How do the Lakers put up a competitive score? 71% of their points came from LeBron, AD and Russ against Golden State, and the Clippers are an extremely good defensive unit led by Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Due to their size and versatility, the Clippers are capable of switching everything which will make scoring all that bit harder for AD and LeBron in this.
The depth of the Clippers will be the reason they win this and win easily. They’re more than capable of going 12 deep, with the likes of Reggie Jackson, Normal Powell, Luke Kennard, Robert Covington and Terance Mann all able to score double digits off the bench. When the Lakers’ stars are resting, expecting the Clippers to make the most of these opportunities and create separation on the scoreboard.
Love the line but will also take 11+ at $2.76.
Next Best
Bucks @ 76ers (10:30am)
The 76ers will get the opportunity to make some adjustments off the back of the season opener loss to the Celtics, mainly on the defensive end after they allowed Boston to shoot at 56% from the field. But a major positive to come out of their loss was the offensive production between James Harden, Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid with more improvement to come from the latter.
The Bucks are playing their first game of the season, and don’t look like peaking too early especially off the back of their pre-season form where the Bucks went 0-5. With Khris Middleton still sidelined it exposes a somewhat shallow roster.
Pat Connaughton and Joe Ingles will miss the first chunk of the season and will both be integral to their late-season form off the bench, while we still see the likes of Wes Matthews and George Hill in their rotation which is questionable. With three of their best eight out it’s hard to see the Bucks getting close to this Sixers outfit.
VALUE BET
Bucks @ 76ers (10:30am)
Joel Embiid was good in the season opener, but there’s still plenty of room for improvement and I expect him to deliver when they face the Bucks.
Facing Milwaukee twice last season, Embiid produced PRA games of 61 and 50 off the back of big rebounding and assist efforts, and even managed a PRA of 46 against the Celtics on Wednesday despite not being at his best.
Between Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis, the Bucks will have their hands full against Joel and he should feast on this depleted Milwaukee outfit.
Friday NBA Multi
76ers -4 / Clippers -5.5 = $3.33
