by Chuck Sommers
Monday, Jan 16, 2023
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Venue: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX
Where to watch: BSSW-SA, YES
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Nets -5
FanDuel: Check back later
BetMGM: Check back later
Caesars: Check back later
Season record
Nets: 27-15
Spurs: 13-31
We’re nearing the halfway mark of the season in the NBA and it’s been quite the ride so far. Al McMordie is cashing hard at 22-15-0 in the last 30 days, while Doc’s Sports has also had a strong run of form as of late at 14-10-0 (+$3,000). If they’ve been killing it as much as they were in the first half, what does the second half have in store? The only way you’re going to find out is by staying locked on bigal.com and following what our champion handicappers are up to heading into the final 41 games. Trust us, you want to know.
Nets - Spurs preview, prediction and analysis
Recent form
Nets: lost 112-102 vs. Thunder
Spurs: lost 132-119 vs. Kings
Life is looking a little tough without Kevin Durant right now for the Brooklyn Nets, but you have to think things are looking up heading into Tuesday when they face the San Antonio Spurs at AT&T Center.
The Nets dropped their second straight game on Sunday with a 112-102 loss to the uprising Oklahoma City Thunder at Barclays Center. Following that 11-point loss to the Celtics on Thursday, the Nets had no answer for the OKC backcourt of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (28 points, seven rebounds) and Josh Giddey (28 points, nine rebounds and nine assists).
Kyrie Irving was held in check with just 15 points on 7 of 20 shooting to go along with six assists. Seth Curry was the one to lead the way with 23 points on 9 of 15 shooting. Anyone who can take over for the secondary scoring role is going to help the Nets, but no one can replicate what Durant brings, and that in lies the problem.
“The challenge for us as a group (is) to be able to sustain,” Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said. “That is harder mentally and physically because (Durant) does save you at times and give you a bucket, and now your defense is set. So the challenge with this group is they have to dig in and have a mental fortitude greater than before. Because every possession does matter.”
If no one is around to give them a bucket, it’s going to be a tough go for the Nets. Brooklyn has lost three of their last five and has failed to cover in four of their last five. The Nets were favored by 4.5 against OKC and that was one we happily predicted in one of the more good underdog calls we’ve seen in recent memory. Round of applause to us.
But if there’s a team that the Nets could use to springboard for a victory, it’s the Spurs. San Antonio has dropped five in a row after losing 132-119 to the Sacramento Kings on Sunday and failed to cover for the second straight game after winning five in a row against the spread.
Jakob Poeltl led the way with 23 points, and Josh Richardson chipped in with 21 points off the bench to contribute to a strong offensive game from everyone. The problem remains the defensive structure for the Spurs after giving up 132. Yes, it’s the Kings and they’re playing very well this year, but a lot of the Spurs’ problems this year has stemmed from giving up a ton of points.
“I think we are all aware that this is a learning season for us,” Poeltl said. “Even for the guys that have a little bit more experience, a lot of us have different goals trying to do different things out there. It’s a learning experience for all of us.”
The Spurs have just been freefalling this year and are trying to ensure the best odds possible for Victor Wembanyama. But five straight losses and 2-8 in the last 10 and giving up 55% to the Kings is just another microcosm is going on.
Prediction
I don’t expect the under to hit, as it has for the last five Nets games. Sometimes you need a bad team to unlock everything. Maybe the Nets need this to find out how to run an offense without KD. Nets 120, Spurs 108
Betting trends
Nets are 92-63 ATS on the road in non-conference games since 1996.
Nets are 25-9 ATS on the road after failing to cover in the last 2 seasons.
Spurs are 12-26 ATS at home when playing 8 games in 14 days the last 3 seasons.
Projected starting lineup
Nets:
PG: Kyrie Irving
SG: Royce O’Neale
SF: Yuta Watanabe
PF: Ben Simmons
C: Nic Claxton
Spurs:
PG: Tre Jones
SG: Romeo Langford
SF: Keldon Johnson
PF: Jeremy Sochan
C: Jakob Poeltl
Injury report
Nets: Kevin Durant (leg, out)
Spurs: Spurs: Devin Vassell (knee, out), Doug McDermott (back, questionable)
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
