Uncategorized

2022 NBA All-Star Game prediction, odds: Team LeBron vs. Team Durant picks, best bets by expert on 85-67 run

Published

1 year ago

February 21, 2022

The 2022 NBA All-Star Game serves as the centerpiece of the sports world on Sunday evening. The game also caps a jam-packed weekend in Cleveland, including the Slam Dunk Contest, Three-Point Contest, and Rising Stars Challenge. The matchup features 24 of the top players in the world, with LeBron James and Kevin Durant as the captains on each side. James Harden is out of action for Team LeBron, with Durant unable to play for his own squad and Draymond Green also sidelined with injury.

Tipoff at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is at 8 p.m. ET. Caesars Sportsbook lists Team LeBron as a six-point favorite, while the over-under, or total number of points Vegas thinks will be scored, is 324.5 in the latest 2022 NBA All-Star Game odds. Before making any 2022 NBA All-Star Game picks, be sure to check out the 2022 NBA All-Star Weekend predictions from SportsLine expert Mike Barner.

Barner is a respected NBA Fantasy expert, both season-long and DFS, whose work has appeared in Sports Illustrated and on Yahoo, RotoWire and KFFL. He has also been featured on ESPN Radio. He digs deep into the data, examining team trends and projecting game outcomes. With his unmatched analysis, Barner spots opportunities in a unique way.

Barner’s expertise has been on full display lately. He is on an amazing 85-67-2 run in against-the-spread NBA picks, returning over $1,100 to $100 players. He also has an incredible feel for NBA All-Star Weekend. In 2021, Barner called the winner of the 3-point Contest, the Dunk Contest and hit both the spread and over-under in the All-Star Game itself. Anybody who followed his picks saw some huge returns.

Now, he has zeroed in on Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game 2022, analyzed the rosters and matchups, and released a confident against-the-spread pick. Head to SportsLine now to see it. Here are the Team LeBron vs. Team Durant lines:

NBA All-Star Game 2022 spread: Team LeBron -6
NBA All-Star Game 2022 over-under: 324.5 points
NBA All-Star Game 2022 money line: LeBron -230, Durant +190
Team LeBron: James is seeking a fifth consecutive All-Star victory
Team Durant: Jayson Tatum replaces the injured Durant (knee) as a starter

Featured Game | Team LeBron All Stars vs. Team Durant All Stars

2022 NBA All-Star Game format

Team LeBron and Team Durant will represent charitable organizations, with Team LeBron playing for the Kent State I Promise Scholars Program and Team Durant playing for the Greater Cleveland Food Bank. The winner of each quarter will be tracked, with the winner receiving additional funds for its organization, and then a Final Target Score will be implemented to determine the overall winner.

The Final Target Score, sometimes referred to as an Elam Ending, will be 24 points higher than the leading team’s total score through three quarters. That leads to an untimed fourth quarter, and the first team to reach the Final Target Score will be victorious.

Why Team LeBron can cover

Team LeBron combines off-the-charts skill with depth, and James remains a unique force in the NBA world, appearing in his record-tying 18th All-Star Game. He is averaging 29.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game this season, and has been even better lately with 25 points or more in the last 23 games. James is also a fantastically gifted player in terms of athleticism, and that also applies to Giannis Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo won the 2021 NBA All-Star MVP while making all 16 of his shots, and he scored 82 points in the last two games before the All-Star break.

Elsewhere, DeMar DeRozan and Luka Doncic are supporting pieces on this All-Star team, though both are top-10 MVP candidates in the league this season. DeRozan is leading the NBA in scoring this month, with Doncic closing the first half of the season by scoring 45 points or more in three out of four games. Stephen Curry is the NBA’s best shooter, attracting more defensive attention than anyone, and Nikola Jokic has the best advanced metrics of any player in the league. The Denver Nuggets center also ranks in the top 10 of the NBA in points, rebounds, and assists, which is wildly impressive.

Why Team Durant can cover

Team Durant has incredible talent and depth, with Joel Embiid as the team’s centerpiece. Embiid is the current betting favorite to win the 2021-22 NBA MVP award at Caesars Sportsbook, and he is averaging 33.4 points and 11.5 rebounds per game in the last 25 contests. Team Durant also has another elite center in Rudy Gobert, and the team’s perimeter collection is impressive. Ja Morant is enjoying a breakout campaign, leading the Memphis Grizzlies to a top-three mark in the West and averaging 26.8 points, 6.9 assists and 5.8 rebounds.

Trae Young is also on board, averaging nearly 28 points and more than nine assists per game, and Tatum is putting up 27.2 points and 7.8 rebounds in the last 13 games for the Boston Celtics. Team Durant also has Devin Booker, who is the leading scorer on the best team in the league in Phoenix. He scored 29.2 points per game in the last 18 games before the All-Star Break.

How to make 2022 NBA All-Star Game picks

Barner is leaning under on the total, and he’s also found a critical X-factor that has him jumping all over one side of the spread. You can only see what it is, and which team you should back in the 2022 NBA All-Star Game at SportsLine.

Who wins the NBA All-Star Game 2022? And what crucial X-factor makes one side a must-back? Visit SportsLine right now to see which team you should be backing on Sunday, all from the SportsLine expert who crushed his All-Star picks last year, and find out.

2022 NBA All-Star Game Rosters

Team Durant:

Kevin Durant
Joel Embiid
Ja Morant
Jayson Tatum
Andrew Wiggins
Trae Young
LaMelo Ball
Devin Booker
Rudy Gobert
Zach LaVine
Khris Middleton
Dejounte Murray
Karl-Anthony Towns
Draymond Green

Team LeBron

LeBron James
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Stephen Curry
DeMar DeRozan
Nikola Jokic
Jarrett Allen
Jimmy Butler
Luka Doncic
Darius Garland
James Harden
Donovan Mitchell
Chris Paul
Fred VanVleet

Source link

Related Topics:AllStar bets Durant Expert Game LeBron NBA odds picks prediction run team

Up Next

2022 NBA All-Star Game: Jazz’s Donovan Mitchell to miss star-studded exhibition due to non-COVID illness

Don't Miss

‘The Hamburglar’ steals first start in years, leads Canadiens to first win streak

Click to comment

Uncategorized

Draymond Green Says 1 Nuggets Player’s Growth Has Been Key To Dominance

Published

5 mins ago

June 9, 2023

nigemord@gmail.com

(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Jamal Murray of the Denver Nuggets has gotten the attention of just about every NBA fan lately.

His performances in the playoffs have been phenomenal and have helped his team reach its first Finals.

Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors is just one of the many people wowed by what Murray is doing.

“The growth of Jamal Murray in these playoffs has actually been… as much of a key to Denver’s dominance in the playoffs as Joker has been,” Green said on his podcast.

"The growth of Jamal Murray in these playoffs has actually been… as much of a key to Denver's dominance in the playoffs as Joker has been"
—@Money23Green breaks down the ascendency of the Nuggets point guard pic.twitter.com/hWgJXhLNQV
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) June 9, 2023

Green admitted that Murray had a series of up-and-down games earlier in the postseason, not performing as well as he’d like.

But he has recently sprung to life in a huge way and has made the Nuggets even more impressive and difficult to defeat.

Nikola Jokic has naturally been the most pressing issue for teams playing against Denver.

From the Timberwolves to the Suns to the Lakers and now the Heat, every team has done what it can to slow him down.

Murray has allowed Denver to keep scoring in some big ways.

He has played expertly alongside Jokic as well and has made defending the Nuggets seemingly impossible at times.

This is key to them winning games.

Now the Heat have more to worry about than just Jokic and his scoring and passing abilities.

They also have to keep an eye on Murray because he can get hot from all over the floor and create assists as well.

The duo of Jokic and Murray has become one of the best in the league.

Because of their hard work, they are now getting closer to winning their first Finals.

The post Draymond Green Says 1 Nuggets Player’s Growth Has Been Key To Dominance appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source link

Uncategorized

Fans React To What Stephen A. Smith Said About Jimmy Butler

Published

9 mins ago

June 9, 2023

nigemord@gmail.com

(Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Jimmy Butler of the Miami Heat is back in the NBA Finals and that is causing people to talk about his place in the history of the league.

Some people think he is one of the best of this generation, despite the fact that he hasn’t yet won a championship ring.

Others think that he is lacking in some important areas.

Stephen A. Smith created a small firestorm online with his latest comments about Butler.

“You think about superstars and what we usually get from those superstars in terms of offensive production, that’s not Jimmy,” Smith said on First Take.

.@stephenasmith doesn't think Jimmy Butler can be the best player on a championship team
"You think about superstars and what we usually get from those superstars in terms of offensive production, that's not Jimmy." pic.twitter.com/x2ejL8VjMV
— First Take (@FirstTake) June 9, 2023

This comment from Smith immediately got people talking – and almost everyone online came out in support of Butler.

Some people felt that this was just what Butler needed to hear to motivate him before Friday’s pivotal Game 3.

Jimmy's dropping 40 tonight for sure.
— Jason Romano (@JasonRomano) June 9, 2023

Meanwhile, others said that Heat fans would have the last laugh after Butler and Miami win the Finals.

Keep all the Receipts Heat fans !!
— Shifu (@tee_louwee_91) June 9, 2023

Several people noted that Butler and his Heat are the only team in the league to reach the Finals twice during the era of Stephen Curry and LeBron James.

They may not have won yet but the Heat have been competing against some of the best of the best for years now.

Saying this when he is one of the only players to make it to the Finals TWICE in an era dominated by Curry and Lebron is certainly a choice…
— Socialmediauser34 (@SMUser34) June 9, 2023

And many others were calling out Smith because Butler has done what other players haven’t been able to.

No matter what his offensive production is, Butler is in the Finals again while players like Jayson Tatum and Kevin Durant sit at home.

Yo @stephenasmith what makes a superstar? Since Jimmy Butler came up the heat they have been in the finals twice and ECF 3 times. I don’t see KD Embid or Jason Tatum there. Do you?
— Jacqueline S (@JPS0410) June 9, 2023

Butler has had his issues and his team has certainly fallen short in the past.

But it’s clear that he is definitely one of the most important parts – if not the most important part – of this Heat roster.

The post Fans React To What Stephen A. Smith Said About Jimmy Butler appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source link