Rising Teams Collide

Before NBA hoops started back up again, following the All-Star break, my roommate mentioned that he was taking a break from the league and would resume viewing come playoff time 😏

• Maybe a handful of years ago this take would seem normal, but with the introduction of the play-in tournament and a flattening of lottery odds, teams are incentivized to compete down stretch more than ever before

• It isn’t too hard to find a competitive game within a given nightly slate, just look at what happened last night in the Garden…against the worst team in the NBA 👇

Tonight should be no exception, as obsessives and casuals alike will get to select from 11 different games. While Philadelphia against Boston seems like a fun matchup, the game of the night in my opinion takes place a little earlier in Cleveland, as Donovan Mitchell and co host the Luka and Kyrie duo ⭐️

Something is brewing in Dallas and it really started to take shape at the beginning of this month. In February the Luka and Kyrie led Mavs have gone 7-2, with all of those wins occurring consecutively 🤝

Speaking of surging, the Cavs quietly went 17-1 from January 3rd to February 10th, something that would have been on more people’s radars if they didn’t have a playoff flameout last year against the Knicks 😮‍💨

• Part of that loss resulted from Cleveland’s inability to match New York’s physical frontcourt. Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley were left alone on offense and couldn’t make enough of an impact on the glass to offset that defensive game plan

• Allen has had a fantastic year and is currently averaging a double-double (15.9 PPG and 10.6 RPG) to go along with 2.7 APG and 1.1 APG, check out this rejection he had on Wemby earlier this year

It’s interesting that oddsmakers are heavily on both of these squads — Dallas is +110 to win the Southwest division while Cleveland is -150 to win the Central division 💵

Mavs @ Cavs Betting Preview

• Spread: Cavs -4

• Moneyline: Cavs -168, Mavs +142

• Over/Under: 233.5

And with March around the corner, here are some throwback Kyrie highlights from his time at Duke 👀

Trivia Question: Where do Kyrie and Luka stack up amongst the highest-scoring NBA duos this season?

For My Parlay Gurus

I’m assuming that this game will be close, as the Mavs look to get back into the win column following a loss against the Pacers on Sunday night, so I’m taking them to cover spread. Additionally, I like the over in this particular game, where the perimeter talent can score at will. Normally Cleveland’s front court would stifle rim finishes, but Luka and Kyrie are three-level scorers that don’t have to rely on paint points. Check out my parlay 👇

• Mavs +4 @ Cavs: -112

• Over 233.5 Total Points: -110

$100 on this bet would win you $246 — if we hit, make sure you email [email protected] for a chance to win an Overtime hoodie*. Many will enter, only some will win 😉

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Trivia Answer: They rank second, behind Embiid and Maxey (61.1 PPG combined) at an even 60.0 PPG

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