Los Angeles Lakers (14-4) at Philadelphia 76ers (12-6)
The Lakers will aim for their 15th victory of the season as they head to Philly and LeBron is coming off one of his best outings of the season. Against his former team in Cleveland, LeBron put up 46 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in a dominant performance that we've come to expect from the King. Meanwhile, Davis didn't have his best stuff with just 17 points and went 5 of 16 from the field. But his matchup with Embiid will be a key factor in this clash.
Meanwhile, the 76ers 3 game winning streak ended with a 119-104 loss to the Pistons. They were without Embiid and their defence struggled to stop the likes of Grant and Wright. However, they were able to give their bench plenty of minutes and their starters should be fresh for this challenge against the Lakers.
The marquee matchup of the day between the two top teams in the East and West should be a great contest. Ultimately, it's tough betting against LeBron and his Lakers, especially after the King's 46 point performance. He loves these primetime matchups and we expect him to lead Los Angeles to their 11th straight road victory this season.
Stadium Record
The 76ers have won 9 of their last 10 home games. Los Angeles holds a 9-4 record at this venue.
Head to Head Record
Since 2015, the 76ers are 6-4 head to head and won the last meeting at this venue, 108-91.
Best Bet
Milwaukee Bucks (10-6) at Toronto Raptors (7-10)
The 10-6 Bucks will look to improve on their road record in this East matchup with the Raptors on Thursday. While the Bucks are 7-2 at home, they've lost 4 of 7 on the road this season. As usual, the key will be Giannis and he's coming off 27 pts in the Bucks 129-115 victory over the Hawks last time out. The Raptors could be without Siakam, which would make Giannis even more dangerous as well. Bobby Portis also continued his good form off the bench with 21 points in the win over Atlanta.
After a slow start to the season, the Raptors are starting to find their chemistry with 5 wins in their last 7 and should be fired up for this challenging matchup. They also welcomed Kyle Lowry back from injury last time out but the Pacers outplayed them in the 129-114 result. Lowry also struggled with his shooting, going 2 of 11 from the field. Powell and VanFleet basically ran the offence with 49 points between them, so they'll be the key if the Raptors pull off an upset.
With the Raptors likely missing Pascal Siakam, that means defending Antetokounmpo is going to be a tough ask. So we're not quite sure they can match it with the full-strength Bucks at the moment. Milwaukee to cover here.
Stadium Record
Toronto is 4-1 in their last 5 home games. Milwaukee is yet to play at this venue and have a 6-13 road record against the Raptors.
Head to Head Record
Since 2019, both sides have 5 games against each other in the 10 meetings.
Best Bet
Dallas Mavericks (8-9) at Utah Jazz (13-4)
The Mavericks will look to get back to .500 on the season after back to back defeats when they meet the Jazz in Utah this Thursday. Last time out, they matched it all the way with the Nuggets in a disappointing but close 117-113 defeat. However, Doncic returned to form with 35 points and a triple-double. Porzingis played 33 minutes in his return from a knee injury in another positive despite the loss. Although, they'll look to improve defensively after allowing 30 points to Michael Porter off the bench.
Meanwhile, the Jazz are coming off a back to back and their 9th straight victory after beating the Knicks 108-94. Defensively, the Jazz are one of the best teams in the NBA and they'll be looking to shutdown the influence of Doncic in this matchup. While on offence, Donovan Mitchell struggled against the Knicks as he managed to go just 3 of 15 from the field. So look for Mitchell to get back on track here against the Mavs.
Really like the Under when the Jazz are involved at the moment since their defence is on fire. They should be able to contain Doncic and the Mavs still have plenty of injuries to deal with. The Jazz also allowed just 94 points on Wednesday and this should be another fairly low scoring affair.
Stadium Record
The Jazz are undefeated in their last 5 home games. Dallas has a poor record at this venue with just 1 win in their last 8 games.
Head to Head Record
The Mavs won the last meeting 122-114 but overall, the Jazz are 8-2 since 2017.
Best Bet
