The Spread

By: Logan Bednarczuk

Welcome to the inaugural edition of The Spread on The Bottom Up. Each week and maybe even several times a week I will pick a day’s winners based off the points spread (spreads determined by SportsBetting.ag). And since it’s a slow basketball night with only three games on the schedule, I decided that this would be the perfect day to start. [Editor's Note: Logan's honesty about his laziness is impressive here.]

L.A Clippers at Indiana- Pacers -1

What looks to be the best game of the night is sadly not on TNT, but those with NBA League Pass should be in for a treat. Both teams have been hot of late with the Clippers winning seven of their last ten and the Pacers eight of their last ten. The Pacers have found their rhythm and have ramped up their offense to match their league-leading defense. Indiana, however, will be without their paint-protecting center, Roy Hibbert, due to his suspension after his on court altercation with the Warriors' David Lee. His defensive presence will be sorely missed considering the Clippers are 5^th in the league in points in the paint. With home court and rest on their side I expect the Pacers to keep it a tight game and hopefully see Granger get back in scoring form. But without Hibbert’s defense in the paint, I see the clippers bringing Lob City to Indiana and walking out with a big win tonight.

My pick- L.A Clippers

Philadelphia at Chicago- Chicago -7

Philadelphia is in a downward spiral with their head coach Doug Collins going on a rant about his team's effort and commitment after their recent loss at home to the laughable Orlando Magic. They have lost six straight games and are desperate for a win. The injury ravaged Bulls lost two nights ago to the Kyrie-less Cleveland Cavaliers and are now hungry to get back to the win column. After such a disappointing outing on their home court, I look for them to prey on the dysfunctional 76ers. The spread is a little large for a Bulls game considering they like to keep the scores low and the games close, but I don’t see the 76ers rallying around their coach after he shifted their loss and recent poor play almost entirely on their shoulders. I expect a big game for the Bulls on the boards outrebounded the undersized 76ers and their 3-point shooting seven-footer Spencer Hawes. I’ll take the Bulls to beat the spread and win by over seven points on their home court.

My pick- Chicago Bulls

Minnesota at L.A Lakers- Lakers -10

Minnesota may just be the unluckiest team in the league. They have been ravaged by injury since the start of the season, with not only their superstar Kevin Love missing most of the season with injury but also key starters and role players such as Chase Budinger, Brandon Roy, Ricky Rubio, and Andrei Kirilenko missing significant time. They are now competing in the bottom of the Western Conference and will spend another year in the lottery. The Lakers however are in a battle to get into the playoffs before seasons end. They currently are sitting in 9^th place and seem to be finding their groove offensively. L.A is still struggling on defense, but against the Timberwolves and their bottom 10 ranking offense, I don’t see that being a big problem. I expect another big game for Kobe who even with his new focus on distributing is averaging over 27 points a game. I also see Dwight being able to slow down the brutish scoring machine that is Nikola Pekovic. A 10-point spread is really significant and I wouldn’t feel comfortable taking this bet either way, but for the sake of the article I am taking the Lakers to blow out Minnesota at the Staples Center and win by over 10.

            My pick- L.A Lakers