Mondayyyyy

The Pacers in my opinion, have made the biggest improvement over the last week of any team in the NBA.

Paul George has struggled the past few games, but the rest of the Pacers' have really picked it up.  They've got at least five guys averaging double digit points during their recent win streak, and have really limited the turnovers.  

Their defense is what's really giving them a chance to win every game.

The same can't be said for the Thunder.  They've really been struggling lately.  Although they did win at Memphis, that was really Memphis handing them the game on a silver platter just to continue the trend of not covering in OKC.  Yes they did win in Portland where Westbrook basically willed his way to a win on his own, but that's Portland.

All that though, doesn't highlight the Thunders' real struggles. 

Overall the Thunder are not only lacking depth, as Westbrook is literally 45% of the scoring out of the starting lineup.  The team in general is shooting under 40% over their last five games.  Going up against a Pacers team who is thriving defensively, it's just a really bad match up for OKC.

Indiana over the last five games or so, ranks right about at the top of the league in opponents fast break points.  When the Thunder really thrive, they're getting out in transition.  The Pacers offensive efficiency, along with Kanter being out, should really limit OKCs' ability to run.  

This game will be decided in the half court and I expect the Pacers to expose the lack of depth the Thunder have, and really force Westbrook into taking a lot of bad shots and turnovers.

I think the Thunder will struggle to get to 95 in this one.

Crazy to think that the Mavs are actually underdogs.  I'm not one to often fall for traps, but I think that this line is just off, no trap here. 

The Nuggets on the other hand have been struggling.  Not only are they still playing like one of the worst defenses in the league, but now injuries have taken their toll, and their offensive efficiency has gone down. 

Jokic will obviously still be a handful, but this is basically a 180 degree situation from the last time they met, where now you have the Mavs' playing well and the Nuggets not so much.

I see a controlled game played by Dallas, with a lot of walking the ball up the court, at least while Dirk is in, and a lot of three point attempts.  If Dallas continues to shoot the three as well as they have been lately, there's no reason why they don't win this game straight up.  

I really like this game.  To me, kind of like the Dallas game, it screams "trap".  I see enough angles to risk being the sucker though.  Most of us have been waiting for Miami to lose, for well over a week now, and it hasn't happened.  Why?  Everything they do starts with defense.  Over the past five games, and probably a few games beyond that, they rank in the top four in the NBA in offense and defense.  It's definitely not luck that they've won 10 games in a row.

The Wolves just suffered a blow losing their most explosive player for the season, LaVine.  They're not only struggling to score, but over the past week, their defense has been one of the worst in the NBA.  

Most of the Heats' home games have been at home, but to be honest, home court isn't all that advantageous for the Wolves. They're not only below 50% at home, they are one of the worst teams at closing out games.  Towns vs Whiteside is an interesting matchup.  I think both will get theirs, and it will come down to the supporting casts.  Ricky Rubio has upped his scoring and his attempts, but he still isn't nearly a good enough shooter for that to translate into enough productivity to equal wins.

The Wolves will have to play a near perfect game to win this, but either way, with the way the Heat play D, they will be in this until the end.  History says the Wolves struggle to win close games at home and I'll take my chances with this one.

BOL

Thank you 

I didn't, but I think numerous people did, especially since there was only three games on the card and they Celtics were only laying 5 or 6, I'm sure plenty of people had Boston

We had a chance.  The Pacers severely under performed from what I expected them to offensive wise, especially from the free throw line, but we still had a chance.  That's all you can ask for.