Two struggling cross-country teams will clash when the Golden State Warriors travel to Orlando to face off with the Magic on Thursday night.
The Warriors have found themselves in a slump, losing four of their last five games. Meanwhile, the entire season has been a slump for the Magic, who have only one win thus far. Will the Warriors get their winning ways back against a lesser opponent?
Find out in our free NBA betting picks and predictions for the Warriors vs. Magic on Thursday, November 3.
Warriors vs Magic best odds
Warriors vs Magic picks and predictions
While both teams have struggled to start the season, they have struggled for different reasons. The Warriors have a fantastic offense, but have been dreadful on defense. They rank 29th in points allowed per game at 121.3 and have allowed more free throws than any other team in the NBA.
Meanwhile, the Magic have a decent defense, but a terrible offense. They rank 28th in points per game at 105.9 points and struggle mightily in the turnover margin category. They’ve only forced 101 turnovers (28th in the NBA) and have given the ball away 125 times (22nd in the league).
Despite Orlando’s respectable efforts on D, it has a particular matchup flaw against Golden State.
The Warriors rank second in the NBA in pace and attempt more 3-point field goals than any other team in the league. Meanwhile, the Magic allow more 3-point field goal attempts than all but five teams.
The Warriors have four players that average more than six three-point field attempts per game: Stephen Curry (12.0), Klay Thompson (8.7), Jordan Poole (7.0), and Andrew Wiggins (6.1), the former three being among the league’s more feared shooters.
Without Andre Iguodala and Donte DiVincenzo, Curry will need to play more minutes than in a typical game, while the Magic could be without a good perimeter defender in Cole Anthony. I’m riding with Curry to be the best of the four sharpshooters for the Warriors in this matchup, with the profile to exceed his 4.9 season average.
My best bet: Steph Curry Over 4.5 3-pointers made
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Warriors vs Magic spread analysis
Not only have both teams struggled to win games straight up, but they’ve also been rough against the spread. The Warriors are 2-6 ATS and the Magic are 2-5-1 ATS this season.
However, the Magic have covered both of their two home games thus far this year. Meanwhile, the Warriors are 0-4 ATS in their four road games and have failed to cover the NBA odds by a combined 72 points!
The Warriors will get their usual 3-pointers and will rack up the points. However, they will struggle to stop Paolo Banchero, as they have several alphas so far this season.
This should be a high-scoring game, but one in which the Magic will hold their own. Until the Warriors prove themselves as a team that can perform on the road, I am not touching them to cover a big spread like this. I don’t feel super confident in taking a bad team to cover against a good team, but at this point, I’ll lean towards the Magic at home with this big of a number.
Warriors vs Magic Over/Under analysis
Even though the Magic have a bad offense, they’ve still hit the Over in four of their eight games this year. Meanwhile, the Warriors games have hit the Over in six of their eight games with one push.
The Over is 5-1 in the Warriors’ last six games following a loss against the spread, and is 10-2-1 in their last 13 games played on Thursday night, which are typically TNT primetime games like this one.
The Warriors are going to get their threes in this game and Banchero should be able to put up big numbers for the Magic. The Warriors have only played one game this year that went Under this total, and it was barely Under at 225 total points. The Magic have averaged 116.5 points per game at home and should be able to score on this bad Warriors defense. Give me the Over.
Warriors vs Magic betting trend to know
The Magic are 4-0 against the spread in their last four home games. Find more NBA betting trends for Warriors vs. Magic.
Warriors vs Magic game info
| Location: | Amway Center, Orlando, FL |
| Date: | Thursday, November 3, 2022 |
| Tip-off: | 7:00 p.m. ET |
| TV: | NBCS-BAY, Bally Sports |
