Philadelphia 76ers vs. Golden State Warriors Pick 1/31/19

Philadelphia 76ers (33-18 SU, 24-27 ATS) vs. Golden State Warriors (36 – 14 SU, 23-26-1 ATS)
When: Thursday, January 31st, 2019 – 10:30 PM ET
Where: Oracle Arena– Oakland, CA
TV: TNT

Point Spread: PHI +9.5 / GS -9.5
Total: 240.5

Power Rankings: Golden State -10

Takeaways from Philadelphia and Golden State’s Most Recent Games

The 76ers step into this contest on the heels of a dominant win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. Closing as a 7.5-point favorite, the Sixers went to work on Los Angeles and defeated them 121-105 to produce an easy cover.

The Warriors are making it look easy again as they once again are showing the league why they are the two-time defending champions entering into this contest on an 11-game winning streak. Most recently, the Warriors defeated the Indiana Pacers on the road on Monday by a score of 132-100 to get an easy cover as a seven-point favorite.

How the Public is Betting the Philadelphia and Golden State’s Game

At the present moment, we have seen 53% of the consensus take a fondness to laying the points with the champs. In addition, the line has also moved upward by half of a point to reflect the money that has come in on Golden State.

The Historicals

This series has been dominated by the Warriors as they have won the last ten meetings between these two outfits. Most recently, Golden State defeated Philadelphia in November of 2017 when they ventured to the City of Brotherly Love to hand the Sixers a 124-116 loss. Golden State failed to cover a nine-point line while doing so.

Injury Concerns

Neither team has expressed any prominent injury concerns heading into this cross-conference contest.

Rest Advantages and Concerns

The 76ers are into the third game of a four-game West Coast road trip that wraps up on February 2nd in Sacramento. Philly has had one less day to prepare for this game since their victory in the City of Angels. However, they are not journeying a considerable distance north to Oakland to play this game. Golden State now begins a home-stand that extends to next Wednesday when they play one road game in Phoenix. The Warriors are coming back to Oakland after winning every game on a five-game road trip.

Can Philadelphia’s Bench Test The Warriors?

In addition to having one less day to prepare for this match along with home court working against them, the 76ers are at many disadvantages as they own the 22nd ranked scoring defense that gives up 112.1 points per game and is tasked with trying to stop the NBA’s best offense. There is one area that the Sixers own an edge: their bench. Philadelphia’s bench generates 33.9 points per game which is 2.6 points better than Golden State’s bench which produces 30.5 points per outing. Philadelphia will have to go their depth to find a competitive angle and will undoubtedly need all hands against the most dominant starting line-up in the league who stand at an incredible 18-6 SU on their own court.

Will The Champs’ Offensive Exploits Power Them To A 12th Straight Win?

The Warriors are the best in the business when it comes to scoring as they average a stellar 119.1 points per game. In addition to their scoring proficiency, the Warriors are also the best team in the league in shooting efficiency as they hit 49.1% of their field goals while also showing an aptitude for the three-pointer as they hit a second-ranked 38.9% of their attempts from beyond the arc. Also, the Warriors are also the best free-throw shooting team in the NBA hitting a remarkable 82.1% of their attempts. They have a favorable match-up here against a Philadelphia team that sits 26th in the league regarding opponent free-throw percentage at 77.8%. Golden State is not a team anyone should want to give free points too, but the Warriors are nonetheless in a position to take advantage.

Betting Trends

Despite Golden State riding a hot hand against Philadelphia, the 76ers have been a cash cow in this series as they have gone 6-1 ATS in their last seven contests with Golden State. For Over/Under players, the Under is 10-4 ATS in the previous 14 meetings.

Keith’s Pick to Cover the Spread: Golden State -9.5

The fact remains that Philadelphia has played below .500 basketball on the road this season and they are now journeying into a den of lions in what is one of the most notorious venues in all of the NBA. Golden State looks a juggernaut at the moment as they have seamlessly integrated star Center DeMarcus Cousins into their already star-studded line-up of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Kevin Durant, and Klay Thompson. This is a basketball team that no one should want any part of at this point as this team has scored over 130 points in five of their last ten outings. It is hard to find a team that will be able to go tit-for-tat with the Warriors in terms of scoring and even if said squad did that, all it would do is play right into Golden State’s hands. Bottom line, Philadelphia doesn’t have the defense to slow this freight train down nor do they have a compelling road record to suggest that they can even challenge the Warriors on their own court. Golden State’s high-powered offense will steamroll Philadelphia and send the Sixers packing with a blowout loss.