Our Mission is to deliver
the most accurate
Basketball Picks to our
clients. We do this by
concentra ...more
Records
Client Monitored Picks
Since 2001: Since our inception in 2001,
our clients have been actively monitoring our
picks after every graded selection. Posting our
basketball handicapping records to the public is
our #1 priority here at NBA
Choice. We don't hide behind false pretenses and
we keep our records available to the public
viewing to convey not only our accuracy, but our
honesty as a trusted sports service. With so many
new handicapping services popping up over the
internet every year, it's tough to find a service
that stands by their picks in an honest manner.
Needless to say, if a
sports service can't show their documented NBA
records on the site for the world to see, then you
simply can't trust them. Here, we don't hide
anything from our customers, nor the public, as we
keep all of our records posted and up-to-date.
Each basketball pick is hand graded and monitored
by our clients. We stand by our picks and
our clients stand by us!
Documented
NBA Handicapping Records:
2009/2010 NBA
Handicapping Records
ATS: 184-160-8
(56%)
Moneyline: 3-3
(+0.85 UNITS)
Totals: 64-66-6
(48%)
**TOTAL UNITS EARNED =
+7.50
NOTE: 1
UNIT = 6% BANKROLL. View our Rating
System for specifics.
Please
take a look below at some of our recent basketball
picks. Click the drop down menu links to view the
extensive detailed research and analysis that goes
into every single pick we release to our clients.
We have a strict basketball handicapping process
that is designed to increase probability of
winning and ultimately making you money with each
and every selection.
Game Preview: The Rockets knew they were facing an offensive machine in Utah, and one game into the series they are even more aware of Utah's offensive talent. The Jazz shot 52.1 percent from the field, 50 percent from 3-point range, and won all four quarters (rare in the NBA). All this from a team that is being tagged as a poor road team. So, considering that Utah was the best team on its home court during the regular season, Houston is faced with a "win or go home" type of contest in Game 2.
Utah wanted to get Carlos Boozer going early in Game 1, and the Jazz smartly used his shooting ability to get him good looks and drag Dikembe Mutombo away from the rim, too. Mutombo may still be an amazing shot-blocker, but defending Boozer on those types of plays is not something he can do. Houston, meanwhile, wanted Boozer to take outside shots so that he couldn't get too active on the offensive glass. But active he was in Game 1, to the tune of six rebounds on that end. Houston has no chance in this series unless it makes a bigger priority to keep Boozer neutralized on the offensive boards. This will take a team commitment, as rotations on defense oftentimes demand that someone other than the man defending Boozer handle the box out.
Utah runs much of its offense through Boozer in the middle of the floor/top of the key area. He knows that when Mutombo is on the bench Houston has no one to influence his shot inside, so he'll pass and cut or pick-and-roll. And once he got going in Game 1, he had no issues driving on Mutombo either. This is a red alert situation for the Rockets. Boozer proved to be too much in their series last season and he's ready to be that guy again. The Rockets must get all five defenders more focused on slowing Boozer down and run the risk of someone else getting easy shots because of it.
That someone else could be Andrei Kirilenko, who looked to be playing at the best "pace" I've seen from him in a while. Under control and confident, AK scored by using Utah's offensive playbook -- rubbing off screens to get good position inside, backing Shane Battier down, cutting off Boozer's post-ups, or just spotting up. Of course he was active in transition, too. Houston may want to see if he can do it again, and continue to not account for him, while focusing more on Boozer.
Houston did a decent job of defending Williams, who looked to post up smaller guards as expected. But Houston put good ball pressure on the passer and denied Williams from a half position, forcing a few turnovers in the process. Utah will look to clean up that part of its offense, partially because there aren't many other offensive adjustments to make.
But there are plenty of changes for Houston to make, if they expect to play a Game 5 at home. Its offense was awful, clearly missing Rafer Alston 's shooting and leadership at the point. The Rockets shot just 36.7 percent from the field and 6-for-22 from 3, and had only 15 assists to 12 turnovers. Their spacing on pro sets was poor, and the pressure of the moment sped up the normally cool-as-can-be Luis Scola and the always-fast Bobby Jackson. Jackson in particular was worrisome, looking sometimes like an out of control Allen Iverson (without that kind of shot-making talent) and rushing some perimeter jumpers and 3-pointers -- he ended up 1-for-7 behind the arc.
Utah had plenty of time to prepare for Tracy McGrady in the half-court sets. He would catch and hold from the mid-post or wing, allowing Utah's four helpers to move towards him, helping to close off his available lanes to the rim. I'd expect him to show some catch-and-explode actions on Monday night, hoping to get an angle before the help comes. It will help him to get more free throws too. Twenty points on 21 shots by McGrady is a recipe for a Jazz win. And he needs to find a way to get more than one offensive rebound in 41 minutes -- he's athletic enough to mix it up inside and still take care of his defensive transition responsibilities.
Utah was not focused on taking away Battier's looks, and he made the Jazz pay to the tune of 22 points on 7-for-7 shooting from the field, 4-for-4 from 3-point range. I'm not convinced Utah will change this at all, expecting those percentages to drop some while making sure T-Mac does not get his game going. Giving Battier a chance to score 30-plus points while holding down some other players is a smart strategy.
Scola showed some signs that he can score inside and out, and he was a beast on the glass with eight offensive boards, but he ended up having a subpar game like his teammates (6-for-15 on field-goal attempts). But we should see a lot more of Scola being offensive-minded in Game 2 -- it will both occupy and work Boozer and take advantage of Houston's second-best offensive player. Scola is good enough to score 25-plus points and spark the Rockets to a win. Aaron Brooks did not look like he was ready to play in such an intense game, so it's up to Jackson to make shots and get the Rockets' offense to play at a higher level.
Our Point: Tonight, everyone is betting against the Rockets, and rightfully so. They shot terrible in the opening game (36%), and T-Mac didn't score in the final 20 minutes of the ballgame. Going into the series, it looked like these two teams were evenly matched. Utah won Game 1 handily, but Houston's players went a combined 2-for-18 from 3-point range, not including Battier. They should expect to shoot much better in the next game; most of the looks they had were good in Game 1.The Jazz won every single quarter against the Rockets, except one. Without Alston in the lineup, it seems the Rockets are seriously exposed. But, one thing is for sure, it can only get better from here for the Houston Rockets. They are a great home team, even without Yao Ming, and the Jazz have had troubles on the road all season.
The Bottom Line: The only thing Houston needs to do is simply make adjustments. As you see above, they shot terrible in the first game, despite great looks at the basket. Chalk this up to playoff jitters and inexperience. They did a decent job on defense holding Okur to 4 points, and Brewer to 0 points. But, their fallacy was allowing the Jazz bench put up nearly 30 points led by Kyle Korver. Game 2 in the NBA playoffs is always about making adjustments, and look for the Rockets to come out swinging in this one. By all means, the Jazz will not relax in this one, but expect the Rockets to shoot much better and give a similar defensive effort tonight at home. Houston played 5 games at home this season after 1 day off, and coming off a loss. Guess what? They are 4-1 SU in those outings. Further, they are 8-5 SU coming off a loss at home this season. Must we highlight the Jazz away from home this season? 18-24 SU/18-24 ATS.
We will give the Rockets another try in what should have been a solid outing in game 1. Rockets -1 is the play!
