Last Week’s Results – 420/720

Last week got off to a slow start. That said, I’ll happily take four of six for Week 19 of NBA Pick ‘Em Weekly Six. With the Rockets only edging out the Celtics by one point and a there’s-no-way-anyone-predicts-a-47-point-obliteration of the Thunder by the Bucks, 420 points out of a possible 720 is cool with me. In three of the four matchups, I got right, I was within one point in the margin of victory category. I can roll with that.

Let’s see what Week 20 has to offer.

NBA Pick ‘Em Week 20 – Lakers over Bucks by Four Points

It can be hard trying to predict a winner when the two top teams in the league face off. The fact that there is every likelihood that this will be an NBA Finals match up only raises the stakes.

I vacillated back and forth between the Lakers and Bucks for this pick. I was tempted, several times to abandon this game and pick one that would be easier to come to a conclusion on. But, what kind of picks writer would I be if I didn’t go for the tough option? So, here we are.

My eventual choice for the Lakers to edge out the Bucks by four points in this game came down to a few different factors. First, in the first matchup of these 2019-20 regular season Titans, the Bucks walked away with the W at home with a final score of 104-111. The Lakers will be out to prove something in this second and final matchup of the regular season.

Additionally, the Lakers have an easier schedule this week before the meeting. The Bucks will be on the road against the Heat tonight. Then they take on the Pacers at home on Wednesday before traveling to LA for Friday’s game.

The Lakers, on the other hand, have only one game between now and Friday. They’ll be hosting the have-not-won-on-the-road-in-40-days-and-counting (at the time of publication) 76ers on Tuesday. This should be a hella easy W for the Lakers since there is currently no indication that either Embiid or Simmons will be available. And if I’m being completely honest, I’d have given this game to the Lakers even if both Embiid and Simmons had been available for a number of reasons.

Following that game, the Lakers have two days to wait around at home for the Bucks to come to town. Let’s face it, the extra rest will be beneficial for one of the oldest teams in the league.

Celtics Over Jazz by Six Points

So, I got a little long-winded in my last analysis. I’m glad you didn’t mind as evidenced by the fact that you’re reading this sentence. I’ll try to keep this one short and sweet.

I don’t think these two teams are separated by too large a margin talent-wise and their records bear this out. As I’m writing this, both teams have played 59 games. Boston has 41 wins to Utah’s 38. If you factor in the widely held opinion that it’s harder to win in the Western Conference, these teams are neck-and-neck.

My pick of Boston came down to the simple fact that the Jazz will be on the road and Boston has been on a tear. I wasn’t sold on the Boston hype early in the season. It was too soon for me to buy in. I’m pretty sold now.

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Check out the gallery below for my other four picks from Week 20 of NBA Pick ‘Em Weekly Six. I’m expecting some substantial margins.