As the NBA All-Star lineups were announced last night, it’s crazy to think we’re close to being halfway done with this shortened season. Friday night is usually the best slate of NBA basketball and that doesn’t change today. We have nine great matchups in the association. I have three NBA picks that I love and expect to fill your pockets.

Oklahoma City +11 versus Milwaukee Bucks

This might be the favorite of my NBA picks. With my first pick, I’m taking the scrappy Oklahoma City Thunder to cover 11 points against the so-far disappointing Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks have started the season not very impressively being the Eastern Conference favorite to start the NBA season. Milwaukee is now on a five-game skid losing their last two to Toronto at home. Milwaukee is just 13-16 against the spread this season. The craziest statistic catching my eye was that Milwaukee is 6-0 against the Cavaliers and Pistons, but are 10-13 against any other team. To say the Bucks would have a losing record if they didn’t play the Cavs and Pistons is insane to me.

On the other side, the Thunder weren’t expected to do much with trading Steven Adams and Chris Paul during the offseason. They have in a way exceeded expectations thus far. Despite being one of the youngest teams in the league, they have mustered up some solid wins. This includes wins against the Bucks, Trailblazers, Suns, and the Spurs. They actually defeated the Bucks just five days ago. The Thunder are also 11-4 against the spread on the road. I just think the overrated Bucks are giving too many points to this scrappy Thunder team. Take the points and the Thunder.

Utah Jazz -3.5 versus Los Angeles Clippers

The hottest team in the NBA, the Utah Jazz, look to take on the L.A. Clippers for the second time in three days. The Utah Jazz have gotten off to a miraculous 24-5 start to the season. The most important stat is that in the Jazz’ last 21 games they’re 19-2 against the spread. 19 -2!!! This is unheard of in any sport. If you haven’t been on the Jazz bandwagon, it’s all aboard now because I don’t know how long this is going to keep up. You just can’t go against this Jazz team right now. The Clippers on the other hand have been very good this season with a 21-9 record and 17-13 record against the spread. That said, the Clippers are dealing with some injuries. Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Nicolas Batum, and Luke Kennard are all questionable coming into Friday night. Tonight, don’t think too much about it and take the hottest team in the NBA and take the Jazz.

Phoenix Suns -2 versus New Orleans Pelicans

With my last pick, I’m going with the Phoenix Suns to cover 2 points against the New Orleans Pelicans. With the addition of Chris Paul, the Suns have been a very intriguing team to watch. The Suns are 17-10 overall as well as 17-10 against the spread. They just blew a 20+ point lead at home to the Brooklyn Nets, so the Suns will be looking for blood in this one. The Pelicans are just 12-16 against the spread and 6-7 against the spread at home. I like Chris Paul and Devin Booker to take control of this game and take advantage of the Pelicans guards. Take the road favorites with the Suns in this one.

*Odds are via Draft Kings and are subject to change.

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