It was a rough day for the NBA on Saturday, as three of the games were decided by more than 40 points and the average margin of victory was nearly 24. To make matters worse, we got to see what will likely go down as one of the best Final Four games ever when Gonzaga took down UCLA on a buzzer-beating heave in overtime.
Hopefully tonight’s contests, which look pretty tight on paper, will deliver after what was a brutal day for the league. We have an early start today, so let’s not delay and get right into it.
Updated odds for every game can be found here.
Updated injury reports for every game can be found here.
*Indicates team is on the second leg of a back-to-back.
The Main Event
Charlotte Hornets at Boston Celtics (-10, 222.5)
With a win today, the Hornets can clinch the over on their win total, but cluster injuries have cut into their depth and the betting market has clearly downgraded them as a result. Two weeks ago the Hornets were 9.5-point underdogs against the Clippers on the road, and today they were catching 10 points at the open against the Celtics. There is not just a half-point separating Los Angeles and Boston in any power rating, so we can infer that Charlotte has been downgraded by the betting market by quite a bit due to the injuries to Malik Monk, Gordon Hayward and LaMelo Ball.