Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week – October 24th, 2022

The biggest early surprise in the NBA has to be the 4-0 Portland Trail Blazers – and it’s not like they have played an easy schedule, upsetting the likes of Phoenix and Denver. The last time Portland opened 4-0 was 1999. The Blazers are the lone undefeated team in the Western Conference. Here’s a look at two intriguing NBA matchups on a very busy Wednesday. Check back for NBA odds.

Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week (October 24th, 2022)

Celtics, Warriors, Bucks, Jazz.

Which squad is No. 1 after the first week of action?https://t.co/x9vUYFj9lj

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) October 24, 2022

READ MORE: Cavaliers vs. Celtics 2022 NBA Odds and Preview – October 28th

Brooklyn Nets vs. Milwaukee Bucks

• When: Wednesday, October 26, 2022, 7:30 PM ET
• Where: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, WI
• TV: ESPN
• Radio: WFAN 101.9 FM (Nets) // WTMJ 620 AM (Bucks)
• Live Stream: NBA League Pass
• NBA Betting Odds: TBA

ESPN has the telecast of this star-studded matchup and what could be a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals – the Bucks do remain without injured All-Star Khris Middleton.

Brooklyn has been a bit uneven in the early going at 1-2 following a 134-124 loss in Memphis on Monday. Ben Simmons was furious after fouling out for the second time already. He was frustrated with many calls, the one that drew most of his ire was his sixth foul, called by official J.T. Orr with 3:52 left in the contest. Grizzlies guard Ja Morant slowly let the ball roll up the floor then collected it and stood there waiting for Simmons to make a move. Once Simmons came closer to Morant — who was standing a little over the half-court line — and made contact, Orr blew the whistle that ended Simmons’ night. Both Simmons and Nets coach Steve Nash were in disbelief.

“I just saw the play,” Simmons said after the game. “It wasn’t a foul. [Orr] called it a foul, made a mistake, it is what it is … it’s really frustrating … it’s not a foul, but it was bulls—. It’s frustrating because it’s late game, fourth quarter, it’s a physical, close game. It’s the NBA. It’s not college. It’s not high school. Some people are going to get hit, some people bleed; it’s basketball.”

Simmons is still barely shooting the ball, going just 2-for-5 from the field. He’s just 3-for-7 from the free-throw line. What happened to that guy!? Brooklyn is minus-45 in Simmons’ first 83 minutes on the floor. Nash admitted the former All-Star has to be aggressive driving to the rim. Foes are defending the Nets five-on-four with Simmons on the court. T.J. Warren (left foot) and Seth Curry (left ankle injury) were both out Monday, but Curry is closing in on a return.

The Bucks have played just two games and won both. Milwaukee has familiar faces returning from last season’s team that went 51-31 and finished in third in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks return 88% of their minutes played from last season, with 14 of the 17 guys who finished last season on the roster, back for this season. Since head coach Mike Budenholzer took over in 2018, the Bucks have owned the best record in the NBA.

This is the first of four regular-season meetings between the clubs.

NBA Betting Pick: Bucks

Miami Heat vs. Portland Trail Blazers

• When: Wednesday, October 26, 2022, 10:00 PM ET
• Where: Moda Center, Portland, OR
• TV: ROOT-SP+, BSSUN
• Radio: AM 560 Sports WQAM (Heat) // KPOJ 620 AM (Trail Blazers)
• Live Stream: NBA League Pass
• NBA Betting Odds: TBA

This starts a three-game West Coast trip for Miami, which is 1-3 following a 98-90 home loss to Toronto on Monday. Toronto outscored Miami 27-14 in the fourth quarter, getting five 3’s in the final 12 minutes. The Raptors outscored the Heat 42-24 from 3-point range, and 27-13 on fast breaks.

“They made shots,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “They made some big shots down the stretch, even the ones that we were defending pretty well.”

It’s early and the numbers only mean so much, but the Heat are having trouble whenever All-Star big man Bam Adebayo hits the bench. They are -22.8 with him off the court and +4.2 per 100 possessions when he’s on. The Heat are one of the teams in the league who are known for their high pick-and-roll plays, mainly set up by Adebayo. On Monday, Adebayo set four screens, which led to 11 points.

The Heat’s entire rotation is different than it was last year with both Tyler Herro and Caleb Martin going from bench to starters. In other words, that’s a full unit – even if they aren’t often playing all five at once – that is finding its way on both ends of the floor. Now you’ve got Jimmy Butler playing the four with Gabe Vincent, Max Strus and Duncan Robinson.

As noted, the Blazers are the West’s only unbeaten team. In Monday’s upset of the Nuggets Damian Lillard hit 10-of-16 shots and four 3-pointers on his way to 31 points, six rebounds, eight assists and a steal. He’s now scored 41, 41 and 31 points in each of his last three games. Anfernee Simons hit 11-of-17 shots and seven 3-pointers on his way to a season-high 29 points vs. Denver.

Simons, who entered training camp knowing a lot was expected of him with a new contract, had gotten off to a rough start shooting the ball. He went 10 of 34 from the field for 28 points over the previous two games after starting the season with 22 points on 9-of-22 shooting in the opener against Sacramento. Even in that game, Simons went 3 of 10 on threes. Through three games, Simons had shot 5 of 24 (20.8%) from long distance. That all changed Monday.

Last season, Miami swept the series, 2-0, and has now won three straight against Portland. With a win Wednesday, the Heat will tie their longest winning streak in Portland at three consecutive games, a feat they have done three separate times, the last being from 12/1/09 – 3/1/12. The Heat are 26-41 all-time versus the Trail Blazers during the regular season, including 14-20 in road games.

In 18 career games against Miami, Damian Lillard has averaged 24.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 6.6 assists. Jerami Grant has scored 21-plus points in his last four games against the Heat.

NBA Betting Pick: Trail Blazers

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READ MORE: Top NBA Betting Picks of the Week – November 7th, 2022