Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards Predictions and Picks Jan 19
Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards Betting Preview
WagerTalk NBA handicapper Tony Finn offers his Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards betting preview for Wednesday, January 19. At the time of posting, the Wizards have opened as a 1-point home favorite over the visiting Nets, with the total sitting at 234 points.
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| Wednesday, January 19 | NBA Betting Notes |
|---|---|
| Point Spread: | Brooklyn Nets +1 vs Washington Wizards |
| Total: | 234 Points |
| Game Time: | 7:10pm ET / 4:10pm PT |
| Arena: | Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. |
| TV: | NBC Sports Washington |
Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards Analysis
The Washington Wizards (23-21) win over the Philadelphia Sixers on Martin Luther King Day. The Wizards wired the Sixers with one of their best performances of the season. The Wizards host the Durant-less Brooklyn Nets (27-16) in a hump-night matchup in D.C scheduled for 7:10pm ET at Capital One Arena.
The first matchup between these two Eastern Conference foes found James Harden and Kevin Durant combining for 39 points, 14 rebounds, and 13 assists in a 104-90 victory for the Nets in Brooklyn. Unfortunately, the second scheduled tilt between the two East rivals, a pre-Christmas contest, was postponed due to COVID issues.
Brooklyn Bridge under repair
The Nets will be without Kevin Durant, who sprained a ligament in his left knee in Monday’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The injury is expected to keep him out for several weeks. Brooklyn is 15-6 on the road; the squad holds the top spot in the Atlantic Division and is third overall in Eastern Conference standings.
Without Durant for the next 6-8 weeks or more, the Nets are in a position where the team goal should be to hold on to one of the top four spots in the Eastern Conference standings. Unfortunately, it is not realistic for the Nets to believe they will hold off the Sixers, who are two-game behind the Nets in the Atlantic Division standings.
Kyrie Irving will play his 5th game and round out the first five with Harden, Kessler Edwards, DeAndre’ Bembry (questionable-back), and Day’Ron Sharpe. Irving averages 20 points and five assists per game since returning to the team in a road-game only roll because of his stance on not abiding by the New York state vaccine mandate.
Irving scored 27 points, dished out nine assists, and grabbed seven rebounds in 38 minutes of court time in Monday’s 114-107 loss to the Cavaliers. The five-game sample size of the metrics that Irvin brings to the table is small. The lack of possessions this season with Harden and Irving on the floor without Durant are few and far between. What metrics we do have puts the Nets in a position in which they will be giving up as much as 1.40 points per possession without Durant.
As mentioned, the Nets’ shooting forward DeAndre’ Bembry (back) is questionable for tonight’s game. In addition, Nicolas Claxton (hamstring), Durant (knee), Joe Harris (ankle), and Paul Milsap have all been ruled out.
Washington Offensively Challenged
The Wizards are expected to be at full strength for tonight’s matchup against the Nets. Washington is 4-3 straight up across the last two weeks with a +3.7 net rating. Washington was as good as they can be in Monday’s victory over the Sixers. The straight-up win against the spread cover broke a six-game run without supporting their backers.
Since the calendar turned from November to December, the Wizards are 7-14-1 against the spread with a -4.1 net rating. Washington ranks 20th in league with a 109.8 offensive efficiency and 19th with a 111.1 defensive efficiency rating. The Wizards bench scored 68 points in the Monday win against Joel Embiid and Philadelphia.
After missing a trio of games to the health and safety protocol, Bradley Beal is back in starting rotation. The Wizards injury report is clean, and the squad is as healthy as they have been all season.
Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards Prediction
The Nets had a 118.1 defensive rating and only outscored opponents by 2.3 points every 100 possessions without Durant on the court the first half of the season. The combo of Irving and Harden will not be anything but less than average defensively.
As pedestrian as the Wizards’ offensive metrics are, the team defense has regressed over their last 15 games. The Wizards 1-6 ATS record across their previous seven games needs to improve to 2-6 after tonight’s game. If the Wizards can’t find a way to hold serve on their home wood versus the Nets without Durant, then it’s time for Washington to become sellers before next month’s trade deadline.
The WagerTalk pick to click is a play on the Wizards to take down the Nets minus the small number.
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Wednesday’s #NBA Notes:
🏀Orlando has covered the spread in four of its last five as a double-digit road ‘dog.
🏀Charlotte is 12-5 against the spread as a ‘dog.
🏀The under is 19-5 in Dallas’ last 24 games.
🏀The over is 26-13 in Houston’s last 39 games.
➡️https://t.co/RHOuvHZvdC pic.twitter.com/g94ryCDsIL— GoldSheet (@thegoldsheet) January 19, 2022
Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards Preview from GoldSheet
Brooklyn has been in a slump, logging a 5-7 straight up mark since Dec. 30, alternating wins and losses since New Year’s Day. Kevin Durant’s injury certainly a worry, as is the Net defensive effort, which has taken a turn for the worse since Durant last played a full game against Chicago. Brooklyn has surrendered 120 points per 100 possessions in that span, and the problems go back even farther with the 2-9 spread run the Nets are on right now.
Washington has been nothing but trouble for the Nets recently, winning five of the last eight meetings straight up with a 6-2 spread mark. This season’s first encounter saw the Nets take a 104-90 decision at the Barclays Center on Oct. 25, when Durant had 25 pts., Patty Mills had 21 off the bench and the Wiz shot just 35%. This time around the Nets have no Durant but Kyrie Irving is available, and Washington, which is 1-6 vs. the points last seven games, doesn’t really have any points to play with.
NBA Stat Sheet
Each day, WagerTalk handicapper Ralph Michaels puts together his NBA Stat Sheet, which offers a head-to-head comparison for how teams are performing in a number of key areas heading into a game. Check out Wednesday’s sheet, with notes on tonight’s Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards contest.
NBA Tip-Off Show
Join Joe Raineri and a rotating panel of guests for the NBA Tip-Off Show at 4:15pm ET / 1:15pm PT as we discuss tonight’s marquee games. Stay up-to-date on the latest NBA news, stats, analysis, and predictions with our panel of professional handicappers as they preview tonight’s NBA action, including this Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards clash, from a betting perspective.
NBA Odds Screen
WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the NBA point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of Wednesday’s NBA games, including this Brooklyn Nets vs Washington Wizards showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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