Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks Picks and Predictions Dec 25
Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks Betting Preview
WagerTalk NBA handicapper Andy Lang offers his Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks betting preview on the NBA’s Christmas Day slate. At the time of posting, Utah has climbed to a 12.5-point home favorite over the visiting Mavericks, with the total sitting at 214 points.
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| Sat, Dec 25 | NBA Betting Notes |
|---|---|
| Point Spread: | Utah Jazz -12.5 vs Dallas Mavericks |
| Total: | 214 Points |
| Game Time: | 10:40pm ET / 7:40pm PT |
| Arena: | Vivint Arena |
| TV: | ESPN |
Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks Analysis
The 15-16 Dallas Mavericks head to Utah for Christmas night cap with the Jazz at Vivant Arena. The Mavs will be looking for a win after splitting their last eight games. The Jazz look to stay hot after winning ten of their last twelve games. This will be the first of four meetings between these teams this season.
The Mavs are one of many NBA teams dealing with a virus outbreak, as they currently have seven players on the leagues Covid health and safety protocol. Jason Kidd’s makeshift squad held their own but eventually lost 102-95 to the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night.
Without Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis the Mavs have to keep fighting the good fight with the deck stacked against them. The Dallas Mavericks have some tough luck recently. Right when Luka Doncic was set to return from missing five games with an ankle injury he tested positive for Covid-19. Adding to the misfortune was yet another injury for Kristaps Porzingis.
The Mavs are one of the leagues lowest scoring teams, sitting at 27th with only 104.4 points a game. Dallas does play solid defense as they allow only 104.6 points per game, good for 5th in the league.
The Utah Jazz offense has been incredible so far this season. Their league leading 117.1 offensive rating is head and shoulders above the 2nd place Charlotte Hornets at 112.7. To put things into perspective, their lead over the Hornets is by a wider margin than the Hornets lead over the 15th place team. The Jazz have five players who average double digit points, making so all the scoring doesn’t fall on Donovan Mitchell alone.
The Jazz are no slouch on defense either. Led by three time and reigning defensive player of the year in Rudy Gobert who is able to smother opponents with his length. The Jazz rank 6th in the league in defensive rating.
The Utah Jazz are favored by 12.5 with an over/under of 214.5. It’s going to be tough to predict the total with the Jazz scoring so many points recently and both teams playing solid defense. Twelve is a boatload of points, but I just can’t see this watered down Mavs team keeping up. Especially in Utah while the Jazz are firing on all cylinders. Our official play will be the Utah Jazz -12.5 in the NBA Christmas nightcap.
Official Play: Utah Jazz -12.5
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Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks Preview from GoldSheet
Dallas has had a rough time with Utah, as the Jazz have a 13-4 mark against the Mavericks since November of 2016, (6-3-1 last 10 vs. the number). Mavs won’t have Luka Doncic, Tim Hardaway Jr., Trey Burke, or Maxi Kleber for this one, and Kristaps Porzingis is limping around with a toe injury (hasn’t played last two games), so things don’t look good for reversing the trend.
Still, Dallas is 4-4 straight-up and 4-3-1 vs. the points over their last 8 games, ranking a respectable 8th in net rating differential and 6th in rebounding percentage in that period, but of course Utah ranks 2nd in those categories over the same period. However, number opened too light for us to resist backing Jazz side that’s covered 12-4-1 as a favorite of less than 8 since late last season (but also only 5-12 L17 laying 8 or more!).
Christmas 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 Saturday’s sheet, with notes on the Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks contest.
NBA Betting Tips
Kelly Stewart sits down with Tony Mejia to go over some NBA betting tips. Tony was a national NBA beat writer for CBS SportsLine from 2005-09 before transitioning into a role with Pro Basketball News. Tony shares some of the betting tips that he’s picked up over the last two decades while covering the NBA.
WagerTalk Live 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 the Christmas NBA games, including this Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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