The Mavs have won seven of their previous 10 straight up games, indicating that they are playing better ball lately. Not surprisingly, their impressive performance aligned with point guard Kyrie Irving's comeback.

After losing in what seemed to be a disappointing game at the end of a road trip to Atlanta on Sunday night, the Magic could recover here against the Nets who have been awful all season.

The Grizzlies are now outside of the postseason picture and will not be getting Smart or Bane anytime soon. Given the lack of strong, experienced scoring alternatives, the Clippers have the upper hand in this game.

The Bucks weren't expecting the same kind of results from the termination of Adrian Griffin and the subsequent appointment of Doc Rivers as his replacement. Under Rivers, Milwaukee is merely 3-7 and has fallen to second place in the Central Division.

Denver has been off for a week, and the first game was played at home, so I'm not worried about them playing a back-to-back. Portland is the worst shooting team in the NBA, so Denver's sixth-ranked scoring defense ought to have little trouble winning against them.

Jimmy Butler hasn't played since February 7. He is going to play against the Pelicans after returning to practice. On both ends of the court, Miami will benefit greatly from his presence.

San Antonio may not have as much firepower as Los Angeles. The Spurs are 30th in 3-point percentage (33.9%) and 11th in 3-point rate (40.0) in the NBA. To have a chance of surprising everyone, they will require a successful shooting night.

Washington simply cannot keep up with the attacking prowess of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Oklahoma City has the second-highest field goal and three-point shooting percentages in the NBA and scores 120.8 points per game, which is fourth best in the league.

The Suns have triumphed in three of their previous five road games and five of their previous six overall. Their offensive performance has been impressive when they are traveling, as they have scored over 117 points per game while converting 50% of their attempts.

What the best bet for today?

Three of the last five games for the Wildcats have ended in losses. They have not scored more than 70 points a game in their last three games, indicating a current offensive slump. They don't rebound the ball as well as the Bonnies, and their ball movement is poor.

Over the past ten games, Utah is just 5-5 against the spread. Utah is 2-1 ATS in their three head-to-head matches this season against Phoenix, but both of Utah's victories came at home, while the Jazz's road victories over the Suns were unsuccessful.

Despite a six-game losing streak, Chicago is playing a lot better basketball than the Memphis team. This season, the Grizzlies have also performed worse at home.

The Minnesota Timberwolves are not as dangerous on the road, as they are 16-11. The Bucks are tough to beat at home, with a 21-5 record. Minnesota has been erratic lately.

Brooklyn is currently ranked eleventh in the East, thus hosting a team that is coming off of a back-to-back is a scheduling necessity. Whatever you think of Ben Simmons, the Nets have added a 6'9 ballhandler who is excellent at passing, defending, and rebounding. He may never be an All-Star again.