NBA Predictions and Best Bets – January 26, 2021

Tuesday night offers up a small and unspectacular NBA betting slate. It’s a breath of fresh air after a busy Monday, but none of the games stand out as “must bet” situations.

That’s at first glance, at least. As most bettors know, sometimes seemingly ugly spots can give way to the best NBA bets.

Take a quick look at who is on the docket today.

None of these six teams played on Monday, so they should be somewhat well-rested. You know how it is with the Clippers and their load management, though, so keep tabs on any injuries or potential rest chatter.

For now, the big name to monitor is Trae Young, who sat along with Clint Capela on Sunday. I’d expect them back, but if not, the Hawks may get dominated by a red hot L.A. squad.

These are the things we always need to consider before placing any bets.

With that, I’m ready to hand out my NBA predictions, and top betting picks for Tuesday evening.

Injury news will likely dictate how you bet on this Clippers vs. Hawks game. Atlanta hosts and are a respectable 8-8, as well as 4-3 at home.

The big thing for them is the hopeful return of Trae Young and Clint Capela. Young took a break with a sore back, while Capela’s hand was probably bumpin’ from his insane 10-block outing the game prior.

Clint Capela is the first Hawks player with a triple-double including 10 blocks since Dikembe Mutombo in 2000❗ pic.twitter.com/w5x5fj0m3U

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 23, 2021

Both should be back, and the Hawks will need them.

Los Angeles is as good as ever, having ripped off seven wins in a row. They’ve done a lot of their damage at the Staples Center but have still gone a rock-solid 5-2 on the road.

The Clippers owned the league’s #1 offense and have rebounded from a slow start to crack the top-15 defensively. Atlanta could always beat the spread, and the Over could be at risk here, but the Clippers to win feels like the safest bet on the board.

The Wizards remain awful. They lost their last game and saw Russell Westbrook drop an uninspiring effort in his return from a quad injury.

Washington hasn’t been that great even when they have been at full strength, and they’re walking into Tuesday with a poor 3-9 record.

Westbrook does get a chance at immediate revenge against the Rockets, and it’s worth debating if Houston is even worse off.

DeMarcus Cousins positively smashed his last time out, and John Wall is healthy again. Houston has been missing efficient big man Christian Wood, of course, who was easily among the top NBA players surpassing expectations in 2021 before getting hurt.

He’s been sidelined with an ankle issue, as well as “personal” reasons. If he’s back, it’s easy to get excited about Houston at home. The best bet is just hammering the Over in a game featuring two of the fastest offenses in the league and next to no defense.

Bettors go from two fairly appealing games in terms of pace and offensive upside to whatever this is.

New York is not the doormat bettors are accustomed to picking on. Julius Randle is reborn and is a big reason for the Knicks being pretty competitive most nights.

The Knicks are still just 8-10 on the year (5-6 on the road), but they play slow, and it’s allowed them to operate the 6th most efficient defense in The Association.

Utah is a few spots ahead of them at #4, of course, and they have them beat on the other side with a top-5 offense. The Jazz are also at home, have a size advantage, and are simply the better, more cohesive bunch.

New York could give them some problems, but Utah winning may be the way to go here.

The only game with NBA odds is the Knicks vs. Jazz contest, so I’ll work around that for now.

The total for this game (209.5) is really low, but both teams are slow and can defend well. I just would rather not mess with it, but Utah’s efficiency and such a low bar probably would nudge me to the Over.

I wouldn’t feel amazing about it, but I do like the Knicks ATS here. Normally, perhaps not, but this is a really thick spread.

New York has been a very pesky team and has been respectable (9-9) against the spread this season. They’ve been even better ATS (6-5) on the road.

Utah is on fire (8 wins in a row), but the Knicks have lost by 10+ points just three times this year. Usually, they’re shockingly winning, or they’re giving you a tougher game than expected.

I’ll start things off with that nice 10.5-point cushion, and if other bets pop up, I’ll update this section with additional NBA picks to target.

Other than that, just roll with Tuesday’s NBA predictions above to formulate your bets at the top sites for betting on the NBA.