Brooklyn Expected to Continue to Roll in Indiana

James Harden’s absence hasn’t slowed down the Nets (42-20 SU, 36-26 ATS), who have covered seven of their last nine without him. Brooklyn guns for its fourth straight win when it visits the Pacers (29-32, 36-24-1), who are 2-14 ATS in their last 16 home games. The Nets opened as 9-point favorites.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

Possibly concerned about the potential of Kevin Durant sitting out the front end of a back-to-back, most books hadn’t opened a line on this game before Thursday morning. The few that did made Brooklyn a 9-point favorite and the total had climbed to 238.5.

Brooklyn News & Notes

Durant finally returned to Brooklyn’s starting lineup Tuesday and played 33 minutes, but neither he nor Kyrie Irving were the biggest reason the Harden-less Nets were able to rally for a 116-103 road win over the Raptors. In fact, of the eight Nets who saw playing time against Toronto, Irving was the only one not to crack double digits in scoring.

Jeff Green led Brooklyn with 22 points, Blake Griffin and Durant each had 17, Joe Harris scored 16 and Landry Shamet collected 14 for Brooklyn, which went on a 22-6 run in the fourth quarter to erase a 90-84 deficit. Mike James, who recently signed a 10-day contract, scored seven points during the decisive run and finished with a team-high eight assists to help Brooklyn improve to 7-2 ATS in its last nine games.

Backup guard Bruce Brown missed Tuesday’s contest to rest a sore knee and is not expected to return to the lineup until Friday against Portland. DeAndre Jordan is another player you might want to avoid having in your fantasy lineup after losing his starting lineup spot to Durant. Jordan, who is averaging 22.3 minutes per game, didn’t see the court at all against Toronto in what was listed as a coach’s decision.

Indiana News & Notes

The Pacers aren’t the only team playing in front of small crowds this season because of the pandemic, but they might be the most affected. Indiana’s 133-112 loss to Portland on Tuesday was the Pacers’ 18th loss at Bankers Life Fieldhouse this season, ensuring they won’t have a winning record at home for the first time in 31 years – snapping the longest active streak in the NBA. Indiana also hasn’t been able to cover spreads at home, going a dismal 2-14 ATS in its last 16 as hosts.

Tuesday’s 21-point defeat was actually flattering to the Pacers, who gave up at least 34 points in each of the first three quarters and trailed by as many as 43 in the fourth. With Domantas Sabonis out indefinitely with a back injury, Indiana’s lack of size up front was exposed by the Trail Blazers, who out-rebounded Indiana 67-44 and had three frontcourt players who recorded double-doubles in points and rebounds.

Oshae Brissett has emerged as one of Indiana’s top scoring options lately, scoring 18 points Tuesday to tie Malcolm Brogdon for the team lead. The Pacers’ frontcourt is expected to be without Myles Turner and Goga Bitadze once again tonight, giving Brissett the opportunity to post his sixth straight double-digit scoring outing.

Betting Pick: OVER 238.5

Seven of Indiana’s last 10 games have seen at least 238 points scored as the Pacers play at a quicker pace with their small lineup.