NBA Look Ahead for Friday, Jan 21 and Saturday Jan 22, 2022

More NBA action is on the way as the season ramps towards the All-Star break. Although we aren’t quite there yet, playoff positioning is beginning to take shape.

This week, we have five entertaining games that we’re going to preview for you. Each of these games features some of the best teams from their respective conferences. We’ll start with a visit to the Portland Trail Blazers and Boston Celtics.  Then we look at Sacramento Kings and Milwaukee Bucks.

Portland Trail Blazers at Boston Celtics, Fri Jan 21, 2022; 6:30pm CT

Both the Trail Blazers and Boston Celtics are trying to work their way into the top ten in their conferences. Portland has had a tough year and currently has a 17-25 record.

They have even fewer wins against the spread at 16-26, making them an unreliable pick here. Their defense is one of the worst in the NBA, surrendering 113.17 points per game. 

The Celtics are 22-22 and definitely the better team between these two. Their current ATS record is 20-23-1; although not good, it’s much better than the Trail Blazers.

They also have a great record against Portland, going 7-3 in their last ten games. Another interesting note is that in those last ten games, the Celtics are 6-3-1 against the spread. Take Boston in this one.

Sacramento Kings at Milwaukee Bucks, Sat Jan 22, 2022; 7:00pm CT

The Sacramento Kings face one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference on Saturday. The Milwaukee Bucks recently easily beat the Golden State Warriors, 118-99.

Sacramento just had two strong wins of their own against the Lakers and Rockets. The question is, will the Kings be able to cover the spread. Their 20-25 ATS record suggests that they’ll struggle here. 

Something that we’d like to note is that Milwaukee doesn’t perform well against the spread at home. So far this season, the Bucks have an 8-14 ATS record at home and are 20-25 ATS overall.

That being said, the spread might be too large for the Bucks to cover. We’ll take the underdog to cover in this one, Sacramento on the road.

* All odds provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.