The Portland Trail Blazers (9-22) travel to face off against the Phoenix Suns (17-15) on Monday, January 1st. This game will be played at Footprint Center. Both team’s come into this one having won their previous games. Tip-off is set for 9:00 ET.

Trail Blazers vs Suns

The Trail Blazers Are Coming Off A Win

The Trail Blazers beat the Spurs in their most recent game, ending with a score of 134-128. The start of the second half saw the Trail Blazers in the lead, at 71-56.

With a 9-22 record, the Trail Blazers are below .500 as they prepare to face the Suns. In Western Conference play, the Trail Blazers have gone 5-17 and are 4-5 in non-conference games.

Portland comes in with an overall ATS record of 15-16 so far this season. As the favorite this season, Portland is 1-3 vs. the spread while going 14-13 as the underdog.

The Suns Are Coming Off A Win

The Suns won vs. the Magic in their most recent game, ending with a score of 112-107. Going into the game, the Suns were favored by -5.5 and their 5 point win was not enough to cover the spread. In terms of the over/under, the combined 219 points was below the over/under line of 231.5.

Coming into today’s game, the Suns are 17-15 overall and have gone 3-2 in their last five games. On the road, the Suns are 8-6 compared to a 9-9 record at home.

Phoenix has an overall ATS record of 11-21 for the season so far. On the road, the Suns have an ATS record of 6-8, as opposed to a 5-13 record against the spread when playing at home.

Trail Blazers Offense Breakdown

The Trail Blazers come into today’s game as the 29th ranked scoring offense at 109.4 points per game. When looking at the team’s pace of play, the Trail Blazers are currently below the league average in possessions per game, averaging just 98.3 per contest. Not only is the team one of the more deliberate units in the NBA, they have yet to find their shooting stroke, ranking just 29th in the league in field goal percentage 29th%.

Suns Offense Breakdown

Through 32 games the Suns are averaging 115.4 points per contest, placing them 14th in the NBA. Coming into today’s game, the Suns will be looking to improve their 3-point shooting numbers, as they are averaging just 11.7 made 3’s per game. One area of the team’s offense that has been effective is their ability to get to the free-throw line. So far, they are ranked 2nd, with an average of 21.8 made free-throws per game.

Trail Blazers Team Defense

On defense, the Trail Blazers come into the game ranked 18th in the league in points allowed at 115.2 per game. Over their last three games, the team is allowing 119.7 points per contest (24th). In terms of two point field goal attempts, the Trail Blazers defense has allowed a shooting percentage of 59.1% while allowing 32.7% from downtown.

Suns Team Defense

Coming into the game, the Suns defense has held opposing team’s to fewer points than the league average in 34.4% of their games. Currently, they are 15th in the NBA at 114.4 points per game allowed. In the terms of takeaways, Suns are causing 14.1 turnovers per game, ranking 23rd in the league. They also enter the matchup ranked 3rd in rejections, averaging 6.5 blocked shots each game.

Key Players For The Trail Blazers And Suns

In today’s game, we anticipate Jerami Grant leading the scoring for the Trail Blazers, contributing 21 points while shooting 7/15 from the field. This season, he is averaging 22.4 points per game along with 4 boards.

On the opposing side, we anticipate Kevin Durant to be the top scorer for the Suns. Our projection has him finishing the game with 28, and he is expected to secure 7 rebounds. This season, he is shooting at a field goal percentage of 52.5%, and his scoring average is 29.9 points per game.

Trail Blazers vs Suns Trends

• In their last five road games, Portland has averaged 111 points per game while allowing 116. The team’s record in this stretch was 1-4 while going 3-2.
• Across the Suns last five home games, the team averaged 109 points per game while allowing 112. Their record vs the spread in these contests was 1-4, while going 1-4 straight-up.
• Spanning across their last five games as the betting underdog, the Trail Blazers have gone 3-2 vs the spread. Their overall record in these games was 2-3.
• In their last ten games as the betting favorite, the Suns have a straight up record of 5-5 and an ATS mark of 1-9.

Trail Blazers vs Suns Prediction

We’re putting our money on the Suns to win, and have the projected score sitting at 162-102. We also like them to cover the spread, so our recommendation is to bet on the Suns at -10.5.

Regarding the over/under, the current line is set at 229.5, and our model predicts the Trail Blazers and Suns to score a combined 264 points. We recommend betting on the over.

All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

* All odds are 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.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.