Best NBA Betting Lines January 7: Raptors, Spurs, and Bulls All Cover

The big marquee matchup on tonight’s slate – and arguably the most exciting game of 2022 so far – sees Giannis and the Bucks take on Durant, Harden, and the Nets in Brooklyn. Both teams sit just a few games behind Chicago in the East, and this game could end up being critical in terms of seeding and matchups when we get to the playoffs.

Elsewhere in the league, the Lakers host the struggling Hawks. Utah heads north of the border to face the Raptors. And division rivals face off as Dallas meets Houston and Minnesota does battle with Oklahoma City. 

Ultimately, there are nine games to sift through for betting angles tonight. These three stand out as especially tasty:

Utah @ Toronto

The Bet: Raptors -10.5 (-110, Bet MGM)

This is a terrific spot for Toronto, who was hit with COVID absences as hard or harder than any other team in the league late in December. Since they’ve gotten back to relative full strength, they’ve been unstoppable ATS – covering in five straight, including four consecutive outright wins. During that stretch, Fred VanVleet is asserting himself as one of the better guards in the Eastern Conference, scoring almost 30 points per game since his return.

The Jazz are one of the best teams in the NBA, but they’ve struggled against the spread for several weeks. They’re just 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games, and in this one, they’ll be without Rudy Gobert, who is on the COVID protocols list. Without him, they won’t be road favorites in Toronto, like they would have been (-3) with him.   

San Antonio @ Philadelphia

The Bet: Spurs +7 (-110, DraftKings)

The Spurs rely on Dejounte Murray a lot more than the stat sheet might suggest. Yes, he’s their leading scorer and assists man, but his numbers (18 and nine on the season) aren’t so gaudy that you’d assume the team would fall apart without him. But that’s sort of what happened when he went into health and safety protocols. The team lost three straight – against Memphis, Detroit and Toronto – and with the exception of the Pistons game (which is an atrocious loss no matter the score), none of the games was particularly close.

But Murray was back against Boston, and the team won outright as 7.5-point underdogs. Philly is super hot at the moment. They’ve won five straight, but you’re catching them at a real high point in the market, and they’re pretty poor ATS at home (just 5-10 on the season). Give the Spurs and Murray your money.

Washington @ Chicago

The Bet : Bulls -6.5 (110, FanDuel)

In their last contest, the Wizards lost outright against a team – the Rockets – that hadn’t kept a game within nine points in almost two weeks. On top of that, Houston was dealing with pretty wild internal strife, but they still toppled Washington.

That’s the state of Wizards basketball at the moment unfortunately. They had a wonderful start to the season – 10-3 straight up – but they’ve sputtered since then, including a stretch where they went 3-14 ATS. 

The Bulls have won eight straight, including a game against Washington on New Year’s Day. Admittedly, that one was quite close, but this one (in Chicago) won’t be. Ride the red hot Bulls.