The Miami Heat will be looking to be a little kinder to their supporters on the NBA betting lines this week as they head west for road games against the Warriors, Clippers, and Nuggets.
The Heat have started the season with an 8-1 straight up record, but they have just a modest five victories against the spread over those nine contests. OVER bettors have had an easier time with the Heat this year, as the OVER/UNDER for their games is 6-3.
Miami will first be at Golden State for a game against the Warriors on Tuesday night before taking on the Clippers at the Staples Center on Wednesday night. The team's Western swing then comes to an end on Friday night against the Nuggets in Denver.
The Heat and Nuggets split their two meetings last season, with Denver winning 130-102 at home as a 2-point favorite in January and Miami returning the favor with a 103-98 win as an 8-point home favorite in March. The status of Dwyane Wade (day-to-day, sore foot) will determine the lines for the Heat this week at Bovada's online sportsbook.
The Clippers' game against the Heat on Wednesday night will be the second in two days for the team, as they'll be in Portland on Tuesday night to take on the Trail Blazers. Blake Griffin and company will then have a showdown game against Kobe Bryant and the Lakers in a marquee NBA betting matchup on Saturday night.
The Clippers head into action this week at 4-2 straight up and 3-3 against the spread, with the offseason addition of Chris Paul paying dividends. Paul's presence on the Clippers' roster this year also makes their previous poor history against the Lakers almost moot; the Clippers were 3-7 straight up in their last 10 games against the Lakers, although they did also manage to cover the spread in eight of those contests.
The Lakers have a busier week ahead of their meeting with the Clippers, as they'll host the Suns on Tuesday, travel to Utah to play the Jazz on Wednesday, and then head back home to play the Cavaliers on Friday. Cleveland is 7-3 both straight up and against the spread in its past 10 games against the Lakers, but they also had LeBron James on their roster for most of those matchups.
Heading into this week the Heat are the favorites at 8/5 odds at Bovada's online sportsbook to win the NBA championship this season. The Lakers are at 15/2 odds on that list, while the Clippers are sitting at heady (for them) odds of 18/1 to claim the title.