Phoenix Suns at Orlando Magic NBA Betting Predictions

Phoenix Suns at Orlando Magic
Thursday, 11/18/10, 8:00 PM EDT, TV: TNT
Opening Point Spread: Orlando -9
Current Betting Line: Orlando -9.5
Opening Total: 203
Current Total: 205
Current Moneyline: Orlando -570 / Phoenix +470

The Orlando Magic are 9.5-point home favorites in hosting the Phoenix Suns on Thursday night on TNT

Phoenix suffered a 123-96 blowout loss in South Beach last night after collecting back-to-back wins over Western Conference powerhouses Los Angeles and Denver. The Suns really didn’t have a chance in the paint and allowed Heat forward Chris Bosh to score 35 points. “We just never came close to guarding Chris Bosh,” said head coach Alvin Gentry. Don’t expect things to get any easier for this club tonight in Orlando, as it will be playing its third-straight game without the services of starting center Robin Lopez, who is out with a sprained MCL. Phoenix has won nine of the last 12 meetings and will rely heavily on a bench that is outscoring opponents by a 38.9 to 23.7 margin thus far during the 2010-11 campaign. The team is 29-34 ATS as an underdog over the past three years and the NBA lines page has them listed as a big one tonight.

The Suns do hold a 28-13 all-time advantage against the Magic in this series, but that is mainly due to a 16-5 mark in Phoenix. The squad enters tonight’s contest with a 1-2 record on the second night of a back-to-back and will be taking on an Orlando team that hasn’t played since Monday night. Including tonight, nine of the club’s 12 games in the 2010-11 season have been against a playoff team from a season ago. Phoenix has lost two-straight in Orlando with the last win coming on November 10, 2007.

Orlando captured a 89-72 home victory over the Memphis Grizzlies in its last contest and has held opponents to just 90.8 points per game this season. The Magic have held seven teams to 90 points or less and will look to improve their record to 3-1 versus the Western Conference. “I thought our effort was great from top to bottom,” said center Dwight Howard. “What we did on the defensive end was a very positive thing tonight. It’s something we can build on.” The All-Star scored 18 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the contest, while the team out-rebounded Memphis, 47-39. orlando is 0-3 ATS after a win by 10 points or more this season.

The Magic are tired of hearing questions about their shooting woes early in the season, especially head coach Stan Van Gundy. “History tells you that they can shoot the ball and we can’t panic over 10 games,” he commented. “We haven’t shot well, but these guys have a history of shooting well. Guard J.J. Redick’s numbers have been part of the problem, making just 3 of 25 shots from beyond the arc, after shooting 40.5 percent from long distance in 2009-10.