Brooklyn Nets vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Prediction, Starting Lineups, and Betting Tips

Brooklyn Nets vs. Portland Trail Blazers is the last game of the NBA slate on Jan. 17. It will feature two squads who are going through very different rebuilds following superstar trades the past year.

This will be the second and final meeting between these two teams in the regular season. The game will not be on national television, leaving NBA League Pass as the main way to tune into the action. Tip-off is scheduled for 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Brooklyn Nets vs. Portland Trail Blazers preview

Wednesday will mark the second meeting between these teams this month. Back on Jan. 7, the Portland Trail Blazers picked up a 134-127 win in overtime.

Heading into this rematch, the Brooklyn Nets are jockying for position in the Eastern Conference standings. Their 16-23 record has them tied with the Atlanta Hawks for 10th place. Mikal Bridges and company are going through a tough skid, having lost their last three matchups. On top of that, they have a 2-8 record over their last ten games.

Looking at the Blazers, they are focusing on development after moving on from Damian Lillard in the offseason. While they still have productive veterans on the roster, their top prioirty is helping grow the games of Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe.

Portland enters Wednesday in second-to-last place in the West (10-29). Only the San Antonio Spurs (7-32) have a worse record than them.

Brooklyn Nets vs. Portland Trail Blazers starting lineups

Since these teams just played recently, the starting lineups should be fairly similar. The only major difference could be for the Trail Blazers. Deandre Ayton did not suit up in the first meeting, but is listed as probable for Wednesday's matchup.

Getting Ayton back, Portland's lineup could consist of Scoot Henderson, Toumani Camara, Anfernee Simons, Jerami Grant, and Anyton. For the Nets, their starting lineup will be Spencer Dinwiddie, Cameron Johnson, Mikal Bridges, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Nic Claxton.

Brooklyn Nets vs. Portland Trail Blazers betting tips

Despite being the road team, the Nets enter this matchup as six-point favorites. Given that the Blazers are one of the West's worst teams, that spread is a safe bet.

Moving over to player props, the only guys with scoring lines set are Mikal Bridges (24.5) and Nic Claxton (12.5). Both lines are higher than each player's respective scoring average for the season.

Here is a full breakdown of the betting odds for the matchup:

Spread: Nets -6 (-112), Blazers +6 (-108)

Moneyline: Nets (-245), Blazers (+200)

Over/Under: 223.5 (-110)

Brooklyn Nets vs. Portland Trail Blazers prediction

Looking at the current situations of each team, the Brooklyn Nets should view this game as a chance to get back in the win column. Even though the Portland Trail Blazers won the first meeting, they are squad that is not incentivized to be competitive.

Even though the Nets are in a retooling phase themselves, they still have a group of established players. Guys like Bridges and Cam Johnson should be able to lead their team to victory on the road against a young squad early in a rebuild.