NBA predictions, picks Tuesday: Bucks-Raptors, Nuggets-Trail Blazers

We’re over halfway through this NBA regular season, with the trade deadline still a few weeks away and a handful of teams surviving the stretch before the All-Star break with their stars hindered.

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We’re directly targeting one team with its superstar’s status in question while another has its perennial MVP winner in tow and a favorable midweek matchup on deck on deck.

Here are our favorite bets to make at BetMGM ahead of Tuesday’s light slate of games:

• Raptors +2.5 @ Bucks
• Nuggets -6.5 vs. Trail Blazers

Bucks vs. Raptors prediction (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT)

Something funky is definitely going on with Giannis Antetokounmpo’s right knee, which cost him each of the last three games despite the expectation that he’d play before each of the last two contests.

He didn’t look right even when on the court, either, scoring in single digits in two of his last four games after a 55-point explosion on Jan. 3. He dropped 30 points and 21 rebounds the next day in Toronto – a 3-point overtime win – before his scoring slump play and eventual injury hiatus, during which the Bucks have gone 1-2 outright.

He’s slated to play Tuesday, but I’m skeptical of that optimism and of his potential impact even if he does suit up. The Raptors have quietly won four of their last five games and are dangerous ‘dogs with Milwaukee’s suspect health.

Bucks vs. Raptors pick

Raptors +2.5 (BetMGM)

Nuggets vs. Trail Blazers prediction (9 p.m. ET)

Only two teams own a longer win streak right now than the Nuggets, who have won six straight games (4-1-1 against the spread) and have played like the best team in basketball for the better part of the last month.

Since Dec. 18, Denver is 13-2 overall (10-4-1 ATS) and is outscoring teams by nearly 10 points per 100 possessions – over 1.2 points better than the next-best team in that stretch. During their six-game win streak, the Nuggets have beaten five teams by double-digits, including a 29-point blowout over the Suns and a 31-point drubbing of the Clippers just within the last two weeks.

Betting on the NBA?

That overall run coincided with the ridiculous play of two-time reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, who’s averaging 24.9 points, 12.1 rebounds, 11.2 assists and 1.4 steals on 60.4% shooting in 14 appearances since mid-December. The craziest stat from Jokic’s epic run? He’s had more games with a triple-double (8) than without one (6) in his 14 appearances over that stretch, which doesn’t include a 29/11/8 showing in a 13-point win over Portland on Dec. 23.

That game was one of seven straight games that the Trail Blazers have lost on the road, the most recent a 12-point loss in Toronto before a four-game homestand. I don’t expect a much better showing from Portland in Tuesday’s return to the road – especially against arguably the hottest team in the league that already dominated this matchup a few weeks ago.