NBA Betting Free Picks on Saturday: Philadelphia vs. Utah

Added on Dec 26, 2009 by Jack Thurman in

The Utah Jazz return to Salt Lake City for their only home date in an eight game stretch to face the Philadelphia 76ers, who are embarking on a five game western road trip. The Jazz have been playing reasonably well on the road this year by their admittedly low standards, and–as usual– are one of the stronger home teams in the NBA. We’ll head to the Energy Solutions Arena in Salt Lake City as we get back to a full time NBA basketball betting schedule:

Philadelphia 76ers at Utah Jazz
December 26, 6:05 PM Pacific

Early day after Christmas start time for this game, as Philadelphia is unlikely to be on top of their game after making the long trip from the east coast (they played in Washington on Tuesday). Not that there’s really been much of a ‘top’ to Philadelphia’s game at all this season. The Sixers are 7-21 straight up, have lost 8 of their last 10 and are 3-11 on the road. They’re a more respectable 11-17 against the spread, but that’s still a pretty weak record. Surprisingly, they have a pretty strong road mark at 9-5 ATS but have only covered two of their last eight games overall. They’ll be without Allen Iverson here, as ‘The Answer’ is slated to return from injury/Christmas Break on Monday when the Sixers face the Blazers in Portland.

For all of their faults, the Jazz have done a decent job of taking care of business at the ‘E-Center’ this year, with an 11-4 SU record. Even more impressive is their 10-5 ATS record at home, meaning that when the Jazz win they almost always cover the pointspread. They’ve long been a gift that keeps giving for online betting fans, with a 63-40 ATS record in Salt Lake City over the past three seasons. They’ve also dominated Philadelphia in head to head play, with a 5-0 SU/4-1 ATS mark over the past three seasons.

Utah may be without power forward Paul Milsap in this game, as he took a hard hit against Miami that required 10 stitches and suffered a minor concussion. In this matchup, the Jazz really don’t need him as Carlos Boozer and Andrei Kirilenko should be plenty to deal with a Sixer front line not known for its toughness. Without A.I. in the lineup, the guard play is an even bigger mismatch that will allow the Utah starting tandem of Deron Williams and Ronnie Brewer to dominate. Only home game in a lengthy stretch should see a focused effort for Utah against a team without the weapons to stop them from doing whatever they want.

Bet Utah -8 over Philadelphia