The ultimate tank off takes place on Wednesday night, as the Philadelphia 76ers hit the road to play the Washington Wizards in a meaningless game for the playoff picture, in the final week of the regular season.
Both of these teams are trying to lose to improve their draft lottery odds, and the Wizards actually beat Philly not that long ago, back on March 26.
Washington is fresh off a six-point loss against the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night, but the Sixers are nursing the longest losing streak in the NBA (12 games) heading into this matchup.
With Philly already shutting down several players for the season, it’s hard to see the Sixers snapping that streak before the end of the regular season.
Here’s a breakdown of the odds, players to watch in the prop market and my prediction for this contest between two tanking teams in the East.
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
Spread
Moneyline
Total
76ers Injury Report
Wizards Injury Report
Washington Wizards Best NBA Prop Bet
Rookie guard Bub Carrington is finally starting to see increased volume as a shooter, taking at least 13 shots in each of his last four games, clearing this prop in two of them.
Now, Carrington has a great matchup against the 76ers, who rank 28th in the NBA in defensive rating over their last 10 games. Carrington scored nine points on eight shots in his last matchup with the Sixers, but he’s coming off a 19-shot game on Tuesday.
If he gets that many looks again (he played 43 minutes on Tuesday), he’s an easy bet in this matchup between tanking squads.
I don’t think Philly is going to win a game the rest of the season, and it’s doing everything it can to make sure that happens.
The Sixers are down nine rotation players on Wednesday, and if Quentin Grimes sits, that number will jump to 10.
Washington already beat Philly back in late March, and the Sixers were down double-digits entering the fourth quarter before Washington tried to give them the game with a 29-22 fourth quarter.
The Wizards are playing developmental players, but plenty of them have first-round talent – something Philly can’t say about its current roster.
This isn’t a fun game to bet, but I’ll take the Wizards as home underdogs tonight.
Pick: Wizards Moneyline (+102 at DraftKings)
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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Find Peter Dewey’s NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on BetStamp here.
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