The Portland Trail Blazers will look to even their Western Conference Finals series against the Golden State Warriors at 1-1 on Thursday night when the teams take the court for Game 2 at Oracle Arena in Oakland. The Blazers were blasted, 116-94, in Game 1 on Tuesday night. Portland got a team-high 19 points from Damian Lillard, but surrendered a combined 62 points to Steph Curry (36 points, nine 3-pointers) and Klay Thompson (26 points). The Blazers never led after the 10:08 mark in the second quarter. Game 2 tipoff is set for 9 p.m. ET. Golden State is favored by seven points in the latest Warriors vs. Blazers odds, while the over-under for total points scored is 219.5. Before making any Warriors vs. Blazers picks of your own, be sure to check out the 2019 NBA playoff predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The model, which simulates every game 10,000 times, is crushing its NBA picks. It entered the conference finals in the 2019 NBA Playoffs with a sterling record on its top-rated picks, returning more than $3,000 in profit to anybody following them this season. And it has been particularly red-hot on its A-rated NBA money line picks, entering the conference finals on a strong 85-61 run. Anybody who has followed it is way up.
Now the model has honed in on Warriors vs. Blazers. We can tell you it is leaning over, and it also says one side of the spread has all the value. That one is available only at SportsLine.
The model has considered that Golden State thoroughly dominated Game 1 from a statistical point of view. The Warriors outshot Portland (50.0 to 36.1 percent), including from beyond the 3-point arc (51.5 to 25.0 percent), and had more assists (30 to 21), steals (13 to five) and blocks (eight to five). Golden State led by at least six points the entire second half.
The model also has factored in the improved play of the Warriors' bench. In the last two games, with Kevin Durant sidelined with a strained right calf, Golden State's reserves have averaged 34.5 points and 15.5 rebounds and shot 54.3 percent from the field. In the previous 11 playoff games, the bench averaged just 21.0 points and 13.3 rebounds and shot 48.7 percent. On Tuesday night, six Warriors played at least 11 minutes off the bench. That'll continue to be a huge factor for Golden State with Durant still on the shelf in Game 2 and a return date not set.
But just because Golden State won Game 1 does not guarantee it will cover the Warriors vs. Blazers spread on Thursday.
Portland has the backcourt to compete with Golden State. Lillard and CJ McCollum combined to average 46.8 points during the regular season, just shy of the Warriors' Curry and Thompson (48.8). Even though the Blazers' backcourt struggled on Tuesday, Lillard and McCollum are capable of much more.
In addition, the model knows that Portland already has beaten Golden State twice this season. The Blazers outlasted the Warriors 110-109 in overtime at Oracle Arena on Dec. 27. Then, on Feb. 13 at the Moda Center, Portland whipped Golden State, 129-107. In that game, the Blazers outscored the Warriors, 35-12, in the fourth quarter.
So who wins Blazers vs. Warriors? And which side of the spread has all the value? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Blazers vs. Warriors spread to jump on Thursday, all from the advanced model that's up more than $3,000 on its top-rated NBA picks.
