The good kind of sinning

Got some extra dough burning a hole in your pocket and aching to feel oh-so-good being bad? Here are some NBA plays I’d consider making tonight:

Timberwolves +4 at Sonics
So the Sonics get punked out by the Clips in their home opener and they’re still giving up 4 to KG’s ‘Wolves? I realize Minny was a bust last year while the Sonics fraudulently lucked their way into 50-win territory, but I see more talent on the Minnesota roster and it played pretty well on opening night. Rashad McCants can shoot any team out of a game but he’s not getting enough minutes to sink the T-Wolves just yet. You’re not just betting on KG here, you’re betting that Seattle minus glue guys like Antonio Daniels and, oh, I don’t know, former coach Nate McMillan are due for a massive backslide.

Magic +3 vs Grizzles
The Magic hung tough vs. Indy, and after watching the Pacers grit it out against Miami last night, I’m convinced Orlando will be dangerous in their own gym. Meanwhile, the Grizzles looked lost and lethargic in their home-opening blowout loss, and I have a feeling that Jerry West’s patented management combo of Alzheimer’s, a dartboard, and asking the grandkids for advice has finally caught up with the Grizz. Dwight Howard will molest Pau Gasol. I like the Magic straight up, but take the points.

Pistons -4 at Celtics
The Flip Saunders era will end badly in Detroit, but it appears to be starting well. Chauncey likes Flip’s offense and it showed on Wednesday. I think the Celts having to go to OT vs the Knicks says more about where Boston is at than the Knickerbockers. They’re awfully young and should be much more dangerous in a few months, but for now, I’ll take the Valvoline crew to git ‘er dun.

Wizards/Knicks under 200
I think the Wiz (+4) will easily punk out the Knicks, but I’m even more confident that these teams will score less than 200 combined points. Washington minus Larry Hughes still looks good, though not offensively dominant. The Knicks will be overly amped, which should help them clamp down on D but may also make for overthrown passes and shots going long. I feel an 87-82 type of game here.

Cavaliers +7.5 at Spurs
Never give LeBron 7.5 points.

We’ll see how I did tomorrow, eh?

"I say, old bean, if you cannot remit payment by sundown, I'm afraid I'll have to lop off your boisenberries."