Golden State Warriors vs Brooklyn Nets Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 15/12/2023, 18:58  by Joseph King | Modified on 15/12/2023 at 18:59 in NBA Predictions

The 13-11 Brooklyn Nets continue their west coast road trip when they do battle with the struggling 10-14 Golden State Warriors on Saturday. The Nets are eighth in the Eastern Conference although there is just one game separating them from the fifth-place Pacers. Brooklyn was unable to keep up the momentum after a morale boosting 116-112 win over former teammate Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns. Jacque Vaughn’s men would go on to lose their most recent outing 124-101 against the Nuggets as Spencer Dinwiddie led the Nets with only 17 points. This will be Brooklyn's fourth game in their current five game road trip before closing things out against the Jazz on Monday. The Nets are one of the deadliest three-point shooting teams in the league. They rank third in overall three-point percentage (38.3%), making them a tough team to put away. This is evidenced by the fact that the Nets are 5-6 straight up on the road but 7-4 against the spread. 

The Warriors are looking at a lengthy suspension for Draymond Green which is threatening to derail their season even more than it already is. A 121-113 defeat to the Clippers on Thursday means the Dubs have lost four of their last five including their last three on the bounce. It will be even more frustrating as all four losses were by single digits with three of them decided by just a single possession. Golden State historically struggles without Green who acts as the quarterback on the defensive side of the ball. The Warriors are 35-51 without Draymond in the last five seasons and 3-6 without him this season. Their defense, which already ranks only 20th in the league (115.5 opp points allowed per game), surely isn’t going to get better without the former Defensive Player of the Year on the court.