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Depleted Sixers a 3.5-Point Home Underdog for NBA Cup Clash With Magic
By Joe Tansey
Published:
The Sixers have an opportunity to play spoiler in the NBA Cup on Tuesday night.
Riveting stuff, I know.
They’re without Joel Embiid, VJ Edgecombe, Paul George, and Kelly Oubre, and a 3.5-point underdog at BetMGM for their East Group B clash with the Paolo Banchero-less Orlando Magic.
The Sixers already covered as a 6.5-point underdog against the Magic this season, but they’re 1-4 against the spread in their last five games with all the absences.
Orlando needs a win to stay in the hunt for the knockout round. The Magic can win East Group B with a victory in Philly on Tuesday and then another over the Detroit Pistons on Friday. There’s also a chance the Magic compete to be the top second-place team in the East, for which they would need a high point differential, and would have to run up the score against the Sixers.
Nick Nurse’s team is essentially eliminated from the NBA Cup and Tuesday serves as just another November game for them.
Tyrese Maxey remains the best player on the floor in the matchup, and if he’s playing well, the Sixers at least can be competitive. Maxey put up 43 points on the Magic in a win on October 27th. It’s worth noting Oubre and Edgecombe combined for 51 points that night, so things will look much different this time around.
Maxey’s points prop sits at Over/Under 32.5 at bet365. Sure, it’s a high number, but I ask the question – who else is going to score at volume for the Sixers?
Andre Drummond can be effective in the paint and Quentin Grimes is capable of going berserk from three, but that’s about it unless Jared McCain magically goes off for 20 points.
That’s why finding any value in player props is tough. Even Drummond, a strong rebounder, is listed at Over/Under 13.5 boards after his 24-rebound performance against the Miami Heat on Sunday.
If there is a Sixers-centric Same Game Parlay to build for bet365’s Tip Off Tuesday Safety Net Bet, I would go chalky with Maxey 30+ points, Drummond 10+ rebounds and Grimes 3+ threes at +200.
Franz Wagner is the Orlando player to target for player props. He has six straight games of 20+ points against the Sixers. He’s had at least eight rebounds and assists in all of those games as well.
Wagner is averaging 23.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game in November. Most of those games came without Banchero on the floor.
I would target Wagner’s Over 10.5 assists and rebounds at bet365. He’s going to be on the floor a ton, and even if the game is a blowout, he has to be out there to boost Orlando’s point differential.
RE: NJ sportsbook promos and PA betting promos, if you want to go a little crazier with the bet365 Safety Net Bet, I’d offer this six-leg SGP:
Maxey 25+ points, Wagner 20+ points, Drummond 10+ rebounds, Jalen Suggs 5+ assists, Grimes 3+ threes, and Wagner o10.5 A/R to get to +525.
That’s best you can probably get to without reaching, or taking a gamble on which Sixers players play more minutes with four key contributors out.
Joe Tansey writes sports betting posts for Crossing Broad and also covers the Philadelphia Union for his Substack site, Union Soccer Blog.