That was then. This is now. More than halfway through the season, both notions have been proved incorrect. San Antonio (46-9, 34-19-2 ATS) and Chicago (37-16, 31-20-2 ATS) are two of the five best teams in the entire NBA heading into Thursday’s showdown.
The Spurs are No. 1 in the league and the Bulls are fifth, well ahead of Orlando and within two games of both Boston and Miami in the East.
Prior engagement
This is the second of two clashes between San Antonio and Chicago this season. Playing at home on November 17, the Spurs erased 10-point halftime deficit by outscoring the visitors by a ridiculous 37-12 margin in the third quarter. San Antonio held on for a 103-94 victory to cover the 6.5-point spread. Tony Parker scored 21 points, Manu Ginobili added 20 and Tim Duncan had 16 points and 18 boards for the Spurs. Derrick Rose hit 15 of 27 shots and kept the Bulls in it with 33 points.
The Spurs won the rebounding battle 50 to 42, and that could be an even bigger problem for Chicago in this one. Joakim Noah, who had 10 points and 14 boards in the loss, is still out with a thumb injury and will not be back until late February.
Road warriors
Thursday’s contest marks the end of San Antonio’s 2011 “Rodeo Road Trip,” the team’s annual foray away from the AT&T Center, which has been hosting the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo.
For the Spurs, this trip has been one of their best. They are 6-2 through eight games, including an 89-88 win over the Lakers on February 3. A victory over Chicago would better their 6-3 mark in 2008 and would be their best effort since going 8-1 on the trek in 2003.
“We just have to stay focused, that’s going to be the main thing for us,” guard Tony Parker told reporters after Monday’s 102-85 beat down of New Jersey. “Focus on defense. We have a lot of room for improvement. Even if I think we’re on the right track, I think we can do a lot of stuff better and we just have to stay motivated.”
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The Spurs are 6-1 ATS in their last seven road games and 7-0 ATS in their last seven against teams with winning percentages above .600.
The Bulls are 4-0 ATS in their last four home games and 5-0-1 ATS in their last six home games against teams with winning road records.
The under is 14-6 in San Antonio’s last 20 overall and 7-0 in the last seven meetings between the two teams.
The Spurs are 6-2 ATS in their last eight trips to Chicago.
Dallas Mavericks at Phoenix Suns (+1)
The Mavericks and Suns have faced each other only once this season going into Thursday night’s encounter. Playing at home on December 17, Dallas made a mockery of a 7-point spread and led by 21 points after three quarters before coasting to a 106-91 victory.
Phoenix (27-26, 23-28-2) played all but five minutes of the game without Steve Nash, who sustained a neck stinger in the first quarter. The Mavericks dominated with a balanced scoring attack. Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, Caron Butler (now out for the season) and Shawn Marion all scored between 15 and 18 points.
The Mavericks head into this game following a home date with Sacramento on Wednesday night. They are a respectable 7-4 (7-4 ATS) in the second of back-to-back games this season.
Trade winds blowing?
“When healthy, we’re the best team in the league.”
That was Dallas guard Jason Terry to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram earlier this week. Needless to say, Terry does not think the Mavericks (38-16, 29-23-2 ATS) need to do any wheeling and dealing as the NBA trade deadline approaches.
At last season’s deadline, they made a seven-player swap with Washington that brought in Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson. Speaking of Butler, there’s a minor caveat to Terry’s “healthy” comment. These Mavericks will never be completely healthy because Butler is out for the year with a knee injury.
Still, the Mavs have won 11 of their past 12 games and the only blemish in this current span is a 121-120 setback at Denver last Thursday. Dallas will have Roddy Beaubois (foot) in uniform for the first time this season and recently-acquired Peja Stojakovic scored 22 points in a win at Houston Saturday.
“This year, our team’s intact,” Terry continued. “We’re feeling good. We’re coming off a stretch where we won 10 in a row and we’re starting to get healthy. I think that’s the biggest key for us.”
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The Mavericks are 5-1 ATS in their last six road games.
The Suns are 1-4-1 ATS in their last six home games against teams with winning road records.
The over is 6-1 in Dallas’ last seven overall, 6-0 in its last six road games and 6-0 in its last six against the Western Conference. However, the under is 4-1 in Phoenix’s last five overall.
The over is 6-1 in the last seven meeting between the two teams in Phoenix. Both the home team and the favorite is 4-1 ATS in their last five encounters.
