Washington Wizards vs. Orlando Magic: 3 Best Bets

The Orlando Magic host to the Washington Wizards tonight, and as expected, Orlando is heavily favored. The Magic continues its tear this season, riding a seven-game win streak on the way to the Eastern Conference’s second-seed.

The Wizards are a different story. In a way, they too are exceeding expectations, but only because they are not the worst team in the league. That honor goes to the Detroit Pistons, who the Wizards beat in Detroit by 19 points on Monday.

Usually, when a team is coming off a win before playing Orlando, we get cautious with our picks. Tonight, that won’t be the case as the Wizards played a “minor league” team. They’re still bad, and most importantly, seemingly unable to even start a hot streak.

Orlando will once again be without Markelle Fultz and Wendell Carter Jr. Washington has Delon Wright and Ryan Rollins on the injury report. With that being said, let’s look at the lines and picks, courtesy of SI Sportsbook.

The Lines

Point spread: Wizards +10.5 (-118)/Magic -10.5 (-105)

Moneyline: Wizards (+330)/Magic (-500)

Over/under: 233.5

Our Picks

Team pick: Magic -10.5 (-105)

Seven of Washington’s 13 losses have been by 11 points or more. They just tend to get blown out, as most bad teams do. The Magic have won six games by this point margin, so they dish out their fair share of blowouts. Usually, when a team is coming off a win like the Wizards are, we try to give them some credit. However, after their earlier two wins, they lost by 19 and seven. Jordan Poole is incapable of getting hot, and the Magic will shut down Kyle Kuzma.

Opponent pick: Jordan Poole UNDER 17.5 points (-118)

Poole, a three-point specialist, is shooting 28 percent from deep. He averages 17.3 points per game as the second option, which is bad. He is going up against the Magic’s stifling defense, which does not bode well for him. This highlight sums up how his season has gone, and that was against Detroit. Ausar Thompson is a good player, but that shouldn’t be happening.

'It's Really Special': Banchero Wins Eastern Conference Player of the Week

Safe pick: Goga Bitadze OVER 9.5 points (-118)

Ready to hear how the sausage is made? When determining player props, I tend to look at where Orlando’s opponent ranks in points allowed, points in the paint allowed, and rebounds allowed. If they allow a lot of rebounds, take the over on a player’s boards. If they allow a lot of points in the paint, take Paolo Banchero’s over. If they allow a lot of points period, take a backcourt player’s over. The Wizards are 29th in points allowed, 29th in points in the paint allowed, and dead last in rebounds allowed. Pick any player prop you want. I like Goga, so I picked Goga, but feel free to pick whoever you want for tonight’s game.