Munaf Manji and Mackenzie Rivers talk NBA betting for this weekend.
The NBA pod opens with Munaf Manji and Mackenzie Rivers running through key injuries and early-season trends, starting with Jalen Brunson’s grade-one ankle sprain and Mack’s view that his value to the line has dipped as New York evolves beyond a Brunson-centric offense. They discuss the Hawks thriving defensively without Trae Young and whether the Knicks can mirror that dynamic with Bridges and Anunoby taking on more facilitation. Paolo Banchero’s groin issue is next, with Mack noting the timing hurts Orlando just as its offense was improving. They touch on LeBron’s return to a Lakers team that’s started well behind Luka and Austin Reaves, but Mack doubts LA’s true strength given their soft schedule and negative net rating. The Clippers’ bleak outlook follows: Beal’s season-ending injury, Kawhi’s worrisome foot-ankle-tendon chain, poor roster construction, and Mack’s three-point downgrade leading him to think they’ll miss the playoffs. Munaf notes LA’s 3–8 start and wonders if they’ll eventually blow it up; Mack doubts the trade market would give them meaningful return. They then shift to the league’s three one-win teams — Brooklyn, Indiana, and Washington — with Indiana’s mountain of guard injuries dragging them down, Brooklyn being exactly as bad as projected, and Washington playing an absurd pace that inflates opponent scoring and creates easy team-total overs. Discussion moves to Houston’s elite but low-pace offense and how fast-playing opponents, like Washington, artificially boost Houston’s scoring ceiling. They revisit the firing of Mavs GM Nico Harrison after the controversial Luka-for-AD trade; both hosts believe the move likely came from ownership rather than the front office, noting how illogical the trade was on basketball grounds. Munaf and Mack then debate Mack’s question of the week: Would you take OKC and Denver versus the field to win the title? Mack argues the betting market undervalues this combo, giving them ~43% implied odds, while he thinks OKC and Denver are clearly the two best teams, with OKC even better than last year despite missing Jalen Williams and SGA playing at a historic efficiency level, and Denver pairing elite cohesion with Jokic’s playoff elevation. They consider the Rockets as the next-best Western challenger and view the Warriors as dangerously thin behind Curry. The Timberwolves get credit for consistently battling Denver with Gobert’s Jokic defense, while the Spurs’ young core remains too inexperienced to threaten top teams. They preview Lakers–Bucks with both on a back-to-back, leaning Lakers due to better rhythm and the disruption of Giannis returning mid-stride, and then Nuggets–Wolves, where Mack prefers Minnesota as a home dog given Denver’s soft early schedule and Minnesota’s matchup strengths. The pod wraps with best bets: Mack taking OKC to win the title at +210, citing market inertia, and Munaf taking Clippers to miss the playoffs at plus money given age, injuries, poor construction, and likely sell-off potential, before closing with brief notes on Phoenix’s strong start despite injuries and plans for more game-focused pods ahead.

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