NBA Preview and Picks For Sunday, 11/1

November is here and with it comes early NBA basketball on Sunday. Today is going to be huge for all NFL betting, too, but it’s fun to have some NBA action on the side. Even better is it gets going at 2:00 pm ET, so you can follow along with two fun sports for pretty much the entire day. In fact, with the NFL’s London game kicking off earlier this morning, you literally can be entertained by football and basketball from 9:30 am until midnight.

Sunday is officially awesome.

It’ll be even better if you can win some cash, right? Our NBA picks were rock solid again on Saturday night, as we went a solid 4-2 on the night (25-13 on the season). In our defense, the Knicks reverted back to their awesome ways from Wednesday’s opener. They’re impossible to figure out so far. Also, Portland fell at home to the Suns, who they faced (and lost to) in back-to-back nights. Sad, but true.

The story of Saturday and inevitably the whole weekend was Stephen Curry’s insane 53-point performance. Something tells me both James Harden and Russell Westbrook are about to beast out on Sunday. Keep that in mind as we go over tonight’s games:

Hawks @ Hornets

The first game of Sunday sounds off in just a couple of hours, but it shouldn’t be a difficult call. Kyle Korver should return to the lineup after resting his ankle the other day, while Atlanta is simply the better squad. Playing in Charlotte could bring trouble, but Charlotte’s two best players – Kemba Walker and Al Jefferson – could easily get stifled by Atlanta’s tough defense. I think it’s close just like the matchup we saw in Atlanta between these two on Friday, but I still like the Hawks.

Pick: Hawks 99, Hornets 93

Spurs @ Celtics

San Antonio lost a tough road opener to OKC and then bounced back with a big win. I like them to win again even though they’re on the road, as Boston’s bigs won’t be able to handle Tim Duncan and LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard has been a beast.

Pick: Spurs 97, Celtics 94

Bucks @ Raptors

Milwaukee looked pretty good in a loss to the Wizards the other day but their defenses has been non-existent. Toronto, meanwhile, has looked fluid on offense and plays this one at home. The Bucks could stage the upset, but I’m not seeing it tonight.

Pick: Raps 106, Bucks 102

Rockets @ Heat

Dwight Howard is out due to rest and a healthy Miami squad could be trouble at home. That being said, Houston is 0-2 and is going to figure it out eventually. That, and James Harden has been woefully off. I think he finds his shot in a win tonight to keep the Rockets from falling to 0-3.

Pick: Rockets 108, Heat 100

Nuggets @ Thunder

Russell Westbrook. That is all.

Pick: Thunder 109, Nuggets 103

Magic @ Bulls

Orlando is 0-2 but has been quite a formidable out so far this year. They lost to Washington by one and then took it to the Thunder for two overtimes. I love their talent and grit and fully expect them to make this a game, but they keep running into betters teams at the wrong moment. I don’t think they get their first win of the season on the road against the Bulls.

Pick: Bulls 111, Magic 106

Mavs @ Lakers

There will be no defense in this game, as Dallas has no true stoppers and the Lakers are just getting demolished on the defensive end this year. Chandler Parsons could make his season debut in this one and Wes Matthews should also be back (rest), while L.A. is healthy but just not very good. I think it’s closer than we’d expect and there is going to be a ton of offense, but I’d be relatively shocked if the Lakers handed Dallas their second loss of the season.

Pick: Mavs 117, Lakers 114