Warriors vs. Spurs Prediction
The news of the death of Erin Popovich, wife of San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich, hit the NBA community hard Wednesday evening. One day later, will San Antonio manage to stay focused and earn a victory without their head coach on the sidelines in Game 3 versus the Golden State Warriors?
Game Snapshot
527 Golden State Warriors at 528 San Antonio Spurs
Thursday, April 19, 2018
AT&T Center at 9:30PM ET
TV: TNT
Public Betting Information
According to oddsmakers at YouWager, the Warriors are listed as a 3.5-point favorite on the spread line. The total sits at 206 points. As of Thursday afternoon, 66 percent of public bets are being placed on visiting Golden State. Check out our NBA Public Betting Page for up-to-date information.
Popovich away from team
Following the death of his wife Wednesday, Popovich will not coach the Spurs tonight as he is mourning Erin’s loss with his family. The Popovich’s were married for four decades before she succumbed to a long illness. San Antonio assistant coach Ettore Messina will handle head coaching duties tonight. The Spurs are in a must-win situation as they find themselves in a 2-0 deficit following the losses at Golden State.
Iguodala as starting point guard working
It was met with some raised eyebrows when Warriors head coach Steve Kerr announced Andre Iguodala would join the starting lineup as point guard, which also gave GSW a starting five that had never even played a single minute on the floor together. But it has worked brilliantly so far. Iguodala had a quiet Game 1, but had a significant impact in Game 2 with 14 points along with seven rebounds and five assists in 28 minutes of the 116-101 victory. Iguodala can also defer to Kevin Durant and even Draymond Green as ball handlers. With the defense and smart offense Iguodala provides, he always manages to provide an impact when he’s on the floor.
NBA Betting Trends
Golden State
The Warriors are 4-1 ATS in their last five meetings in San Antonio. Golden State is 7-2 ATS in the last nine meetings.
San Antonio
San Antonio is 0-4 ATS when its opponent scores 100 or more points in its previous game. The under is 8-3 in the last 11 meetings in San Antonio.
Prediction:
This has been the worst series for me in picking as I went with the Spurs to stay within the number twice at Golden State. But I’m going back to the well again as emotions will be running high in San Antonio and there will be a lot of motivation to win one for their coach. Popovich not being on the bench is a loss as he’s in my opinion the best coach in the NBA, but he has also surrounded himself with top-notch assistants that should be able to minimize his absence. Roll with the home team here and if you have enough guts, maybe make a moneyline bet.
NBA DAILY PREDICTION: SAN ANTONIO SPURS +3.5