Daily Sports Betting Preview 8/11/2020: NBA, WTA Lexington, MLB

• At -3, the Portland Trail Blazers are surprising favorites against the Dallas Mavericks.
• Venus Williams is a 2-game underdog against Victoria Azarenka.
• The New York Yankees have -150 odds to win against the Atlanta Braves.

LAS VEGAS – Welcome to the Daily Sports Betting Preview on this Tuesday morning.

Today’s Preview runs the gamut of sports, starting with the NBA, as the Portland Trail Blazers take on the Dallas Mavericks.

Then, in the world of Tennis, Venus Williams faces off against Victoria Azarenka, in a showdown of former Grand Slam champions.

Finally, in MLB, the New York Yankees face off against the Atlanta Braves.

There’s a lot to cover, so let’s get started!

NBA Betting

The Portland Trail Blazers have been something of the talk of the bubble. Damian Lillard, especially, has been making headlines both on and off the court.

Luka Doncic has kept his headline making to the court so far, and is set to go head to head with Dame Time in tonight’s matchup.

The Mavericks are sitting as the seventh seed in the Western Conference, with a record of 43-30, while the Blazers are half a game back of the eighth seed, at 33-39.

In other words, the Blazers are playing for their lives, and the Mavericks are pretty much locked in.

The odds are a bit weird here. The Blazers do have a lot more to play for, and it wouldn’t be shocking to see Dallas resting a player of Doncic’s caliber for the playoffs.

That said, as of now, Doncic is scheduled to play, and there wouldn’t be a reason to shut him down except for rest.

However, the only real explanation for Portland - a team that has been dramatically worse than Dallas throughout the season - being favored here is the expectation of limited Doncic time.

Do the online sportsbooks know something that hasn’t been announced? Are they simply assuming that Dallas will limit his play?

There’s not really a world (where Luka plays his normal minutes) in which the Blazers should have an edge in this matchup, and yet, they are favored by three points here.

This is definitely a line to keep an eye on in the hours leading up to the game, as more information trickles out.

The NBA game starts at 6:40 p.m. EST, so make sure bets are in by then.

WTA Tennis Betting

The WTA’s weekly tournaments have resumed, and WTA Lexington is ready to kick off

There are a couple great matches to watch today, but one stands head and shoulders above the rest - Venus Williams vs. Victoria Azarenka.

Long time tennis bettors will be delighted with this matchup, which pits former Grand Slam champions against each other.

The two are well on the backside of their careers at this point, but that hasn’t stopped them from putting on great matches in the past.

The two are some of the greatest WTA competitors of all time, and while they might be on the downswing, they should still be able to perform.

This matchup seems to favor Azarenka, although very mildly.

Williams is currently ranked 67th in the world, a far cry from her former elite status, while Azarenka is 58th, slightly edging out Williams.

The spread is similarly slight - basically, this line looks as if it was constructed by looking at the two women’s relative rankings and age.

In terms of age, Williams is 40, while Azarenka is 31 - a stark contrast. Azarenka should be the better of the two, as her issues have come not necessarily from aging, but from motivation and injury.

In other words, there is reason to believe that Azarenka still has that championship level play inside her, although whether or not it all comes together for her is another question entirely.

Regardless, this match is a treat to long time tennis fans, and while Williams does hold the head to head record in the matchup (5-2), this could be a chance for Azarenka to get a mark in her favor.

MLB Betting

The New York Yankees are cruising, leading the AL East despite cooling off from their improbably hot start.

Their record of 10-6 puts them third in the AL overall, behind the Minnesota Twins and the Oakland Athletics.

Today, they face off against the Atlanta Braves, a team that was tipped to be a dark horse World Series contender this year.

The Braves are in a weird spot right now - they have an 11-7 record, but it’s only good for second place behind the...Miami Marlins?

The COVID-19 ridden Miami Marlins are leading the NL East right now, and have played a full eight games less than the Braves.

The basis on which the Marlins lead the East is their winning percentage - at 7-3, they have a .700 winning percentage.

That said, the Braves can fairly reasonably expect this level of performance from the Marlins to fall off, leaving them comfortably in the driver’s seat in the NL East.

This matchup against the Yankees is important, however - in a shortened regular season, the chance to test yourself against a playoff team always matters.

The Yankees are favorites, as would have been expected before the season. It’s worth noting that they’ve lost three of their last four games.

Seasoned MLB bettors would also note that the Yankees have been especially questionable when ace pitcher Gerrit Cole is not on the mound.

Today is one of those days - the Yankees are sending Jordan Montgomery to the mound, while the Braves answer with Touki Toussaint.

Montgomery is part of that crew of Yankees pitchers that have not been very good this season, so keep an eye on that.

The game should be a good one, with opportunities for both sides to make big plays.

Happy Betting!