NBA Betting - Western Conference Playoff Power Poll

Now that the Western Conference is finally set, NBA bettors at BetUS Sportsbook get to dig into all the action. The following is a seasonal review of how the West performed against the closing pointspread throughout the entirety of the 2008-09 NBA betting season.

1: Portland Trail Blazers (45-36-1 ATS, 54-28 SU, #4 seed in Western Conference) All of those years of strong draft picks and timely trades finally paid off for the Blazers in ’08-’09. Five of their top six scorers were all acquired via the draft or trade in the L/3 seasons, and the youth of the team will assure that Portland will have a contender for years to come. It was incredibly important for the Blazers to gain the home court advantage, as they went 26-14-1 ATS in the rose Garden this season.

Up Next: Houston Rockets (-4)

2: Denver Nuggets (44-37-1 ATS, 54-28 SU, #2 seed in Western Conference) Detroit’s loss may pay off as Denver’s gain in these next few weeks. The Nuggets successfully ditched the cancer known as Allen Iverson and acquired arguably one of the greatest point guards in the league over the last five years. Save for a half-hearted effort in Portland on the final day of the regular season, the Nuggets have scored at least 100 points in each game since March 9th.

Up Next: New Orleans Hornets (-6.5)

3: Los Angeles Lakers (43-39 ATS, 65-17 SU, #1 seed in Western Conference) It’s not too often that you find a team at -250 to win their conference before the playoffs start, but that’s where the Lakers find themselves after winning 65 games this season. G Kobe Bryant averaged 26.8 points per game this year, but unlike years past, the Lakers have a ton of ways to beat their opposition. LA covered three of its L/4 to close out the regular season and went 3-2-1 ATS in last year’s first round playoff series with the Jazz.

Up Next: Utah Jazz (-11.5)

4: San Antonio Spurs (40-40-2 ATS, 54-28 SU, #3 seed in Western Conference) The Spurs stole their divisional crown on the final day of the regular season with a win over the Hornets paired with a Houston loss to Dallas. G Manu Ginobili is most likely finished for the remainder of the season, and the Spurs only went 3-3 ATS the L/6 games he missed.

Up Next: Dallas Mavericks (-4)

5: Houston Rockets (40-41-1 ATS, 53-29 SU, #5 seed in Western Conference) Houston G Tracy McGrady has never had any playoff success in his career, but perhaps while he’s watching the games in street clothes, his squad has a chance. The Rockets are 17-12 ATS without their superstar and could be a force to be reckoned with even though they missed out on the divisional crown and the #3 seed on the final day of the regular season.

Up Next: Portland Trail Blazers (+4)

6: Dallas Mavericks (40-42 ATS, 50-32 SU, #6 seed in Western Conference) Maybe this will be the year the Mavs make another run towards the NBA title… They did what they needed to do down the stretch to assure themselves of a spot in the postseason, winning seven of their L/9 (5-4 ATS), but clearly have a tough task in front of them. The Spurs are never an easy out in the playoffs, with or without Manu Ginobili.