Portland at Miami

The Miami Heat needed a late surge to overcome the Los Angeles Lakers in their last game. It is most difficult for a team that won a championship the prior year to become motivated enough to overcome the huge lines they have to face the following year. Miami is 34-14 on the season and certainly is an elite team, but they have found themselves often coming up short against big numbers as they are just 3-7 ATS in their last 10 when laying -10 or more. Portland finds themselves often a player short, but remains a highly competitive team. They seem to play just well enough to lose. They are 9-11 over their last 20 games, but have been beaten by 10 or more just two times in the 20 games, so they have shown the ability to hang tough every time on the floor. Take the points and go with Portland.