Dallas at Portland

Dallas finally got its first win, and Portland has yet to lose at home. It is kind of ironic at this early stage we see Portland coming in at 4-2, and Dallas 1-4. We think most would agree these records look opposite of what one might expect. Portland is coming off a big win where they were down 27, and rallied to squeeze out a 1 point victory. Dallas has had trouble putting the ball in the basket, and it took a game against defenseless Phoenix to put some points up. Portland has had similar problems, and they scored well vs another run and gun, no defense team in Seattle. A look at these teams without those games which skew the total stats at this early stage, and Dallas has managed just 89 points a game, and Portland just 91.8. Dallas seems to be having trouble getting into their offense. Last year 66% of their shot selection were jump shots, this year they stand at 73%, one of the highest totals in the league. Portlands lack of scoring is more subject to style, attempting t o shorten games to hide their inefficiencies. All these factor into a game that should be a low scoring affair. The history, and trends back these current thoughts as well. Dallas has played 29 of 36 UNDERS vs the Northwest, while Portland has played 22 of 30 UNDERS vs the Southwest. The last 8 meetings between these teams have resulted in 7 of 8 going UNDER. The 7 UNDERS were by an average of over 10 points a game under the total. It comes at a good time because there is line value after Dallas looks like they have it going coming off a 119 point game vs Phoenix, but that is no measure of what takes place tonight.