NBA Betting Tips: Bucks looking to usher in new era

Rivals week continues in the world of the NBA, with eight more matches coming our way on Wednesday night. We've picked out our best bets for the upcoming games.

Grizzlies @ Heat - Heat (-9.5) @ 10/11

The Miami Heat have cooled down in recent weeks and they're looking to pull through a slump here after a heartbreaking 109-108 defeat to Atlanta, as well as blowout losses to Toronto and Orlando.

Miami have scored less than their season average of 110.9 points per game in each of the last six outings, and they've looked to address that scoring problem by trading for Terry Rozier from Charlotte.

Memphis will feel like they can't catch a break at the moment, after struggling in the early parts of the season due to star guard Ja Morant serving a 25-game suspension. Morant returned on December 19, and the Grizzlies went 9-3 in the games that he played, but a shoulder injury requiring surgery shut him down for the season on January 7. Memphis have gone 4-4 in the games that have followed.

I think this is the perfect opportunity for Miami to get out of their slump against a Memphis team decimated by injuries.

Cavaliers @ Bucks - Bucks (-6.5) @ 5/6

This game will usher in a new era for the Milwaukee Bucks after they made a change on the coaching bench on Tuesday. Adrian Griffin has been dismissed, and Doc Rivers, who won a championship as the head coach of the Boston Celtics in 2008, is his replacement.

This decision comes after the Bucks played their second consecutive game in Detroit against the Pistons on Monday, winning 122-113 to improve to 30-13 on the season. However, recent reports suggested that Griffin had begun to lose the locker room, and support from star players.

Meanwhile, the Cavs are on a nice win-streak of their own heading into this game, as they took down Orlando on Monday to win their eighth consecutive match.

I could see this game going either way to be honest, but I believe there will be a 'new manager bounce' for Milwaukee, and there will be motivation to impress Coach Rivers.

Suns @ Mavericks - Mavericks @ EVS

A heavyweight clash in the Western Conference takes place on Wednesday night in Texas.

The Suns fell one game below .500 when they lost by 14 points against Dallas on Christmas Day, but they find themselves in a much better position coming into Wednesday's matchup.

Phoenix's 115-113 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Monday marked their sixth-straight, as well as improving their record to 11-3 across their past 14 outings. Kevin Durant has scored at least 40 points in back-to-back games for the Suns, and he'll take some stopping here.

The Mavericks are looking to bounce back from a 119-110 loss to the Boston Celtics, but they also have plenty of offensive power in Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. The former is averaging 33.6 points per game and had 50 in Dallas' win over Phoenix last month.

A glance at the form book will suggest that the Suns will cover, which may well be the case, but I'm going to take Dallas on the money line. The key statistic for me is that Dallas have won eight of their past 11 at home following a loss.

Check out the rest of our NBA Betting Tips here.