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Warriors vs. Suns Preview: Can Golden State End the Win Streak?

Action Network betting analyst Tyler Schmidt previews a potential game of the year matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns.

Warriors vs. Suns Odds

Warriors Odds +2.5
Suns Odds -2.5
Over/Under 220.5
Time 10 p.m. ET
TV TNT
Odds via BetMGM. Get up-to-the-minute NBA odds here.

I would classify this Western Conference battle of heavyweights as the best regular season game the league has had to offer so far. The 17-3 Phoenix Suns and the 18-2 Golden State Warriors have the two best records in the league. The next closest team is the Brooklyn Nets who already have six losses.

A lot of eyes will be on this game as it is televised on TNT. There will be a ton of hype around it, so let’s get right into the team analysis of these juggernauts.


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Will Stephen Curry Ever Slow Down?

The Warriors lead the league with an 18-2 record. Their one road loss was against the Charlotte Hornets where they scored 14 points in the fourth quarter and made a season-low nine 3-pointers for the game.

The Dubs will be geared up for this game, particularly Stephen Curry, who has been fantastic and is the current front-runner for the league MVP award. He is averaging 28.6 points per game, tied for the league-lead with his old teammate Kevin Durant.

Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images. Pictured: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors.

Curry is leading the league in 3-pointers made with 5.5 per game, which is also his career-high. He has the lead over the next closest player by 1.5 3s per game, which is just absurd.

The Suns rank 11th in 3-pointers allowed per game, but that isn’t too much of a concern because Curry’s range starts when he steps into an arena. What has been most impressive with the Warriors is they are thriving without Klay Thompson and James Wiseman. Their depth has been incredible.

On the road, the Warriors are 7-1 straight up and have covered six of their eight spreads, while the under has also hit in six of those eight games. They were road underdogs against the Brooklyn Nets and the Los Angeles Lakers. They won both convincingly.

The Warriors have leaned on their defense, which leads the entire league in points allowed per game (100.4) and are the only team with a Defensive Rating below 100 this season (99.4).

Their offense isn’t too bad either ranking second in the league in Offensive Rating. The key to this Warriors team is obviously Curry, but Draymond Green has been very important as well. He is an influential part of their offensive scheme and is a fantastic defender. Green leads the Warriors in rebounds, assists, and blocks this season.

Aside from missing Thompson and Wiseman, the Warriors have mostly avoided the injury bug with the exception of Andre Iguodala. His absence — he’s out tonight with knee soreness — could be more impactful than it appears on the surface.

Among players averaging 20 or more minutes per game and have played in at least 10 games so far, Iguodala leads them all in Defensive Rating with 88.6 and Curry isn’t far behind. It is time to put some respect on this defense.


Can The Suns Make it 17-Straight Wins?

There is not a hotter team in the league than the Suns right now. They have won 16-straight games with a winning margin of 11.5 points per game. They are tied for the 24th longest winning streak in NBA history. Pretty impressive after they started off the season with a 1-3 record.

The Suns have been favored in 18 of their 20 games this season. In those 18 games, 10-8 ATS with the under hitting in 10 of those games as well. The Suns are 8-2 at home this season, but have covered the spread in half of their 10 home games. Not as good as you may think in covering the spread at home. Lastly, the over/under has been a split 50/50 in those 10 games.

The Suns, like the Warriors, also hang their hats on defense. They rank third in Defensive Rating for the season (103.7) and second during their streak (101.2). Last season, when playing at home, the Suns won both games against the Warriors by 20 points. However, this is a completely different Warriors team.

Chris Paul continues to lead the league in assists this season averaging 10.1 per game. This is the first time since the 2015-16 season in which Paul has averaged 10 or more assists per game. His pass-first mentality has been taken to the extreme this season as Paul is averaging a career-low 14.5 points per game while also shooting a career-low 10.7 field goals per game.

Paul has been deferring to Devin Booker who is averaging 23.9 points per game. This is Booker’s six-straight season averaging 22-plus points per game. He is a pure scorer who will draw a lot of attention on that end of the court tonight.

Does Booker have the firepower to keep up with Curry, though? We will have to wait and see. In my opinion, these two have the purest jump shots in the game today and maybe ever. This will be fun to watch.

Warriors-Suns Pick

Both teams are so incredible defensively and nearly just as good offensively. They are both in the top five in Pace this season as well, which makes the total very difficult to predict.

However, there is one thing that has stuck in the back of my head. That would be the switch that Curry can turn on is unlike any other. I just watched “Psycho Steph” as the announcer called him, get a technical foul in their last game and then go absolutely nuclear making three-straight 3-pointers.

There is no player in the league like him. No one can guard him, especially when he gets going. The Suns have a very good defense, led by Paul who is very knowledgeable playing against Curry. I just can’t bet against him right now. Give me the Warriors on the moneyline.

The best value is at BetMGM and PointsBet right now at +115, but make sure to shop around so you get the best number. This line is too close for me to take a side, give me the Warriors.

Pick: Warriors ML (+115)