Sports Handicapper Frank Sawyer's Picks & Predictions

At 7:10 PM ET on Sunday, we will be playing the Charlotte Hornets (574) plus the points versus the Portland Trail Blazers (573). THE SITUATION: Charlotte (27-28) has lost four games in a row after their 130-115 loss at Brooklyn as a 12-point underdog on Friday. Portland (32-23) snapped a two-game losing streak with their 107-106 upset win at San Antonio as a 1.5-point underdog on Friday.

REASONS TO TAKE THE HORNETS PLUS THE POINTS: Charlotte is a M*A*S*H unit right now — but the Trail Blazers will once again be without Damian Lillard tonight as he is out with his hamstring injury. The Hornets allowed the Nets to make 55.3% of their shots which was the worst defensive effort in their last 16 games. But Charlotte has covered the point spread in 9 of their last 12 games after allowing at least 130 points in their last game. The Hornets have also covered the point spread in 11 of their last 14 games after a double-digit loss — and they have covered the point spread in 14 of their last 20 games after a point spread loss. Their loss to the Nets was preceded by a bad 13-point loss at home to Cleveland where they were laying three points. Charlotte has covered the point spread in 38 of their last 60 games after losing two games in a row — and they have covered the point spread in 13 of their last 20 games after suffering two straight double-digit losses. The Hornets are missing three starters in Gordon Hayward, LeMelo Ball, and Malik Monk — and P.J. Washington and Devonte Graham remain questionable with injuries that kept them out against Brooklyn. But this group still has a healthy Terry Rozier and Mykal Bridges — and head coach James Borrego usually gets the most out of his talent. They are 14-5-1 ATS in their last 20 games at home as an underdog. They have also covered the point spread in 14 of their last 20 games with the Total set in the 220s. Portland was without Lillard on Friday in their upset win against the Spurs. But C.J. McCollum and company may suffer an emotional letdown after exceeding expectations without their leader. The Trail Blazers have failed to cover the point spread in 6 of their last 9 games after an upset victory — and they have failed to cover the point spread in 10 of their last 15 games after a win on the road. The Blazers have also failed to cover the point spread in 5 of their last 7 games after a straight-up win — and they have failed to cover the point spread in 5 of their last 6 games after a point spread victory. Portland has also been playing without big man Zach Collins who is out indefinitely with an ankle injury.

FINAL TAKE: The Blazers average 91 shot attempts-per-game — and the Hornets have covered the point spread in 19 of their last 29 games against teams who average at least 88 shots-per-game. After two double-digit losses, the Hornets should play hard tonight — even if they are dealing with a depleted roster. 10* NBA Sunday Night Discounted Deal with the Charlotte Hornets (574) plus the points versus the Portland Trail Blazers (573). Best of luck for us — Frank.

FRANK’S CUTTING ROOM FLOOR FOR SUNDAY, 4/18:

My “Cutting Room Floor” plays are the situations I considered the closest to being worthy of investment but did not make the “final cut” for my official plays today for subscribers. The last play I cut for Sunday afternoon soccer action was Leicester City minus the goal-line versus Southampton. Leicester City has lost two in a row after their 3-2 loss at West Ham in the English Premier League last Sunday. That was a tough-luck loss for the Foxes since they won the expected goals battle by a 1.01-0.88 xG mark. The good news for manager Brendan Rodgers is the return of three players from COVID quarantine as he gets James Maddison, Ayoze Perez, and Hamda Choudhury who has been out for breaking COVID quarantine for most of the month. While Leicester City is fighting for a top-four spot in the EPL table to qualify for the Champions League next year, Southampton is in no-man’s land in 14th place. The Saints have won only four matches in their last 15 games across all competitions. Take Leicester City minus the goal-line. Best of luck — Frank.

Frank Sawyer’s Hollywood Sports DELIVERED their 25* EPL NBC-SN Total of the Month yesterday with the West Ham-Newcastle Over to help further a 9 of 12 (75%) run with their highest-rated 25* plays while improving a 126 of 200 (63%) mark with 25* plays in All-Sports! Frank is on a 71 of 111 (64%) English Premier League mark — and while the FA Cup is not EPL competition, it involves two EPL sides as he furthers his 6 of 7 (86%) Soccer Game of the Month/Year mark with his 25* FA Cup Total of the Year for the Southampton-Leicester City O/U winner on ESPN+ at 1:30 PM ET! DO NOT MISS IT!

At 1:30 PM ET on Sunday, we will be playing Over the Total in the math between Southampton (200405) and Leicester City (200406). THE SITUATION: Southampton reached the Semifinals of the FA Cup with their 3-0 win against Bournemouth on March 20th. Leicester City advanced to the Semifinals of the FA Cup a day later on March 21st with their 3-1 victory against Manchester United. This match will take place on a neutral field at Wembley Stadium.

REASONS TO TAKE OVER THE TOTAL: Southampton is mired in 14th place in the English Premier League table but safe from relegation. Lifting an FA Cup title is the team’s line ambition at this point of the season for Ralph Hassenhuttl’s group. The Saints limp into this match coming off a 3-0 loss at West Brom Albion. Defense has been the problem for this side — they allowed a Baggies team likely destined for relegation to generate 3.07 expected goals (xG). Southampton has allowed 35 goals in their last 15 matches across all competitions. Granted, nine of those goals came in a debacle of a loss to Man United. Still, in their last four matches across all competitions, the Saints have allowed 12 goals. But Southampton has gotten their scoring attack going — they have scored 11 goals in the last five matches across all competitions. Getting Danny Ings healthy and back on the pitch makes a big difference — he has scored 13 goals in 22 matches in all competitions this season. Leicester City has lost two in a row with their 3-2 loss to West Ham last Sunday. The Foxes have allowed six goals in their last three matches in all competitions. Leicester City has scored 12 times in their last five matches. The insertion of Kelechi Iheanacho into the starting XI has provided new energy to the attack. The Nigerian is playing up to as a poacher with Jamie Vardy being relied on for more creativity. But the good news for manager Brendan Rodgers is the return of midfielder James Maddison who has been out for breaking COVID quarantine for most of the month. When Maddison is on the pitch, the Leicester City attack is at its finest since he takes much of the pressure off Vardy.

FINAL TAKE: Both of these teams will deploy their best starting XI for this match since an FA Cup trophy would mark a successful season for both franchises. Southampton’s defensive efforts have lagged since a brief period of glory last summer during Project Restart — but they should keep it competitive with Ings healthy. Expect a higher-scoring match. 25* FA Cup Total of the Year with Over the Total in the math between Southampton (200405) and Leicester City (200406). Best of luck for us — Frank.

FRANK’S CUTTING ROOM FLOOR FOR SUNDAY, 4/18:

My “Cutting Room Floor” plays are the situations I considered the closest to being worthy of investment but did not make the “final cut” for my official plays today for subscribers. The last play I cut for Sunday afternoon is with Over the Total in the game between the New Orleans Pelicans and the New York Knicks. New York (30-27) has won five in a row with their 117-109 win at Dallas on Friday. The Knicks have played 4 of their last 5 games Over the Total after a straight-up win. New York has also played 4 of their last 5 games Over the Total against teams with a losing record. New Orleans (25-31) has lost two in a row with their 117-115 loss at Washington as a 3.5-point favorite on Friday. The Pelicans have played 19 of their last 27 games Over the Total after a point spread loss. These two teams have played 4 of their last 5 meetings Over the Total. Take the Over. Best of luck — Frank.

Frank Sawyer’s Hollywood Sports DELIVERED their 25* EPL NBC-SN Total of the Month yesterday with the West Ham-Newcastle Over to help further a 9 of 12 (75%) run with their highest-rated 25* plays while improving a 126 of 200 (63%) mark with 25* plays in All-Sports! Frank lost his 25* NBA play on the Golden State/Boston Under last night — but he remains on a 25 of 42 (60%) NBA run along with a 38 of 58 (66%) NBA 25* run! Now Frank furthers his 22 of 35 (63%) NBA sides run with his 25* NBA Sunday ESPN Game of the Year! DON’T MISS OUT!

Frank is on a 71 of 111 (64%) English Premier League mark — and while the FA Cup is not EPL competition, it involves two EPL sides as he furthers his 6 of 7 (86%) Soccer Game of the Month/Year mark with his 25* FA Cup Total of the Year for the Southampton-Leicester City O/U winner on ESPN+ at 1:30 PM ET! DO NOT MISS IT!

At 1:10 PM ET on Sunday, we will be playing the New Orleans Pelicans (569) plus (or minus) the point(s) versus the New York Knicks (570). THE SITUATION: New Orleans (25-31) has lost two in a row after their 117-115 upset loss at Washington as a 3.5-point favorite on Friday. New York (30-27) has won five games in a row with their 117-109 upset win at Dallas as a 6.5-point underdog on Friday.

REASONS TO TAKE THE PELICANS PLUS (OR MINUS) THE POINT(S): New Orleans made only 41.2% of their shots on Friday against the Wizards which was the worst shooting effort in their last six games. They also allowed Washington to make 46.9% of their shots which was the highest opponent’s field goal percentage in their last three games. The Pelicans have covered the point spread in 8 of their last 13 games after an upset loss as a road favorite. New Orleans has suffered two straight upset losses as they got stunned by these Knicks at home in the Big Easy by a  116-106 score as a 2.5-point favorite on Wednesday. The Pelicans have covered the point spread 11 of their last 16 games after losing two games in a row — and they have covered the point spread in 5 of their last 6 games after getting upset as the favorite in two straight games. And while New Orleans has only covered the point spread once in their last four games, they have then covered the point spread in 13 of their last 19 games after failing to cover the point spread in three of their last four games. New York made 51.2% of their shots on Friday — including 14 of their 28 shots from 3-point range — in their upset win against the Mavericks. That was the best shooting effort in their last seven games. We had Dallas on Friday — and I am reticent to to immediately fade the Knicks again today. But, I won’t avoid betting against New York simply because of the disappointing results on Friday. The fact remains that (A) the Knicks’ performance on Friday was an outlier, and (B) the evidence for the play-New Orleans side of this equation is strong. And, the evidence remains solid that New York is due for an emotional letdown. They have failed to cover the point spread in 5 of their last 7 games after winning at least three games in a row. They have also failed to cover the point spread in 4 of their last 6 games after pulling off two straight upset wins. And while the Knicks have covered the point spread in eight straight games, they have then failed to cover the point spread in 10 of their last 11 games after covering the point spread in at least seven straight games.

FINAL TAKE: New York will be without Alec Burks who is in COVID quarantine. New Orleans has covered the point spread in 6 of their last 9 games when avenging an upset loss. 25* NBA Sunday ESPN Game of the Year with the New Orleans Pelicans (569) plus (or minus) the point(s) versus the New York Knicks (570). Best of luck for us — Frank.