Covers Staff
Last Updated: Sep 26, 2023 12:01 PM ET
Photo By – USA Today
What’s the significance of the number 19.5?
No, it’s not the midwest’s average temperature this winter. It’s the NBA point spread oddsmakers have cooked up for tonight’s game between the Indiana Pacers and the Philadelphia 76ers, losers of 20 in a row.
This number marks the eighth time in 10 games the Sixers have been dogged by double digits. Philadelphia is just 2-5 in those previous seven including a 21-point line it failed to cover in a 125-92 loss at Oklahoma City on March 4. When taken into a historical context, these two lines are amongst the biggest seen in the NBA in 23 years.
The 21-point spread versus the Thunder is just three points shy of the highest NBA spread since 1990 – a 24-point line given to the Dallas Mavericks versus the Phoenix Suns in March 1993. It currently sits behind just eight other massive spreads in that time frame, tied with three other games at 21 points . Monday's 19.5-point spread against Indiana sits tied with five other contests that closed at that number.
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