The excitement of Christmas Day in the NBA is over, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t intriguing basketball on the slate for Monday night.
With seven games in action, including a marquee matchup between the Brooklyn Nets and Cleveland Cavaliers, I’m going light today with two picks that I love on this board.
We’re starting with a player prop in the New Orleans Pelicans’ matchup with the Indiana Pacers, and we’re finishing with a spread pick on a Western Conference contest.
Let’s bounce back after a wild Christmas slate:
NBA best bets record to date
NBA best bets today
- Jonas Valanciunas UNDER 30.5 Points, Rebounds and Assists (-120)
- Utah Jazz -4.5 (-110) vs. San Antonio Spurs
Jonas Valanciunas UNDER 30.5 Points, Rebounds and Assists (-120)
Jonas Valanciunas should have a bigger role in the offense with Brandon Ingram out and Zion Williamson listed as doubtful, but this line is too high against a Pacers team that has some elite defense inside.
Myles Turner should make things tough on Valanciunas, who has only cleared this line once in his last 10 games.
On the season, the Pelicans big man is averaging just 13.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. I understand his line rising with key players out, but this is too big of a jump for me to take, especially since he hasn’t been going past this line with Ingram and Zion out recently.
Utah Jazz -4.5 (-110) vs. San Antonio Spurs
The Utah Jazz have not been as good on the road as they have been at home this season, but they have a favorable matchup with the San Antonio Spurs on Monday.
The Jazz come into this game with the No. 4 offense in the NBA, which should give them enough firepower to take down the Spurs’ 30th-ranked defense.
Not only that, but San Antonio has struggled as a home underdog, 6-8 against the spread in that spot this season, losing those games by an average margin of 11.6 points.
The Spurs are also a terrible 4-18 straight up against the Western Conference. This game reminds me a lot of Utah’s matchup last week with the Detroit Pistons on the road, where the Jazz won by 15 points.
Back Utah with ease here.
Find Peter Dewey’s full betting record here.
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