The Monday NBA best bets column wasn’t in the holiday spirit, a tough 0-2 slate.
With a bunch of games on the schedule I’m rolling with one spread pick and two player props on some veterans that we’re fading to get back on track.
There are a bunch of great matchups on Tuesday, especially with some Western Conference contenders (Dallas, Memphis, Phoenix and Denver) playing some tough matchups.
Let’s turn things around with a 3-0 night. Here are the picks:
NBA best bets record to date:
NBA best bets today
- Orlando Magic -3 (-110) vs. Los Angeles Lakers
- Klay Thompson UNDER 4.5 3-Pointers (-145)
- Al Horford UNDER 6.5 Rebounds (-130)
Orlando Magic -3 (-110) vs. Los Angeles Lakers
The Orlando Magic have covered the spread in 10 consecutive games heading into Tuesday’s home matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers.
LeBron James and the Lakers have lost four straight games, and they are struggling mightily with Anthony Davis out of the lineup with a foot injury. L.A. is just 2-6 straight up in the eight games that Davis has missed this season.
Over the last 10 games, Orlando ranks fifth in the NBA in net rating, playing the No. 7 offense and No. 5 defense in the league. The team has totally flipped the script after a terrible start to the 2022-23 campaign.
Paolo Banchero’s return from injury has helped propel that, and the Magic have been much better than the Lakers (25th in net rating) over this stretch.
To make matters worse for L.A., it is just 3-12 against the spread this season as a road underdog. This is a short enough line where I’ll back Orlando to stay hot at home.
Klay Thompson UNDER 4.5 3-Pointers (-145)
Klay Thompson has to carry a bigger scoring load for the Golden State Warriors with Steph Curry out of the lineup, but I’m not sold on him clearing this prop line against the Charlotte Hornets.
The Hornets are allowing a little over 12 3-pointers per game this season, but Thompson has gone over 4.5 treys in just seven of his 27 games in the 2022-23 campaign.
The attempts really haven’t gone down for Klay (9.6 3s attempted per game over his last 11 games), but he’s averaging 3.6 made 3s per game on the season.
Yes, we have to lay a little juice on the UNDER here, but it’s the right play until Thompson starts putting up games with 5 or more 3-balls with much more consistency.
Al Horford UNDER 6.5 Rebounds (-130)
Al Horford has been an under machine on his rebounds prop for the Boston Celtics, grabbing six or fewer boards in nine of his last 10 games and clearing this number just seven times in 25 games.
Now, he and the Celtics face the No. 1 rebounding team in the NBA, the Houston Rockets as 14.5-point favorites.
Not only does Houston dominate on the glass, but it’s also in a back-to-back, which signals to me that this game could get out of hand quick.
I don’t want to lay the 14.5 points with Boston, but a blowout would certainly shorten Horford’s minutes. He’s an ideal fade candidate on Tuesday.
Find Peter Dewey’s full betting record here.
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