The Most Important Matchups and Best Bets for Monday’s NBA Slate
Six games remain on tonight’s NBA card as the Spurs-Pacers game was postponed due to the league’s health and safety protocols relating to COVID-19. Before jumping into today’s slate, let’s recap what transpired in the league on Sunday from a betting perspective.
Underdog bettors went 4-4 ATS yesterday to bring their season tally to 229-215-3 (51.6%). Home teams performed well with both home favorites and home underdogs, each finishing with a 3-1 ATS record on the day. For the season, home teams still trail the visitors who are 232-212-3 ATS with a 52.3% cover rate.
Some of the more notable underdog wins include the Pelicans’ rally to force overtime and defeat the Celtics 120-115 after trailing by as many as 13 points in the fourth quarter. The Raptors also pulled off the upset at home against the 76ers as a three-point underdog. Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, the Brooklyn Nets remain the league’s hottest team with their sixth consecutive victory after defeating the Clippers as a 6.5-point underdog.
So what’s in store for today? Will home teams stay hot yet again? Let’s highlight the key matchups and take a look at some picks and predictions.
Key Matchups
It was always going to be a tough ask on a Monday to follow a weekend of compelling NBA matchups up and down the card. Nonetheless, I was able to find one intriguing game tonight, and that would have to be the Phoenix Suns hosting the Portland Trail Blazers.
Both teams come into this matchup as winners of eight of their last ten games, and if the season ended today, they would play one another in the playoffs with Phoenix as the fourth seed and Portland as the fifth seed. Since we have plenty of time remaining in the season, we’ll focus on tonight’s game with the Suns as a six-point home favorite, with the total ticking down to 226.5.
What’s interesting with this matchup is that sharp bettors, for the most part, have decided to stay away. The spread is pretty much flat at -6 across the board with perhaps a slight move to the under based on the early action. In their last four games with the Suns, Portland is 3-1 straight up as the visiting team but 1-3 ATS.
While doing my research, I spotted some more interesting trends: Since last season, the Suns are 4-10 ATS as a home favorite of at least six points and the total has gone over in their last five games against a team with a winning record. The Suns are also 6-1 to the over in their last seven games.
Sum it all up, and I think both teams have plenty of firepower on their rosters, and this matchup has a good chance to come in over the total.
Notable Line Moves
Heat -5 to -7
Wizards-Lakers total 225.5 to 227.5
Betting Breakdowns
Miami Heat vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
Washington Wizards vs. Los Angeles Lakers
Best Bets from the SportsGrid Betting Model
The SportsGrid betting model is keying in on two games tonight. Read more about the model’s angle on the following games below:
Heat vs. Thunder and Hornets vs. Jazz
Player Props
Joe Cervenka sees an edge on a few player props in Monday’s slate of games at FanDuel Sportsbook.