The NBA regular season resumes on Thursday night following All-Star Weekend. There are 12 games on tap, and our NBA betting experts are ready with nine best bets. Our experts have player props, spread picks and total bets for tonight's games, including four different bets for Knicks vs. 76ers.
Find our NBA Best Bets and expert picks for Thursday below.
NBA Best Bets Today
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Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NBA Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Knicks vs. 76ers
While it may have flown under the radar, Josh Hart had an absolute dud before the All-Star Break when he put up four points, three rebounds and two assists against the Orlando Magic. I like him over 12.5 rebounds and assists — over 21.5 PRA as well, though just RA has better juice — because Hart's been a near-auto over in recent weeks, and Joel Embiid’s absence provides more rebounding opportunities.
Hart pulled down 10 or more boards in eight straight games and went over 12.5 rebounds plus assists in nine straight instances before his game against the Magic.
Tonight, I'm playing him over 12.5 rebounds plus assists, and I'm sprinkling him to get 10+ boards at +200 and to get a double-double at +360.
Pick: Josh Hart Over 12.5 Rebounds + Assists (-105)
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Knicks vs. 76ers
This is a meeting between two very injured rosters without Joel Embiid, Julius Randle, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson.
Consequently, this will be a battle of attrition and probably more shooting than we are used to from these teams, which makes me lean toward New York’s depth advantage. Jalen Brunson is coming off the 3-point contest, Donte DiVincenzo went into the break on fire, and Bojan Bogdonovic is an elite catch-and-shoot spacer.
This is an easy trip for the Knicks to make as they are rested from the break on this 90-minute ride to Philadelphia. I will back them at +1.5 on the spread for 3/4 of a unit. Because half-points are not important numbers in the NBA, there isn’t a ton of value in beating the line movement.
Pick: Knicks +1.5
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Knicks vs. 76ers
Donte DiVincenzo has scored 20 or more points in seven of eight games he has played without Julius Randle this season.
The Big Ragu has been on an absolute tear, averaging 26.5 points over that stretch, and even with Bojan Bogdanovic probable to play tonight, the Knicks will still be without Randle, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson. Isaiah Hartenstein could also have a minutes restriction as he returns from injury, as he did on January 27 when he played just 15 minutes after two games off. This time he is following three games off and an All-Star Break.
The Knicks will still need DiVincenzo's gunner offense from the perimeter as a complement to his Villanova teammates Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart.
I'd play this to -150 as this may get to 19.5 by tip-off, which I'm still okay with if it's at -110 or better. DiVincenzo is also worth a look at over 3.5 3s.
Pick: Donte DiVincenzo Over 18.5 Points (-135)
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Knicks vs. 76ers
By Chris Baker
I think this total is off by a few points as it is not fully accounting for the massive changes these teams made at the deadline.
The 76ers added Cameron Payne and Buddy Hield to their rotation while subtracting Patrick Beverley. It’s hard to overstate how much of a drastic shift from defense to offense that is as they go from an elite on-ball defender in Beverley to two of the worst defenders in the NBA in Payne and Hield.
The Knicks also added Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks while subtracting Quentin Grimes. New York is already down its best perimeter defender, OG Anunoby, so mostly subpar defenders will be on the perimeter like Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVincenzo, Burks and Bogdanovic.
Josh Hart and Isaiah Hartenstein are effective defenders, but they are unable to defend Tyrese Maxey, Hield and Payne. Ultimately, these teams have become elite offenses following the trade deadline while both are missing some their most impactful defenders. This line should be closer to 230 than 226.5, so I’m very comfortable grabbing over 226.5 here.
Pick: Over 226.5
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Celtics vs. Bulls
By Joe Dellera
Kristaps Porzingis sets up well for this spot against a Bulls team that allows the highest frequency of 3s in the league. Despite this high frequency, their overall 3-point percentage allowed is about league average at 37.2%.
Chicago has been able to mitigate the 3-point damage due to its strong point-of-attack (POA) defense with Alex Caruso, Ayo Dosunmo and Coby White. The Bulls don't allow offensive players to take them off the dribble or while engaged defensively. Rather, Chicago allows catch-and-shoot 3s.
When opponents take zero dribbles, they shoot 38.7% from 3 against Chicago, and overall, Chicago allows the most field goal attempts per game on zero dribbles. While the POA defense is strong, the rotations haven't been as crisp.
Porzingis takes the third-most field goal attempts per game without dribbling the basketball (9.0) with a 63.8% eFG%. He has been excellent from both 2-point and 3-point range on zero dribbles, a shot which comprises 70.1% of his attempts overall.
On the season, Porzingis has exceeded 18.5 points in 57% of games while averaging 20.2 points, and in eight games this season with three or more days of rest, he has averaged 21.4 points per game.
I expect Porzingis to exceed 18.5 points with the best current price at -125 at BetMGM.
Pick: Kristaps Porzingis Over 18.5 Points
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Clippers vs. Thunder
The Clippers and Thunder are two teams that could easily make the Western Conference Finals this season as they both are among the top-three teams in the West.
This should be a fantastic matchup, but I give a slight edge to the Thunder at home, and the home team has won both matchups between these teams so far this season.
The Clippers won when they last faced off, but that could be a good thing for the Thunder, who step things up when they play a team that beat them last time around. Under head coach Mark Daigneault, OKC is 14-4-1 ATS when they lost the previous matchup.
Take the Thunder down to -5.
Pick: Thunder -2
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Wizards vs. Nuggets
By Joe Dellera
This is a better way to back Jokic than just his assists over at 9.5 (+116). His rebounds line is set at 12.5, and his points line is 27.5.
Jokic has been excellent this season, especially at home. He sees an assist spike from 8.4 per game on the road to 9.5 at home with 10+ in 11 of 26 games. In home wins, this climbs to 9.9 per game, and in home wins of 10+ points, it climbs to 10.8 per game with a 62% hit rate.
This is also a Pace-up opportunity as the Wizards play at the fastest Pace in the league with the 27th-Ranked Adjusted Defensive Rating — which is an ideal recipe for offense.
Jokic has recorded a triple-double against every team in the league besides Washington (and Denver), and I expect him to complete the process tonight.
Pick: Nikola Jokic Triple-Double +150
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Hornets vs. Jazz
Vasilije Micić has gone over this in two of three games since becoming a Charlotte Hornet, and having followed his career in Europe, I figured he'd start to ball out in this situation because he's on a team that’s simply searching.
He couldn't crack Oklahoma City's rotation consistently anymore as he wasn’t efficient enough offensively. However, the Hornets are a bad team that needs his help to generate offense.
Micić, a former EuroLeague MVP and champion, should hit over 10.5 points and assists consistently as long as he plays 20 or more minutes per contest as he and Tre Mann elevate while LaMelo Ball is out injured.
Pick: Vasilije Micić Over 10.5 Points + Assists (-130)
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Hornets vs. Jazz
The clearest sharp side on the board seems to be the under in Utah. The Hornets offense has been abysmal without Terry Rozier, and now P.J. Washington is gone as well. Brandon Miller and Miles Bridges will have to carry the offensive load, but they are more individual scorers than playmaking shot creators.
The Jazz also offloaded Simone Fontecchio and Kelly Olynyk at the deadline, two offensive players who provided shooting and spacing (and some passing from Olynyk). Now they start Walker Kessler alongside John Collins, which is a double down on defense
Consequently, we should play some unders before the market fully catches up to this change. I recommend two units at Under 231, 1.5 units at 230.5, one unit at 230 and would skip anything below that.
Pick: Under 231
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