The Phoenix Suns are likely in for a quick series against OKC, as the spread has jumped to 17.5 for tonight. The big concern for Phoenix is their lack of size, as Mark Williams remains questionable with a foot issue. Either way I expect rookie Oso Ighodaro to have minutes similar to game one’s twenty six. He was scoreless but a lot of that had to do with the Suns having to try and shoot themselves back in the game being down by double digits. Ighodaro bounces back, but play this before Williams is ruled out as the extra point in the market will be a no play for me.
Lost in the shuffle of the San Antonio Spurs game one victory was their rookies performance in Dylan Harper. It was his first playoff game, and Harper contributed six points with four rebounds. Prior to the playoffs, Harper had scored double digits in eleven straight games. I look for him to shine enough tonight in the scoring department now that he has his feet wet in the playoffs. Both possible ways the game goes tonight Harper is a Spurs player thats role should not deviate. A blowout he will be on the court in the fourth, and if the Trailblazers push the Spurs tonight I expect Coach Johnson to mix it up with his bench. Play Harper’s over.
The Atlanta Hawks showed their youth in Saturday’s game one against the Knicks. New York used one strong stretch to build a double digit lead that proved to much for the Hawks to overcome. Even with that the spread stayed flat from game one, as Atlanta does have the personnel to match the Knicks. They also did a great job defending Jalen Brunson after the first quarter. All three regular season games were down to the wire, look for that here in game two. Back the Hawks.
Postseason series differ drastically from the regular season. We have already seen that with the Cavaliers dominating game one over Toronto. The Raptors could be in trouble for game two again, but expect the starters to play more minutes in a desperation spot. At worst they need to find something to take back home for games three and four. Scottie Barnes averaged 20 points per game during the season against the Cavaliers, and was right at that in game one with 21 points. He clears his points prop once again in game two.
The Portland Trailblazers dealt with injuries throughout the season, including with Shaedon Sharpe. Sharpe missed over twenty games from his injury on February 6th, to returning right before the postseason. His role now will be off the bench but he has seen a minutes increase each of his last three games. For the first time since February 3rd he scored over double digits in the play-in win over Phoenix. Look for Sharpe to be ready to contribute at a high level whether it’s 20 minutes or 28 tonight against the Spurs. Play his over.
The Minnesota Timberwolves come into game one against Denver well rested. Several starters did not play to conclude the final three games of the season. That can be tough to get back into game flow in a tough road spot like Denver. Look for Ayo Dosunmu to provide a spark off the bench, as he is one of the new pieces that Denver does not have strong intel on, and is ready as he played high minutes to finish the season. Take his over.
A player that may have been overlooked in the Warriors play-in win was Gui Santos. The fourth quarter saw Steph Curry, Draymond Green, Porzingis, and Al Horford all shine. Santos though had an effective game with 20 points. Over his last two matchups he has had seven offensive rebounds. That could be an area tonight we see be a catalyst in helping Santos go over his points prop with a put back or two. Phoenix’s Mark Williams is dealing with a foot issue, and we saw Phoenix have to go small in the second half against Portland. Take Santos points prop over.
The Phoenix Suns have two question marks tonight with both Mark Williams and Grayson Allen questionable. Even if both play it will remain to be seen if they can be effective. Expect Royce O’Neal to be ready for the moment. Throughout the year he has shown a knack of knocking down a couple of quick threes in a span of a few minutes. The books did a good job on this prop as the half point will be key, for his third basket. Worth the risk in my opinion as I see O’Neal playing an extra 4-5 minutes than normal. Take his over.
The Miami Heat have been one of the success stories of Adam Silver implementing the play-in. They went all the way to the NBA Finals just three years ago after securing the eighth seed. A season ago they won two road games in the play-in last year against Atlanta and Chicago. Now they are back in the same tenth spot, playing their third straight play-in road game. That’s not sustainable on continuing to have success. Charlotte after losing the first three matchups to the Heat, blew them out in the final meeting by thirty points. Look for the young team in the Hornets to take out the veteran Heat. Lay the number.
The Charlotte Hornets squandered a golden opportunity to be the eighth seed in the play-in. The downfall started by allowing a 10-0 run to close the third quarter against the Celtics, and they lost again on Friday to the Pistons by 18 points. Both games the second halves were letdowns. Look for Charlotte to get a proper tune up game in for a confidence boost before their play-in matchup against the Heat. Lay the number with the Knicks treating this like a preseason game.
A game that will likely have the lowest handle of today’s slate is Memphis against the Utah Jazz. Utah is a favorite despite losing ten straight games. Just in their last five losses the opposition has increased their scoring each time, with the Pelicans finishing with 156 points Tuesday. In a game filled with reserves in starter roles take the Jazz to in what is their final home game of the season.
The New York Knicks have had the upper hand recently over the Boston Celtics. They won in six games in last year’s conference semi-finals, and have won two out of three in the regular season this year. Both wins were by double digits including handing the Celtics their second worst home loss of the season by twenty two points. An outlier tonight is Jayson Tatum returning to Madison Square Garden for the first time since his achilles injury in game four of last season. That could have a slight impact on his game, but look for the Knicks to take the regular season series 3 games to 1 and cover the spread.
The Brooklyn Nets have surprisingly won consecutive games, and three out of their last five overall. Tonight will mark their sixth straight home game, which I believe can lead to a bit of complacency in a spot against a Pacers team with a worse record overall. Brooklyn has won just three games in a row once this season, and I’ve been impressed with the younger players getting action for the Pacers in Jalen Slawson, Ethan Thompson, and others. Back the Pacers as the road favorite.
The San Antonio Spurs have ruled out both Wemby and Stephon Castle for tonight’s matchup against Portland. Portland’s latest outing was an overtime loss, but against a team in Denver that has the current best win streak in the NBA at nine games. We also have seen this Spurs lineup without Wemby against Portland. This occurred on January 3rd, when Portland handed San Antonio one of their seven home losses on the season. Grab the Trailblazers plus the points.
Late add on the Orlando Magic in one of those wild end of season one-game specific scenarios we tend to get to close out the NBA season. The Minnesota Timberwolves are choosing to rest several starters, which has put them as an unknown in the betting market. I also expect a minutes cap on players like Donte DiVencenzo and Naz Reid. Grab Orlando who is on the upswing with three straight wins and also gets Anthony Black back in the lineup.