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Best bets today: Cavaliers-Pacers, Thunder-Nuggets, Stars-Jets and more top plays from SportsLine for May 9

Check out SportsLine's best bets for the NBA, the NHL and MLB for Friday, May 9

ByThomas Casale @TheTomCasalePublished: May 09, 2025 3:56PM UTC . 6 min read

The NBA and NHL playoffs continue Friday with two games each, meaning bettors have no shortage of postseason action to enjoy. As usual, Friday also brings a full 15-game MLB slate. In total, that's 19 games' worth of spreads, totals, money lines and props to sift through. Where to begin?

Below, we highlight the top betting opportunities with links to full game analysis and picks throughout the article while providing the top betting tips for today's matchups.

There is also a link to the best sportsbook promotion today from Fanatics Sportsbook. Fanatics offers players up to $1,000 in "No Sweat Bets" over their first 10 days with the platform. See more about the promotion below, and make sure to also check out all the best betting apps and top sportsbook promos.

Best NBA bets today

Cleveland Cavaliers at Indiana Pacers (+2.5, 229.5) 7:30 p.m. ET

Cleveland is the top seed in the Eastern Conference, but the Cavaliers find themselves down 0-2 after losing the first two games of the series at home. The Cavs now face a must-win game on Friday, although it won't be easy. Indiana has been Cleveland's kryptonite recently, winning four straight meetings and seven of 10 overall.

If the Cavaliers are going to get back into the series, they must play better defensively. In their last four wins over Cleveland, Indiana averaged 120 points. The Cavs also need to get healthy. Darius Garland (toe), De'Andre Hunter (thumb) and Evan Mobley (ankle) all missed Game 2 with injuries.

These two teams typically play higher scoring games when they get together, with seven of the last 10 meetings going Over.

Alex Selesnick, who is 133-95 in his last 228 NBA player prop picks, has two plays in this game. Get full analysis and expert picks for Cavaliers-Pacers Game 3 at SportsLine!

Oklahoma City Thunder at Denver Nuggets (+4.5, 233.5) 10:00 p.m. ET

Oklahoma City let the first game of the series slip away at home but came back with a vengeance on Wednesday. The Thunder rolled Denver in Game 2, 149-106, behind 34 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. OKC also did a much better job defensively and on the boards. After getting out-rebounded by 20 in the first game, the Thunder finished +6 on Wednesday.

The Nuggets will look to get Nikola Jokic going again at home. The Joker exploded for 42 points and 22 rebounds in the opener, but was held to 17 and eight in Game 2.

OKC has had success playing in Denver, winning three of the last four meetings at Ball Arena, with three of those games going Under.

Mike Barner, who is 158-107 in his last 265 NBA player prop picks, has two plays in this game. Get full analysis and expert picks for Thunder-Nuggets Game 3 at SportsLine!

Best NHL bets today

Dallas Stars at Winnipeg Jets (-118, 5.5) 9:30 p.m. ET

The Jets have been dominant at home this season but Dallas found a way to break through and steal a road win in Game 1. The game was pretty even across the board, although Winnipeg outshot the Stars, 31-24. The difference was Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger, who stopped 29 of 31 shots on goal.

Even with the loss, Winnipeg has to feel good about its chances to even the series on home ice, where the Jets are 34-8-4 this season. With the first game ending 3-2, nine of the last 10 meetings have now gone under the total.

Matt Severance, who is 140-67-8 in his last 215 NHL picks, has a play for this game! Get full analysis and expert picks for Stars-Jets Game 2 at SportsLine!

Best MLB bets today

Texas Rangers at Detroit Tigers (-250, 7.5) 6:40 p.m. ET

Two teams with World Series aspirations meet on Friday when Texas and Detroit face off. The Tigers hold the best record in the American League at 25-13, while the Rangers have slipped to 18-20 after going 3-7 over their last 10 games.

Detroit will turn to ace Tarik Skubal. The left-hander has been lights out in his last five starts, allowing just three runs over 30 innings. The Tigers won four of those five games.

Texas hands the ball to Patrick Corbin. While not quite as impressive at Skubal, Corbin has also been in top form recently, giving up six runs in his last 20.2 innings of work.

After hammering Colorado by a combined 21-3 in a double-header on Thursday, the Tigers have gone over the total in nine of their last 10 games.

Get full analysis and expert picks for Rangers-Tigers at SportsLine!

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To maximize the full value of the promo, a customer would need to repeat $100 bets for the first 10 days after creating a new account. The bonus bets must be used within seven days or they will expire.

Fanatics Sportsbook promo code terms and conditions:

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Other games to bet on for Friday, May 9

Over at SportsLine, you'll get top-notch analysis for every major game on Thursday, including game breakdowns and expert advice. The SportsLine Discord channel is also available for bettors to join to get more insights.