Best bets today: Pacers vs. Thunder among SportsLine's top plays for NBA, MLB for June 5

Bettors have the NBA Finals and 13 MLB games to choose from on Thursday, June 5. In the NBA, the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder kick off Game 1 of the NBA Finals, while MLB features the Cleveland Guardians and New York Yankees closing out their three-game series.

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 bet365. bet365 grants new users a bet $5, get $150 in bonus bets offer by using the bonus code SPORTSLINE. See more about the promotion below.

Best NBA bets today

Indiana Pacers at Oklahoma City Thunder (-9.5, 231): 8:30 p.m. ET

It's been a minute since NBA fans saw the Thunder or Pacers in the NBA Finals. Oklahoma City is making its first finals appearance since 2012, while Indiana last played for the title way back in 2000.

This series should be a fascinating matchup between the Thunder's defense and Pacers' offense. OKC leads the playoffs with a 104.7 defensive rating. Meanwhile, Indiana sports an offensive rating of 117.7, which ranks second to only Cleveland. 

Oklahoma City won both meetings in the regular season by six and 21 points. The games were high-scoring with both going over the total. 

Eight SportsLine experts have plays in this game. Get full analysis and expert picks for Pacers-Thunder Game 1 at SportsLine!

Best MLB bets today

Cleveland Guardians at New York Yankees (-265, 8.5): 7:05 p.m. ET

Cleveland and New York will play the rubber match of their three-game series on Thursday. The Yankees won on Tuesday, but the Guardians evened the score in Game 2 by blanking the Bronx Bombers, 4-0.

The Yankees have to feel good about their chances of taking the series with ace Max Fried on the mound. Fried is coming off a rare poor outing where the Dodgers lit him up for six runs over 5.0 innings. Prior to that game, Fried had gone 10 straight starts allowing two runs or fewer. New York is 10-2 in Fried's starts this season. 

The Guardians turn to Slade Cecconi. The 25-year-old is 1-1 with a 5.28 ERA in his three starts. Cecconi is coming off a rough outing against the Angels where he gave up seven hits and five runs in 4.1 innings of work, although Cleveland prevailed to win, 7-5. 

Get full analysis and expert picks for Guardians-Yankees at SportsLine!

Texas Rangers at Tampa Bay Rays (-150, 9): 7:35 p.m. ET

The Rangers come limping into Thursday's series finale against Tampa Bay after dropping the first two games. Texas is now a dismal 9-20 on the road this season. 

The Rangers look to Jack Leiter to turn things around. The 25-year-old is 4-2 on the season, and he has pitched well over his last four starts, allowing just six runs in 23.2 innings. Unfortunately for Leiter and the Rangers, Texas won just two of those four starts. 

Ryan Pepiot will be on the hill for the Rays. Pepiot is 3-5 on the season. However, he is suffering from a lack of run support. Pepiot allowed just nine runs over 36 innings in his six starts, but the Rays went 1-5 in those games.  

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

Today's featured sportsbook promo

bet365 Sportsbook grants new users a bet $5, get $150 in bonus bets by using the bonus code SPORTSLINE. New customers deposit a minimum of $10 in your account and bet $5 on any market. Upon settlement of the bet, the user will receive $150 in bonus bets, regardless of whether or not the bet wins. The bonus bets must be used within seven days from when they hit your account. 

For example, let's say you bet $5 on the Oklahoma City Thunder to beat the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Finals on Thursday. You will receive $150 in bonus bets whether the Thunder win or lose the game. 

bet365 welcome bonus terms and conditions:

• A minimum deposit of $10 is required to claim this promo.
• The bonus is available for new customers only.
• The initial wager must settle within 30 days.
• Bonus bets cannot be cashed out and must be used within seven days of receiving them.

Other games to bet on for Thursday, June 5

MLB: Philadelphia Phillies at Toronto Blue Jays (3:07 p.m. ET)

MLB: New York Mets at Los Angeles Dodgers (4:10 p.m. ET)

MLB: Houston Astros at Pittsburgh Pirates (6:40 p.m. ET)

MLB: Chicago Cubs at Washington Nationals (6:45 p.m. ET)

At SportsLine, you'll get game breakdowns and expert advice on the NBA Finals and all the MLB games slated for Thursday, June 5. There's also the SportsLine Discord channel for even more betting tips. 

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