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NBA Picks, Betting Trends: DraftKings Sportsbook Odds, Basketball Best Bets, Predictions for May 18

Julian Edlow provides NBA betting trends along with his best bets on DraftKings Sportsbook for May 18.

NBA: Golden State Warriors at Dallas Mavericks Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Follow along on Twitter (@julianedlow) for any potential updates — things can always change with lineup moves leading up to tipoff. Here’s what jumps out to me on DraftKings Sportsbook.

All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.


Per usual, I’ll put everything official up on Twitter that I bet on personally. This is a betting guide for this NBA card, and anything I’ve actually bet will include a unit amount.


Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors

Game X/Series Double Result: GSW wins Game 1/GSW wins Series (-125) — 1-unit

I like the Warriors in this series, but I don’t feel comfortable adding to a steep series price, or laying any games on a series spread — we want that potential Game 7 in our back pocket. Fortunately, we are in a good spot with the Warriors if you tailed along on this play for them to win the Western Conference at +175.

With that play in pocket, I don’t want to be too aggressive adding here. But I really like the spot for Golden State in Game 1, and assuming they win, we then have 2.25 units riding on them to win the series to win 2.75 units. We can then come back at hit Dallas at a pretty solid price if we want to create a hedging opportunity prior to Game 2.

Luka Doncic will have spectacular moments in this series, but I’m not sure that even at his best he will be enough to get past the combination of talent the Warriors present. But even if Dallas does win the series, I expect it to be by digging out of a hole and making adjustments like it did in the last round. Hedging opportunities should be there.


2022 NBA Draft

No. 1 Overall Pick: Jabari Smith (-125) — 1-unit

The NBA Draft Lottery was held on Tuesday night, with the Orlando Magic landing the top pick in June. Personally, I have Jabari Smith as the top prospect in this draft by a pretty wide margin. Chet Holmgren has potential, but is also a long-term project. Paolo Banchero is a nice player, but has plenty of holes. Jaden Ivey is the most explosive guard prospect, but might have a tough time finding a spot in the top-3 picks.

Smith is very polished, but still has a lot of room to grow. His highlights can give you some Jayson Tatum or Evan Mobley vibes at times. I thought whoever landed the top pick would be silly to pass on Smith, so I played 1-unit on him at even money prior to the lottery. Now that Orlando has been put in position, I’ll add another unit at -125 — I think the movement is justified.

Plenty more NBA Draft plays to follow as we get closer to June 23.




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All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.


The contents contained in this article do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment.


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