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.
Best Bets
Miami Heat at Atlanta Hawks
ATL 1H -1.5 (-110)
The Friday night card in the NBA is a tough one, as we get three very short road favorites with some of these favorites playing without crucial players. It’s tough to get a feel for which way some of these series’ will go. While the Heat are clearly the better team in this series, the Hawks are still a gritty team that gained a lot of postseason experience in last season’s Eastern Conference Finals run.
I expect the Hawks to come out ready to go, essentially playing for their season in this one. Down 0-2 and heading home, look for the Hawks to make some noise early. The Hawks were a top-five team against the first half spread this season, and finished the regular season/play-in tournament with strong starts. After the Game 1 blowout, Atlanta did cover the first half spread in Game 2 before coming undone late. This is a spot we should see plenty of urgency.
Philadelphia 76ers at Toronto Raptors
PHI -3 (-110) — 1.5-units (Saturday)
This one I actually have bet, as the Sixers overcame a Game 3 deficit on the road and dug deep for an overtime victory. Now I like them to complete the sweep. Much like the spot the Hawks are in on Friday, the Raptors came out desperate in Game 3 and had a double-digit first half lead.
But Joel Embiid and the Sixers just have too much top-end talent, and wound up leaving the Raptors with a demoralizing loss. It’s tough to bounce-back from that one knowing you’re in a 0-3 hole. Embiid seems to be taking this series personally after losing in 2019 in Game 7 on the Kawhi Leonard shot, and will take some joy in closing this one out in a sweep in Toronto. Embiid has been the biggest mismatch on the floor, and should find his way to the free throw line down the stretch if it’s a close one.
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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.
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