The first round of the NBA Playoffs tips off this weekend. While waiting for the results of the final play-in game, i.e. 8 games.th Let’s take a look at the existing matchups and weekend schedules for the Eastern and Western Conference seeds.
Betting lines for the opening game and one or two props for each series are listed.
Saturday, 1:10pm ET
5-Orlando Magic (+160) vs. 4-Cleveland Cavaliers (-192)
Spread: Cavaliers -4.5 | O/U: 207.5
The biggest party crasher of the postseason is the Orlando Magic (47-35). The winner of the Southeast Division will face the Cleveland Cavaliers (48-34). It’s a matchup between two of the top six defensemen in the NBA. With each team being stingy in the paint, there’s a good chance that perimeter shooting will decide this series.
In the season series, both teams won two games. Cleveland won each game by making at least 10 3-pointers. They lost less than 10 games. Is this the Max Strus series? Georges Niang Festival? Cleveland has each convened to shoot from deep during this period. Take a deep look at their props. Game 1 is set at 1.5 threes each.
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Saturday, 3:40pm ET
6-Phoenix Suns (-102) vs. 3-Minnesota Timberwolves (-118)
Spread: Timberwolves -1.5 | O/U: 214
No team in the NBA was as defensively efficient as Minnesota (56-26). The Timberwolves’ defense, led by Rudy Gobert, is tall and long. This season, they allowed an NBA-high 108.9 points per 100 possessions, but that number ballooned to 129.3 points in three games against Phoenix (49-33).
The Suns can’t match Minnesota’s size, but as we made clear earlier, they didn’t need to this season. They rely on floor spacing, extra passes, and hitting open jumpers. Bradley Beal’s 36 points in the final game of the season against the Timberwolves boded well for the Suns, who were built specifically to make the playoffs this season.
With the Timberwolves having to focus on Durant and Booker, Beal will likely be able to use his looks from the perimeter. His performance against Minnesota last weekend suggests he will be considered for OVER play in three-point shooting (2.5) and scoring (17.5).
Saturday, 6:10pm ET
7-Philadelphia 76ers (+120) vs. 2-New York Knicks (-142)
Spread: Knicks -3 | O/U: 208.5
Joel Embiid looked a little off and didn’t want to play against the smaller Heat earlier this week. He still had 23 points and 15 rebounds, but Philadelphia (47-35) will need to win against the Knicks pairing of Hartenstein and Robinson in order to last more than five games.
The leader for New York (50-32) is undoubtedly Jalen Brunson. However, there is one player who could take the team to even greater heights: OG Anunoby. The Knicks are 20-3 when OG is in the lineup.
With the crowd at MSG in attendance, it’s a pretty good bet that the Knicks will win Game 1. Let’s accumulate victory points.
Saturday, 8:40pm ET
7-LA Lakers (+225) vs. 2-Denver Nuggets (-278)
Spread: Nuggets -7 | O/U: 224
This will be a rematch of last year’s Western Conference Finals. Denver (57-25) defeated the Lakers (47-35) to win his first NBA title. The Nuggets’ starting five is statistically the best in the NBA, winning by a league-high 13 points per 100 possessions. Although the bench is not as deep as it was during the title game, the quality of the starting lineup, led by Nikola Jokic, who is expected to be the league MVP, is extremely high.
The Lakers replaced 40% of their starting lineup around the All-Star break and went 23-10 the rest of the regular season. Rui Hachimura and Austin Reeves moved into the starting lineup, while Cam Reddish and Taurean Prince moved to the bench.
Sunday, 3:40pm ET
5-Dallas Mavericks (-115) vs. 4-LA Clippers (-105)
Spread: Mavericks -1 | O/U: 223.5
Star Power Out West has someone interested in this series between the Los Angeles Clippers (51-31) and Dallas Mavericks (50-32). Luka Doncic is no stranger to losing in the opening round against the Clippers in both 2020 and 2021. People believe this year will be different because Dallas went from underdogs (+120) to favorites (-). 135) The past few days.
Many believe this series will depend on the health of the Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard (knee). There’s no question he’s one of the best playoff performers in the league’s recent history, but how effective will he be early in the series? Will his minutes be monitored by coach Tyronn Lue? If so, his 24.5 points total might be a bit high. Let’s think about under.
Sunday, 7:10pm ET
6-Indiana Pacers (-115) vs. 3-Milwaukee Bucks (-105)
Spread: Pacers -1 | O/U: 233
The injury to Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has caught the attention of the gambling world. Milwaukee (49-33) vs. Indiana (47-35) is the highest stakes series in the first round. They have no recent postseason history, as they haven’t faced each other since the Reggie Miller-Sam Cassel era 24 years ago (Indiana won that series).
The public favors the upset, so let’s take a look at some player props to consider. Tyrese Haliburton has 20.5 total points. It seems low, but he has surpassed that mark just three times in seven games this month. His assist count is set at 10.5. He exceeded that number in four of the Pacers’ seven games in April. Frankly, Indiana is only as far as its leaders lead, so if you believe the Pacers can upset the top seed, it makes sense to bet on Haliburton’s numbers being big.
When you do your homework and ultimately bet on these games, remember that the NBA playoffs traditionally mean low possession and close games. There will be some surprising performances, but the team’s best player will get the majority of the offensive touches and chances.
Enjoy the game and work up a sweat.
