NBA Playoffs Odds, Picks & Predictions: Thursday (4/24)
The National Basketball Association (NBA) has three total playoff games on tap, including a doubleheader on TNT. The New York Knicks travel to meet the Detroit Pistons for Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series at 7:00 p.m. ET in the front end of the TNT double dip, while the Oklahoma City Thunder and Memphis Grizzlies meet for Game 3 at 9:30 p.m. ET on TNT.
At 10:00 p.m. ET, the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers square off at Intuit Dome on NBA TV.
Let’s keep building that bankroll for the stretch run with our best NBA bets for Thursday, April 24th.
Thursday’s Best NBA Picks
NBA odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook | All picks are for 1 unit
New York Knicks (-120) at Detroit Pistons (+102) | O/U 214 (-112/-108)
The Knicks and Pistons play at Little Caesars Arena for an important Game 3. Detroit Basketball is back in the playoffs for the first time, losing to the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round in four games in the 2018-19 season. Detroit’s 100-94 win in New York in Game 2 was its first since the 2008 Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics, so, yeah, it’s been a while. The home fans have never seen a victory at Little Caesars Arena, with the last win at home for the Pistons coming in Game 4 against Boston in that 2008 Eastern Conference Finals, a 94-75 victory at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
New York won 123-112 in Game 1, covering as a 7-point favorite. However, in Game 2, Detroit won outright as a 6.5-point underdog, hitting 44.6% (33-of-74) from the field, while shooting just 22.2% (6-of-27) from behind the arc. Of course, Cade Cunningham was on fire, going for 33 points, including 11-of-21 from the field, and he grabbed 12 boards with three assists and two steals, serving as a one-man wrecking crew. Dennis Schroder was a nice secondary scoring option off the bench with 20 points, including three three-pointers.
The Knicks shot just 42.0% (34-of-81) from the field, and they were 28.6% (10-of-35) from downtown, while turning it over 14 times. The biggest difference was on the glass, as Detroit had a +14 rebounding advantage.
Detroit is a slight underdog at home. It has won three of the past five instances as a home underdog outright, while going 5-2 against the spread (ATS) in those outings. While the under cashed in Game 2, we have seen the over hit in three of the past four games for the Pistons, including Game 1.
New York lost 115-106 at Detroit on April 10th in the regular season as a 3.5-point favorite. The Knicks are just 4-5 ATS in the past nine road games since March 12th, while the under is 8-3 in the previous 11 games. Let’s back Detroit Basketball at home, in a highly-anticipated home playoff game, and we’ll bank on more defense and an under result.
Picks: Pistons Moneyline (+102) & Under 214 Points (-108)
Oklahoma City Thunder (-460) at Memphis Grizzlies (+360) | O/U 227 (-110/-110)
The Thunder and Grizzlies battle in Game 3 at the FedEx Forum, as the series shifts from Oklahoma City to Memphis. This has been a very lopsided series so far, with the top-seeded Thunder looking every bit the part of a championship contender.
In Game 1, the Thunder walloped Memphis 131-80 as a 13-point favorite as the under (232) cashed, while it handled the Grizzlies 118-99 as a 14-point favorite in Game 2 as the under (230) also connected. Oddly enough, both teams shot 43% from the field in Game 2, but the Thunder turned it over just seven times to 14 for Memphis. And, the Thunder had a +13 rebound differential, while recording five more steals, too.
In Game 2, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 27 points. Chet Holmgren was good for 20 points, 11 boards and five blocked shots. Jalen Williams added 24 points with six boards and five assists. Each of those players had at least two three-pointers, too, while Alex Caruso also had three triples, and Luguentz Dort added two more. The perimeter defense for the Grizzlies has been shoddy, and that figures to continue even with the venue change.
Oklahoma City is laying just 10 points on the road, and so far it hasn’t had a difficult time covering a double-digit spread in this series. Memphis looked completely overwhelmed in the first two games, and it isn’t going to magically show up and show out in Game 3. Back the Thunder to push the Grizzlies to the brink with another resounding victory. We’ll stay on the under for this one, too.
Picks: Thunder -10 (-108) & Under 227 Points (-110)
Denver Nuggets (+188) at Los Angeles Clippers (-225) | O/U 213 (-110/-110)
The Nuggets and Clippers have played, arguably, the best playoff series so far.
In Game 1, Denver outlasted L.A. 112-110 in overtime, although the Clippers hung on as 3-point underdogs. The under (225) also came through despite the extra session. And, in Game 2, the Clippers won a close 105-102 game as a 1-point underdog as the under (217.5) once again came through.
In Game 2, it was vintage Kawhi Leonard, as he was an amazing 15-of-19 from the field and 4-of-7 from downtown, ending up with a game-high 39 points. He also added five assists, three rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot. Ivica Zubac was good for a double-double, posting 16 points with 12 rebounds and four assists. Los Angeles was able to get the road win, squaring the series, despite a triple-double from Nikola Jokic, who finished with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, although he did turn it over seven times, too.
These teams met four times in the regular season, and, surprise, they split those four games, too. We did have some blowouts, as the Nuggets won their two regular-season meetings by at least 22 points each. In L.A.’s victories, it won by an average of 4.5 points per contest, including on December 1st in L.A. The Clippers are 6-2 ATS in the past eight meetings in this series since December 6th, 2023, too, while the under is 7-2-1 in the past 10 battles.
We’re unlikely to see another giant game like Leonard had in Game 2, but another triple-double by Jokic is certainly possible. The lean here is to the Nuggets, and based on the series trends, let’s roll with the under in Game 3 at Intuit Dome.
Picks: Nuggets +5 (-106) & Under 213 Points (-110)