Top NBA Betting Picks for Friday, April 2
A loaded 10-game slate awaits us this evening, and a marquee matchup between the Bucks and Trail Blazers headlines the slate. The two teams will look to maintain their recent momentum as they jostle for position in their respective conferences.
Here are the top NBA betting plays for Friday, April 2, provided by BettingPros experts Raju Byfield, and Isaiah Sirois (Main game odds courtesy BettingPros Consensus; lock and prop odds sites may vary):
Betting Lock of the Day
Sirois: Hornets +4.5 (-110 at FD Sportsbook)
Charlotte just got blown out by the Nets last night (the Hornets scored a whopping 11 points in the first quarter), but I suspect they’ll bounce back tonight. They boast the NBA’s fourth-best record against the spread after a loss (14-8). In contrast, the Pacers rank second-worst against the spread at home (6-15). While these teams have been trending in different directions, I recommend buying low on the Hornets tonight. They were able to keep their starters fresh in the front half of their back-to-back; meanwhile, the Pacers will have to worry about managing theirs as they play the first game of their own back-to-back. My efficiency-based model favors the Pacers by just a point, giving us a healthy edge on the Hornets.
Top Team Prop of the Day
Sirois: Mavericks Under 109.5 (-110 at FD Sportsbook)
The Knicks have allowed three of their 11 opponents since the All-Star Break to surpass this total: Milwaukee, Brooklyn, and Washington. What do those teams have in common? They all play at a top-10 pace. In contrast, the Mavericks play at the NBA’s third-slowest pace. Since the Knicks play at the slowest pace, I don’t expect to see a lot of points in this one, and the Mavericks should stay under the posted total.
Top Player Prop of the Day
Sirois: Moses Brown Over 13.5 Points (-110 at FD Sportsbook)
Deandre Ayton has struggled defensively. He has a team-low -4.0 defensive on/off RAPTOR rating, per FiveThirtyEight, and his underperformance has show up in Phoenix’s box scores. Ayton and the Suns just permitted Nikola Vucevic to go for 24 points and 10 rebounds on Wednesday, and the last time they faced the Thunder, Al Horford went for 21 points and 11 boards. The Thunder will remain shorthanded offensively tonight, and Brown has made the most of his increased usage. He has averaged 15.7 points per game over his last three outings, all of which were starts, and he surpassed this total twice.
Check out our NBA Prop Bet Cheat Sheet for the top bets of the day >>
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