Top NBA Betting Picks for Friday, January 15

The Rockets won their first game without James Harden, just as we all expected. Ha. Houston can credit Christian Wood’s 27-point showing for the win; both he and Jae’Sean Tate posted double-doubles.

Here are the top NBA betting plays for Friday, January 15, provided by BettingPros experts James Bisson, Raju Byfield, Isaiah Sirois, Vaughn Dalzell (Main game odds courtesy BettingPros Consensus; lock and prop odds sites may vary):

Check out our daily NBA consensus game odds here >>

Betting Locks of the Day

Bisson: Knicks -2 (-105 at FD Sportsbook)

Taking the Knicks as a road favorite? No, I haven’t suffered a recent concussion. The fact is, this version of the Cavaliers – the one missing its starting backcourt – is a complete offensive disaster. When Cedi Osman and Larry Nance are your second and third scoring threats, you won’t win many games. The Knicks might not be title contenders, but I’ll take Julius Randle and RJ Barrett over Andre Drummond and not much else.

Sirois: Bulls -0.5 (-110 at DK Sportsbook)

The Chicago Bulls are the NBA’s best team against the spread. They have a winnable game against the Thunder tonight that my model favors them by 3.7 points for, yet they opened today as one-point underdogs. I still favor them despite the fact that they’ve moved up to half-point favorites, too. The Bulls haven’t shown much life defensively, as they give up the third-most points per game (121.1) and have the second least-efficient defense, they’re playing at a top-three pace and rank fifth in points per game (116.1). With Lauri Markkanen and Otto Porter Jr. on track to suit up for Chicago, I’m confident that they’ll cover against the Thunder tonight.

Dalzell: Clippers -7 (-110 at FD Sportsbook)

The Clippers have won 14-straight games in Sacramento SU, an insane mark. In the last eight meetings between the two teams, the smallest margin of victory has been seven for either side. The Kings have only kept the spread under six points once since 2014 while at home versus the Clippers, and since 2010-11, the Clippers lead the series 15-4.

Best Team Props of the Day

Bisson: Cavaliers Under 97.5 (-104 at FD Sportsbook)

It’s counter-intuitive to take the Under on a team with a total below 100 points in today’s shot-happy NBA. But as explained above, the Cavaliers are a bit of a disaster with the basketball: not only do they rank dead last in the league in offensive efficiency, they’re fourth-last in pace. The Knicks? Second from the bottom in pace. All that adds up to a low Cleveland point tally.

Sirois: Cavaliers Under 97.5 (-104 at FD Sportsbook)

The league’s two lowest-scoring offenses will face off tonight in what’s sure to be an absolute thriller. The Cavaliers score 98.9 points per game to the Knicks’ 100.8, and both teams are top-four in points allowed — New York surrenders 106.3 points per game to Cleveland’s 104. Unfortunately, the Cavs won’t have leading scorer Collin Sexton tonight. They also won’t have Darius Garland, who’s scored the fifth-most points for them. Cleveland is averaging 89.3 points per game over their last three, and they won’t clear this total tonight.

Dalzell: Bulls Over 112.5 (-113 at DK Sportsbook)

The Bulls have scored 111 or more points in five-straight games, and the Thunder have allowed 110 or more in four of the last five games. At home, Oklahoma has failed to score more than 109 points this season but has allowed 110 or more in all five games.

Best Player Props of the Day

Bisson: Rudy Gobert Under 13.5 Rebounds (-110 at FD Sportsbook)

A lot can go wrong with a player rebounding prop (especially if you’re taking a big man like Gobert). The guy could wind up in foul trouble. The game could get out of hand, resulting in both teams emptying their benches. So there are already two potential strikes here – and when you factor in Atlanta’s fourth-ranked rebounding rate, Gobert could find himself struggling to even reach double digits. Getting to 14 or more? Not likely.

Sirois: Paul George Over 5.5 Rebounds (-110 at FD Sportsbook)

This line is a little bit juicy, but that’s because it’s a lock. It passes my two-step prop check: George averages 6.3 boards per game, and the Kings give up 6.8 boards per game to small forwards (which is where George has been playing most of this year). George has notched at least six rebounds in three of his last four, and he averaged 7.5 rebounds per game against the Kings last season.

Dalzell: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Over 31.5 Points, Rebounds, Assists (-110 at FD Sportsbook)

SGA has hit this in four of his last five games and has a favorable matchup to keep that streak going. The Bulls allow the ninth-most points (25.24), third-most assists (9.60), and 16th-most rebounds (6.66) to the position. In wins, he is averaging 23.4 points, 7.8 assists, 6.4 rebounds (37.6 combined points, boards, and assists) this season.

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