Top NBA Betting Picks for Monday, March 15
We have some high-scoring games on tap for tonight, with the two 7 p.m. games boasting totals above 239! Keep reading to see how our experts lean against those aggressively high totals — and the rest of the offerings on tonight’s eight-game slate.
Here are the top NBA betting plays for Monday, March 15, provided by BettingPros experts James Bisson and Isaiah Sirois (Main game odds courtesy BettingPros Consensus; lock and prop odds sites may vary):
Check out our NBA Prop Bet Cheat Sheet for the top bets of the day >>
Betting Lock of the Day
Bisson: Pacers-Nuggets Over 224 (-106 at FD Sportsbook)
Whenever you get a pair of teams trending in the same direction, it’s never a bad idea to ride the wave. And that’s where we are with the total for Monday’s encounter between the Pacers and Nuggets, both of whom have been terrific over plays this season. Indiana comes in at 22-15 O/U for the season (including 13-6 on the road), while the Nuggets are 22-15-1 O/U. Add in the fact that these teams are 8-3 O/U in their last 11 meetings, and the stage is set for a good old-fashioned shootout in Colorado.
Sirois: Lakers -2.5 (-110 at FD Sportsbook)
The Los Angeles Lakers have been a pain to play against the spread, as they sport an unimpressive 18-20 ATS record. Fortunately, Golden State isn’t much better at 19-20 ATS. However, most of the Lakers’ struggles have come in Los Angeles — they improve to 10-8 ATS on the road. The Warriors are also on a back-to-back, and three of their starters (Curry, Green, and Wiggins) all played 35-plus minutes in the front half of it. Golden State is just 3-4 ATS when playing without rest, and the Lakers are 4-2 ATS with a rest advantage. The Lakers obliterated the Warriors by a 26-point margin on Feb. 28, and they should easily cover this spread tonight. My model favors them by 2.8 points as well, which gives us a slight edge on Los Angeles.
Top Team Prop of the Day
Bisson: Warriors Under 111.5 (-114 at FD Sportsbook)
Recommending the under on such a low team total wasn’t an easy decision to make – but I can’t overstate how phenomenal the Lakers have been when it comes to road defense. Home teams are averaging just 104 points vs. Los Angeles this season, a major reason why the Lakers are 4-14 O/U in their 18 away games. L.A. held Golden State to just 91 points in their previous meeting, and even a modest boost for Golden State in Monday’s rematch won’t be enough to get them over this number.
Sirois: Warriors Under 111.5 (-114 at FD Sportsbook)
I agree with James. The Lakers have been exceptional at playing defense when on the road, and they boast the NBA’s top unit in defensive efficiency. They’ve played Golden State twice this year, and the Warriors have scored 115 (over) and 91 (under) points against them. As I mentioned earlier, that 91-point performance came on Feb. 28, which is much more recent than the 115-point showing on Jan 18. Golden State ranks a disappointing 10th-worst in offensive efficiency, and that will cause problems against a defense as good as Los Angeles’ — especially since so many of their starters logged heavy workloads last night.
Top Player Prop of the Day
Bisson: Julius Randle Over 41.5 Points, Rebounds, Assists (-115 at FD Sportsbook)
Randle continues to be a one-man show for the Knicks – and his all-around dominance hasn’t gone unnoticed. Oddsmakers are expecting big things from Randle, as they should: He’ll be called upon to help the Knicks stick around in a game where they’re receiving eight points against one of the hottest teams in the league. The Nets don’t defend well at all, and with Elfrid Payton and Derrick Rose not in action Monday, Randle will need to do a lot of ball-handling – which should lead to plenty of assist opportunities. The Over feels like the right play here.
Sirois: R.J. Barrett Over 17.5 Points (-110 at FD Sportsbook)
Barrett has sailed over this total in his last three outings, and he dropped 20 on the Nets the last time these teams met. The Nets give up the fourth-most points per game to small forwards, where the Knicks have been trying to use Barrett of late. Look for Barrett to keep the momentum going tonight, especially since the Knicks won’t have Derrick Rose or Elfrid Payton.
Check out our NBA Prop Bet Cheat Sheet for the top bets of the day >>
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