Top NBA Betting Picks for Sunday, May 16
It’s the final day of the NBA regular season, and every team will take to the court today. However, not all games are created equally — some squads still have playoff positioning to play for, but most don’t. Make sure to read up on what games matter before placing your bets.
Here are the top NBA betting plays for Sunday, May 16, provided by BettingPros experts Raju Byfield 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
Sirois: Hornets +6 (-115 at DK Sportsbook)
This is today’s most meaningful game — the winner will secure the No. 8 seed in the East, giving them a home play-in game; the loser could slide all the way to No. 10, giving them a play-in road trip to Boston. As such, both squads should be firing on all cylinders, and I expect a relatively close battle in which the Hornets cover. Why? First, the public is all over Washington right now, as Russell Westbrook’s record-breaking campaign has attracted considerable media attention. Yet it hasn’t translated into big wins in meaningful games — in their last ten matchups against postseason hopefuls, the Wizards covered this spread just twice. Second, the Hornets haven’t been great, but they’ve at least kept things close. They forced the Knicks to overtime last night despite an awful showing from LaMelo Ball, and I suspect that the talented rookie will play with a chip on his shoulder tonight.
Top Game Prop of the Day
Sirois: Rockets Over 112.5 (-102 at FD Sportsbook)
The Rockets’ last few games have been incredibly high-scoring. We’ve seen total scores of 237, 246, 269, 240, 274, and 250 — and in all of those games, the Rockets contributed at least 115 points. They should keep that streak alive tonight against the Hawks, as Atlanta ranks 21st in defensive efficiency and may not have anything to play for by tip-off — they’ll need the Knicks to lose if they want a shot at the No. 4 seed. I usually target the overs for Houston’s opponents, but Atlanta’s total (120.5) doesn’t offer as much value, especially if the Knicks win.
Top Player Prop of the Day
Sirois: Kelly Olynyk Over 17.5 Points (-110 at FD Sportsbook)
I try to target meaningful basketball with my picks, but I’m featuring two Houston plays because of the remarkable consistency with which they’ve hit. Olynyk has gone over this total in his last five outings, and by no small margin — he has averaged 23 points per game through that span. The big man has averaged 19.1 points per game since his arrival in Houston, and the Rockets have featured him at both power forward (53% of his minutes) and center (47%). Because the Hawks allow the sixth-most points per game to power forwards (21.9) — and because the Rockets have so few healthy players — expect Olynyk to nose over this total again tonight.
Check out our NBA Prop Bet Cheat Sheet for the top bets of the day >>
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