The regular season tipped off this week and we have some of the best NBA bets for today including the New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavs, Memphis Grizzlies, and Phoenix Suns.
Just a friendly reminder that even though you’re excited to dive into the betting action, it’s important to maintain discipline and keep your wagers on the smaller side on NBA betting sites until there’s a proper sample size and better data set.
Indiana Pacers (1-0) at New York Knicks (0-1)
| Tip-off | 7:40pm ET |
| Point Spread | Knicks -4.5 |
| Total | 225 o/u |
| Pick | Knicks -4.5 |
Despite all the offseason hype, reality sunk in for the Knicks during a 132-109 loss against the Boston Celtics in the season opener. The Knicks are hailed as an elite defensive squad under head coach Tom Thibodeau, but the Celtics lit them up and tied an NBA record for most 3-pointers made in a game.
It’s going to take a while for newly added Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges to mesh with the Knicks, especially on defense. They really didn’t have an impressive offensive performance either. Towns scored only 12 points in 24 minutes, and Bridges added 16 in 25 minutes. Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 22 points, but only dished two assists.
The Knicks were eliminated by the Pacers in the Eastern Conference semifinals last postseason, so they’re looking for payback. This game also marks the home opener for the Knicks, and Madison Square Garden will be rocking on Friday night.
Consider a player prop bet on Deuce McBride’s points. The backup guard and sixth man scored 22 points on 8-for-10 shooting including four treys. The Knicks have a thin bench, but McBride provides most of their offense from the second unit.
The Pacers won their first game, but barely edged out the Pistons, who were the worst team in the NBA last season. Tyrese Haliburton had an awful shooting night with a 1-for-9 clip from 3-point range, and he now faces a tough Knicks’ squad who will be harassing him all night.
Detroit Pistons (0-1) at Cleveland Cavs (1-0)
| Tip-off | 7:40pm ET |
| Point Spread | Cavs -10 |
| Total | 224.5 o/u |
| Pick | Cavs -10, Over 224.5 |
The Cavs fired J.B. Bickerstaff at the end of last season, and the Pistons hired him as their new head coach. Bickerstaff goes up against his old squad, so there’s a revenge factor in this match up. Bickerstaff knows all of his former team’s weaknesses, but the Pistons will struggle to execute his game plan.
On the flip side, the Cavs have a chance to beat their ex-coach. Kenny Atkinson took over the Cavs as their new coach, and the players are already fond of his up-tempo offensive approach. The Cavs erupted for 136 points and shot 46.7% from 3-point range. Eric Mobley dropped 25 points and hauled down nine rebounds in 27 minutes, while Donovan Mitchell scored 21 points in 25 minutes.
The Cavs are the better team on paper, and they blew out the Toronto Raptors with a 30-point victory and easily covered -6.5 spread. The Cavs have so much firepower that the Pistons will struggle to keep up.
The Pistons blew a 12-point lead in their season opener against the Indiana Pacers. Cade Cunningham is the best player on a bad team, and he led all scorers with 28 points, 8 assists, and 5 rebounds. Consider a player prop bet on Cunningham’s combined points and assists.
Memphis Grizzlies (1-0) at Houston Rockets (0-1)
| Tip-off | 8:10pm ET |
| Point Spread | Rockets -2 |
| Total | 218 o/u |
| Pick | Grizzlies +2 |
The Rockets were a -8.5 favorite but lost their season opener by five points to the Charlotte Hornets. They blew an 18-point lead and were outhustled on the glass.
Jalen Green led the Rockets with 28 points, but he missed 10 treys. Alperen Sengun stuffed the stat sheet with 25 points, 18 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals. Fred VanVleet added 14 points, but he had a terrible shooting night with 14 missed shots including nine bricked 3-pointers. Rookie Reed Sheppard, the #3 pick in the draft, scored only four points in 16 minutes off the bench.
The Grizzlies won a thriller against the Utah Jazz in their opener in Salt Lake City. Three starters scored at least 22 points. Santi Aldama led the Grizzlies with 27 points, and Desmond Bane added 24. Ja Morant iced the game with an acrobatic layup, and he scored 22 points and dished 10 assists. Rookie center Zach Edey was in foul trouble all game and fouled out with five points and five assists in 15 minutes of floor time.
We like the Grizzlies getting +2 points in this spot as one of our best NBA bets. You might as well fire away on a moneyline wager too.
Phoenix Suns (1-0) vs. Los Angeles Lakers (1-0)
| Tip-off | 10:10pm ET |
| Point Spread | Lakers -2.5 |
| Total | 228.5 o/u |
| Pick | Suns +2.5, Over 228.5 |
The Lakers are riding high after a big win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on opening night in Hollywood. LeBron James and his son, Bronny, made history as the first father-and-son duo to play together at the same time in the same game. That tender moment garnered all the media attention, but the Lakers secured a seven-point win thanks to an epic performance from Anthony Davis. The Timberwolves could not slow down AD who scored 36 points, 16 rebounds, and three blocked shots in 38 minutes.
JJ Redick got his first victory as a rookie head coach with the Lakers. He adheres to a modern philosophy of “shoot first, ask questions later” offense. The Lakers attempted 30 3-pointers, and missed 25 of them for a 16.7% success rate. Their shoddy perimeter defense allowed an alarming 41 3-point attempts. Yikes. That’s 71 combined 3-point attempts in the first game of the season.
The Suns won their season opener under new head coach Mike Budenholzer, but needed an overtime session to spoil the L.A. Clippers’ debut in their new arena. Kevin Durant was vintage KD and he sent the game into overtime with a big shot, and then sealed the victory in OT. A healthy Bradley Beal looked like his former self with 24 points on 8-for-12 shooting.
Budenholzer loves it when his teams jack up 3-pointers with reckless abandon, and the Suns did not disappoint him with 38 attempts. They knocked down 15 treys and shot 39.5% from downtown. We like the Suns as a +2.5 road underdog against the Lakers as one of our best NBA bets today. We also love the points total over 228.5, especially considering the Lakers will be taking a lot of 3-pointers and they give up a lot of wide open looks too from beyond the arc.
