NBA Betting Picks: Best Bets for Thursday’s Slate

Many of us will be watching tomorrow’s NBA stars in the Sweet 16 as they continue their college careers, but the NBA schedule is not to be overlooked.

All three games start at 7:00 p.m. EST, so you can finish them in time for Arkansas-Arizona and Illinois vs. Houston, marquee March Madness games on Thursday night.

But I digress. Let’s talk about our Best Bets for the three NBA games today.

New York Knicks vs. Charlotte Hornets

This will be the third of four scheduled games between these two teams this season. Both previous matchups were won handily by the Knicks, but the losses came during Charlotte’s dreadful start, before they turned things around.

Now, the Knicks are still a strong defensive team (No. 5 in the league, 110.5 ppg allowed) with a solid offense (No. 9, 117.2 ppg). Despite their dreadful start to the season, Charlotte is averaging just over a point less per game on offense (116.4) and allowing just over a point more per game on defense.

My Pick: UNDER 224.5 odds via FanDuel

The Knicks aren’t going to stop the Hornets completely, but expect closer to ten threes in this game, not 16. Defense will be the name of the game here, as both teams score no more than 110 points, with whoever has the ball last winning the game.

New Orleans Pelicans vs. Detroit Pistons

Detroit has been playing surprisingly well without Cade Cunningham in the lineup, but fate finally caught up to them last night against a red-hot Atlanta team. They were able to overcome a slow start to tie things up and send the game to overtime, but went on to lose 130-129.

New Orleans is not a great team and certainly not a red-hot one, but they have been playing better basketball of late. Yes, they just lost their second game in a row, but both losses were by five points to good teams. Prior to that, they had won five of six.

My Pick: Pelicans +5.5 at -110 (bet365)

The Pelicans have been competitive in recent games, going 9-1 ATS in their last ten. With Cunningham out and the Pistons playing in the second half of a back-to-back (and the first half was a barn burner), New Orleans can keep it close.

Sacramento Kings vs. Orlando Magic

In a sense, this game is the easiest one to call because the Kings are so beat up that they pretty much field replacement-level lineups most nights. They’ve lost three of their last four and allowed 130+ points in each loss while scoring 104, 118, and 90 in the three losses.

Sacramento has one of the worst defenses in the league (No. 28, 121.2 points per game allowed), and one of the lowest scoring teams (110.8 ppg, t-No. 28). So, can we count on Orlando to cover a 16.5-point spread against this abomination of a team?

Orlando has been a double-digit favorite five times this season and covered in only one game, and there’s the matter of the six-game losing streak they are on

My Pick: Orlando -16.5 (-115) via BetMGM

Except for Indiana, the competition was tough in Orlando’s recent losses. After the disappointment of the loss to the Pacers at home, I don’t think the Magic will let this chance slide by to get back on the right side of the scoreboard in dominant fashion.