NBA Expert Picks and Best Bets | April 10

We’re at that point in the NBA regular season where every game has playoff implications. There’s basically a battle for the one seed out west when Denver hosts Minnesota. Meanwhile, Giannis got hurt for the Bucks in their win over Boston, can the Magic capitalize on the road?

Over 215 (-110) at FanDuel

Neither of these two teams have been offensive juggernauts this season but as the regular season winds down, they’ve picked things up.

Miami is just 33-46 over/under this season, but the last seven games they’ve gone over. They’ve averaged 113 points in their last five games. The big reason? Miami is finally healthy. They have everyone except for Terry Rozier, who is questionable with a neck injury. Everyone has been talking about what’s happened out west with the Lakers and Warriors, but remember Miami was in the NBA Finals last year and is also looking at a Play-In Tournament spot.

Dallas has really surged in the last six weeks. They’ve scored 130 and 147 points in their last two games, but they are just 3-7 over/under in their last 10. The Mavs don’t play much defense, allowing 115 a game.

We got a healthy Miami, two teams playing hard to improve playoff seeding and a Mavs team that loves to run and gun. I’ll take the over.

Magic -1.5 (-105) at BetMGM

We whiffed on two picks last night involving these two teams. The bigger surprise was the Magic, who had a real chance to get a game up in Houston but got overwhelmed by Fred VanVleet and the Rockets. That was a bad loss.

Orlando is now in fourth place in the Eastern Conference, but they still control a big chunk of their own destiny because they play the Bucks twice in their last three games.

The Bucks had a huge win last night over Boston and are back to second place in the East, however, Giannis Antekounmpo went down with an injury in the third quarter. It looked scary. He basically pulled up and grabbed his calf. He’s officially questionable for tonight.

The Magic are 50-29 against the spread. Expect this line to fluctuate depending on Giannis, but for now, I’m backing Orlando.

T’wolves +6 (-110) at DraftKings

Of all the games with playoff implications, this one is the biggest tonight. Basically, the winner here just about clinches the one seed in the West.

Both teams are 55-24 and coming off wins Tuesday night. Both teams are 8-4 on back-to-backs this season. Anthony Edwards had 51 points last night against Washington and continues to emerge as an All-NBA player.

Minnesota is for real, and they may get star Karl-Anthony Towns back as early as tonight.

Denver has been on cruise control for a little while, but they definitely want the 1 seed. They were 10-1 last year in the playoffs at home on their way to the NBA title. Minnesota won by 13 when they played two weeks ago.

Moneyline…I think I like the Nuggets to win straight up. But I like Minnesota with these points. This game will come down to the end and I can’t see it being a big margin.