The NBA Playoffs are here! The action gets underway on Tuesday with a pair of Play-In games, with the 7-seed in each conference up for grabs. Let’s breakdown some betting angles on DraftKings Sportsbook.
All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
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Atlanta Hawks at Miami Heat
MIA/LAL MLP (-110) — 1-unit
Trae Young UNDER 24.5 Points (+100) — 0.5-units
I like Miami at home in the play-in opener, and am linking them to the Lakers, which are one of my favorite parlay pieces. The Heat have dominated this matchup in the division, particularly at home. Atlanta has lost seven straight trips to Miami, and lost the season series this year 3-1 overall. A big reason why the Heat have so much success against the Hawks is their ability to limit Trae Young, which plays right into a player prop here.
In four matchups this season, Young averaged just 19.8 points per game, including an eight-point dud in one of the games in Miami. Young stayed under 24.5 points in three of the four games, and the only over was a 25-point game. If we go back over the span of Young’s career, Miami has consistently shut him down — scoring 25 or more points in just four of 17 games.
A locked in and veteran Miami team that has a legit home court advantage in this matchup should be able to continue to limit Young, and lock down a big win here.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers
MIA/LAL MLP (-110) — 1-unit (from above)
LAL/PHI MLP (-125) — 1.5-units (from Twitter)
Taurean Prince OVER 13.5 Points (-120) — 0.5-units
As I mentioned, the Lakers are a big parlay piece for me, as they likely will be for many. Aside from playing them with the Heat, I also attached them to the Sixers in Game 1 of their series against the Nets (begins Saturday). You can click on the link next to the play to see it posted to Twitter, along with some other first-round plays that I expect to write up analysis for in my article on Wednesday.
I was a non-believer in the Lakers at the All-Star break, and they proved me wrong. Even with LeBron James hurt, the Lakers managed to win nine of their last 11 games and put themselves in solid position to make a postseason run. One home game with a chance to get a matchup against a banged up Grizzlies squad is a really good spot to be in when it comes to a first-round matchup, and I don’t see the Lakers squandering it.
I don’t care all that much about the mess the Timberwolves were in on Sunday. They still managed to rally and win that game, which was impressive. This team is simply better with Rudy Gobert off the floor. The problem is, when Gobert is off, the Wolves could really use Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels, who are both injured. That’s going to lead to a short rotation in a tough road atmosphere. I don’t see enough firepower from Minnesota to win this one.
That said, I do like the over on Prince’s point prop. Because this lineup is so thin, we should see Prince start and play a ton of minutes. As I mention, Gobert isn’t the entire story here. Reid has been out and now McDaniels joins him. Prince scored 15 points in 25 minutes on Saturday against Sacramento, then dropped 18 in 35 minutes on Sunday. Expect plenty of run for him in this game.
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All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
The contents contained in this article do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment.