NBA Best Bets Today (Predictions for Karl-Anthony Towns, Hawks-Heat and Pelicans-Suns)

We’ve got a trio of Game 5s on Tuesday night, yet only one team can close out their first-round series tonight. 

The Miami Heat have a commanding 3-1 series lead on the Atlanta Hawks in the first round after dominating Game 4 in Atlanta, but the Phoenix Suns and Memphis Grizzlies are both fighting for their lives in the Western Conference, tied at two games apiece. 

I have a pick for every game tonight, so let’s jump right in!

All odds via WynnBET:

NBA Best Bets Record to Date

• NBA Best Bets Record: 210-186-5 (+5.8453 units)

Find Peter Dewey’s full betting record in the NBA this season here.

NBA Best Bets Today

• Karl-Anthony Towns OVER 23.5 Points (-120)
• New Orleans Pelicans +6.5 vs. Phoenix Suns (-115)
• Atlanta Hawks-Miami Heat UNDER 217 (-110)

Karl-Anthony Towns OVER 23.5 Points (-120)

Karl-Anthony Towns was much more aggressive in Game 4 of this series, scoring 33 points on 17 shots and hitting three shots from beyond the arc. 

Towns has cleared this line in two of the four games in this series, but the other two games he struggled mightily, taking a combined 11 shots. 

The Wolves need Towns to be aggressive to have any chance against the Grizzlies in Game 5, so I’ll back him to have a strong scoring night on Tuesday. 

New Orleans Pelicans vs. Phoenix Suns: Pelicans +6.5 (-115)

The Devin Booker-less Phoenix Suns may be in trouble in the first round, as they head back to Phoenix tied 2-2 with the New Orleans Pelicans. 

Can we really trust the Suns as sizable home favorites? 

I don’t think so, as the team really struggled in Game 4 with Chris Paul only scoring four points, as role players like Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, Landry Shamet and Jae Crowder didn’t all play above their pay grade to make up for the loss of Devin Booker. 

I’ve been preaching this since Booker went down, this Suns team is much, much worse offensively without him in the lineup, and there’s a reason Phoenix was just 8-6 in the regular season without him. 

The Pelicans are watching Brandon Ingram take the next step to stardom in this series, and New Orleans’ defensive pressure from Herb Jones and Jose Alvarado has made things tough on the Suns, especially in Game 4. 

Phoenix may win this game, but this series has been way too close since Booker went down for me to lay this many points with the Suns. 

Atlanta Hawks vs. Miami Heat: UNDER 217 (-110)

I took the UNDER in Game 4, which hit fairly easily since Atlanta scored just 86 points, and I think I’m going to go back to the well in Game 5. 

The Heat love to slow the game down, playing at the No. 28 pace in the NBA in the regular season, and their defense has dominated this series, holding Trae Young to under 10 points in two of the four games. 

Through the four games in this series, the two highest totals hit 220 and 221, and they were both in games that Atlanta either won or kept close down the stretch. 

I don’t see that happening in Game 5, as the Heat have weathered the Hawks’ best punches this series, even with Lowry sidelined.

Can an underdog come back and win in the first round? Check out the latest episode of Bet & Breakfast for our picks!