Peter’s Points: NBA Best Bets Today (Expert Predictions, Picks for LeBron James, Cade Cunningham)

Looking to bet on the NBA on Friday?

Despite all of the March Madness action, I'm still all about the NBA, and that's resulted in three plays for Friday's action as we look to stay positive on the season.

Let's dive in:

If you’re looking to bet on any game in the NBA tonight, FanDuel Sportsbook has an amazing promotional offer. New users who sign up with the link below and wager $5 will receive $150 in bonus bets -- if their bet wins.

Sign up for FanDuel now!

NBA Best Bets Record to Date

• 2023-24 season record: 286-265-13 (+1.08 units)
• Overall record (last 2+ seasons): 911-823-21 (+41.02 units)

Find Peter Dewey's NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on  BetStamp here.

NBA Best Bets Today

• Cade Cunningham OVER 32.5 Points, Rebounds and Assists (-125) – 0.5 unit
• Boston Celtics -9.5 and Oklahoma City Thunder -11.5 Teaser (-130) – 0.5 unit
• LeBron James OVER 8.5 Assists (+100) – 0.5 unit

Cade Cunningham OVER 32.5 Points, Rebounds and Assists (-125) – 0.5 unit

Cade Cunningham missed the last meeting against Boston, but he returned against Indiana to score 23 points, grab six rebounds and dish out 10 assists on 9-of-22 shooting in just 29:03 of game time. 

If Detroit can keep this somewhat close, Cade should have a chance to rack up the stats. Since the All-Star break, Cade has cleared this total in 10 of 14 games, averaging 23.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game over that stretch. 

If he gets his usual minutes, he should soar past this total. 

Boston Celtics -9.5 and Oklahoma City Thunder -11.5 Teaser (-130) – 0.5 unit

I like both of these teams to cover in this one, but I’m going to take the number down since they’re both favored by a ton of points. 

Here’s a breakdown for each:

Boston Celtics vs. Detroit Pistons

I’m going to lay the points with Boston here, as the Celtics are now over. 500 on the season when it comes to them being favored on the road (15-14-3 ATS). 

The Pistons, on the other hand, are just 14-14-1 against the spread as home dogs. This could be a spot to back Boston -- if most of the team's roster suits up. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis are questionable for this game while Jrue Holiday has been ruled out. 

Still, Boston didn’t even need Tatum to win by 25 points in the last meeting between these teams, and the Pistons are down several key rotation players including Quentin Grimes, Isaiah Stewart and Ausar Thompson. 

Plus, Boston has covered as a road favorite on four straight occasions. Give me the C’s. 

Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Toronto Raptors

I really can’t bet on anything but the Thunder to cover in this game given the injury report for the Raptors. 

Toronto simply had no offense against the Kings, and the Thunder are a much better defensive team than the Kings, ranking No. 5 in the league in defensive rating. 

Now, the Thunder have struggled as road favorites (10-12 against the spread), but they’re still posting a better cover percentage in those games than the Raptors have as home underdogs. Toronto is a lowly 5-12 against the spread in that spot this season. 

Ultimately, this game comes down to the fact that Toronto is without its three leading scorers and defensive anchor (Poeltl) in this game. 

OKC should dominate from the jump.

LeBron James OVER 8.5 Assists (+100) – 0.5 unit

LeBron James has cleared this prop in nine of his last 11 games, averaging 9.5 assists per game over that stretch. 

He’s also averaging 15.6 potential assists per game over that stretch, which ranks third in the NBA behind only Luka Doncic and Tyrese Haliburton. Wow.

Given James’ elite passing ability all season (he’s averaging 8.1 assists per game), I don’t mind taking him to push double-digit dimes against a Philly team that allows 26.2 opponent assists per game this season.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.