Peter’s Points: NBA Best Bets Today (Expert Predictions, Picks for Tyrese Maxey, Anthony Davis)

Thursday night brings the first Game 3s in the NBA playoffs and I have three best bets to honor that for these matchups: 

• Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Orlando Magic
• New York Knicks vs. Philadelphia 76ers
• Denver Nuggets vs. Los Angeles Lakers

Every single road team has a chance to go up 3-0 in their series after taking care of business at home, but I’m focusing on the prop market for tonight’s plays.

If you’re looking to bet on any game in the NBA playoffs, 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: 331-318-13 (-5.59 units)
• Overall record (last 2+ seasons): 956-876-21 (+34.35 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

• Jalen Brunson UNDER 28.5 Points (+102) – 0.5 unit
• Tyrese Maxey OVER 37.5 Points, Rebounds and Assists (-105) – 0.5 unit
• Anthony Davis OVER 25.5 Points (-108) – 0.5 unit

Jalen Brunson UNDER 28.5 Points (+102) – 0.5 unit

Jalen Brunson has cleared 28.5 points in just one game against Philly, including the playoffs where he has shot just 16-for-55 from the field. 

Brunson shot just 8-for-26 from the field in Game 1 and 8-for-29 in Game 2, and he’s struggled against Kelly Oubre and this Sixers defense all season. There were just seven games in the regular season where Brunson shot 30 percent from the field or worse, and two came against the Sixers. 

Here’s a look at how he’s fared against Philly this season: 

• 29 points (11-for-20 shooting)
• 21 points (5-for-18 shooting)
• 19 points (6-for-22 shooting)
• 20 points (7-for-12 shooting)
• 22 points (8-for-26 shooting)
• 24 points (8-for-29 shooting)

This number has dropped down from 30.5 to 28.5 after he struggled in Game 2, and while Brunson is going to have massive usage, I can’t back him to go OVER this prop until he breaks out of this slump. 

Tyrese Maxey OVER 37.5 Points, Rebounds and Assists (-105) – 0.5 unit

Tyrese Maxey has dominated the Knicks in this first-round series, putting up 33 and 35 points alone in the first two games. 

Maxey nearly had a triple-double in Game 2, putting up 35 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists in a close loss. New York has struggled to keep him out of the paint while also trying to contain Joel Embiid with double teams. 

If Maxey is going to keep playing around 44 minutes per night, he’s a great bet to clear this number on Thursday. 

Anthony Davis OVER 25.5 Points (-108) – 0.5 unit

Anthony Davis has 32 points in each of the first two games of the series against the Denver Nuggets, and he’s taken 23 and 19 shots in those games.

While Nikola Jokic has been a tough matchup for the Lakers’ defense, Davis has been the same for Denver in the playoffs – and this season. He has three games with over 30 points in five matchups against the Nuggets. 

As long as Davis keeps seeing this massive usage on offense, 25.5 points is far too low of a number for him on Thursday.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.