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It's a glorious night of NBA basketball incoming, with ten games on this slate and some fun matchups. Last night was a bit of a letdown as we had some blowouts, but the Utah-New Orleans game was a ton of fun, even if it didn't go my way in the end (I doubled down on the Pellies and they ended up losing to Utah AGAIN).
I'm only picking sides and totals in this article three days a week, so consider subscribing to my sports betting substack here as I put out some DFS stuff and props on most evenings from Monday through Friday, too. We are coming off a hot night on Wednesday that saw my picks go 5-1 with the Clippers team total the only miss.
In this article, I'll be providing my favorite picks against the spread, game totals, parlays, and teasers for NBA games that tip-off at 7:00 PM EST on Friday, December 16. Let's take a look at the games that I am targeting with wagers tonight.
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Thunder Dan's NBA Best Bets
- 2022-2023 Overall Record: 64-73
- Against the Spread: 30-33
- Game/Team Totals: 10-17
- Moneyline Parlay: 8-15
- Teasers: 15-7
NBA Betting Picks: Against the Spread
Orlando Magic (+13.5) @ Boston Celtics (228 total)
I have written about how good Boston is in this space a lot this season, but they are starting to stumble a bit. Now they do get Al Horford back tonight and are going to have Robert Williams III make his season debut. That is going to make them really darn good as their interior has been their main weakness so far this year, but for tonight I don't expect the "Time Lord" to play too much as he's coming off a major injury.
This pick is more about Orlando's recent surge than it is about Boston's little dip. The Magic are riding a four-game winning streak and battled good teams like Milwaukee and Cleveland in relatively close losses right before their streak started. They are healthier than they have been in a while with Markelle Fultz and Cole Anthony back and guys like Mo Wagner and Bol Bol have really stepped up as WCJ and Jalen Suggs have missed so much time.
Boston only beat this team by six in their first match-up. They should win here at home, but Orlando will battle. I am taking them here this spread is simply too big considering how well the Magic have played lately.
The Pick: Orlando +13.5 (-110)
Brooklyn Nets (-1) @ Toronto Raptors (226.5 total)
Not too many teams have played each other thrice this early in the season, but these two teams have! The Nets are 3-0 against the Raptors this year and seem to have their number. I don't rely on previous records against each other often, but there's something to this one I think.
The Nets have improved as the season has gone along and are getting healthy and hitting their stride. KD and Kyrie are tough to beat now that they have guys like Ben Simmons, Joe Harris, Nicolas Claxton, Seth Curry, and T.J. Warren all chipping in and helping out. The Raptors are really banged up here, too, and I don't think they can hang with Brooklyn even with big games from Siakam or VanVleet. Give me the Nets to continue their domination of the Raps in this one.
The Pick: Nets -1 (-110)
New York Knicks (+2.5) @ Chicago Bulls (227.5 total)
The Knicks needed overtime to beat the Bulls on Wednesday, and they really should have closed them out in that one but they allowed Chicago to come back and tie it before Julius Randle took a really bad shot on the final possession instead of working for a good look and finishing them off in regulation.
Anyways, I hate going back to the same bet on the same two teams when they just faced each other, but the fact remains that the Knicks are playing good basketball right now and the Bulls are trending in the wrong direction. New York led Chicago for most of that game on Wednesday and seemed to be in control until that fourth-quarter collapse. They're still underdogs here, and I am not sure why. They were +4 on Wednesday and are now just +2.5 tonight. I will just take them on the money line at +125 and hope they can keep playing at a high level and win this one without having to play any extra time.
The Pick: Knicks ML (+125)
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NBA Betting Picks: Totals
Atlanta Hawks (+2) @ Charlotte Hornets (234 total)
The Hornets are favored at home against Atlanta? Who would have thought we'd see that just a few weeks ago? These teams are heading in very different directions. The Hawks are now without three starters as Clint Capela, John Collins, and Dejounte Murray are all on the shelf and Trae Young simply can't get it done on his own as Atlanta has stumbled lately.
Meanwhile, the Hornets got LaMelo Ball back for the first time in over a month on Wednesday night and he looked good in his return to action with a double-double. Gordon Hayward is set to return tonight, too, giving the Hornets all of their main pieces in the lineup for the first time in a long time.
As much as I think Charlotte will win here, I don't trust them and you never know when Trae Young is going to dial up a 40-point game. I do like the potential for a lot of offense here, however. I especially am banking on the Charlotte offense as they have their full complement of weapons now and the Hawks have been getting hammered on defense by opponents recently, allowing 122, 128, and 125 points in their last three games. Charlotte scored 127 in regulation against Detroit on Wednesday before losing in overtime, I think we see them go for 120+ points here tonight, too.
The Pick: Hornets team total OVER 117.5 (-110)
Minnesota Timberwolves (+2) @ Oklahoma City Thunder (231.5 total)
I'll just start by saying I have this one projected for around 236 points and I think that projection might even be a little low. This game projects to have the fastest pace of any game on the slate (and one my fastest projections of the season) with over 105 possessions. The Thunder love getting into track meets with teams that want to run and Minnesota should play right into that. OKC is coming a stretch against some of the best defenses in the league, having dropped games to Memphis, Cleveland, Dallas, and Miami in their last four. But they can score points and they still lead the league with a 60% hit rate on overs this season.
Minnesota's defense has been abysmal, too. The Clippers couldn't cash in on team total for us last time, but OKC has been much better offensively this year than LA so I am not reading too far into that one. I expect this total to rise quickly today, so jump on it now while you still can.
The Pick: OVER 231.5 (-110)
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I usually do a money line favorite parlay on bigger slates and then one teaser bet as well (usually a lot of underdogs, but not always).
Just know the risks involved with parlaying bets, we are increasing our potential payouts but adding more risk to every bet with every outcome that we include.
Favorite Moneyline Parlay: CLE + SAC + PHI = (+156 DraftKings)
These underdog teasers have been some of my best bets this season, check the record!
4.5-point Underdog Teaser: ORL +18 + NYK +7 + POR +8 = (+150 DraftKings)
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