What a wonderful Wednesday, with an eight-game slate on the NBA schedule for March 20!
And as we preview Wednesday's games, our NBA betting experts have their five NBA best bets across the board, with picks against the spread, NBA player props, and an over/under bet on the total in one of tonight's NBA on ESPN games for good measure, as the Milwaukee Bucks take on the Boston Celtics in the first half of the national TV doubleheader, followed by the Memphis Grizzlies facing the Golden State Warriors.
Let's get to our NBA best bets for Wednesday, March 20.
NBA Best Bets | Picks Against Spread, Props, Over/Under
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 7 p.m. | |
  | 7 p.m. | |
  | 7:30 p.m. | |
  | 8 p.m. | |
  | 10 p.m. | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NBA Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Heat vs. Cavaliers
By Gary Bart
The Heat opened this four-game road trip with two wins before losing their last game at Philly. They will get a chance to have a winning record on this road trip when they meet the Cavs in Cleveland.
Injuries continue to be an issue for both teams. The Cavs' Donovan Mitchell will not play in this game. Both teams are good defensively, but the Heat are ranked a little higher. Not having Mitchell in their lineup against a good defensive team should be the difference in this game. Take Miami.
Pick: Heat +2.5
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Pistons vs. Pacers
By Joe Dellera
The Pacers take on the Pistons on Wednesday night, and one player that I expect to shine is Tyrese Haliburton.
Post-ASB, Haliburton has seen his assist numbers drop to 9.8 per game on 16 potentials per game. However, he has had a few floor games in there and still has exceeded his 10.5 assists line in seven of 13 games. One of those games was against the Pistons where he logged 13 dimes on 19 potentials back in February. Looking at his three games against Detroit this year, he’s averaged 13 dimes on 20 potentials (10, 16, 13).
The Pistons have the 19th ranked defense out of the All-Star Break and are playing at the 11th-fastest pace in the league. This is a fairly advantageous spot for Haliburton.
I expect Haliburton to exceed 10.5 assists tonight.
Pick: Tyrese Haliburton over 10.5 Assists
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Bucks vs. Celtics
There's one team in the entire NBA who hasn't hit an over as a road underdog this season, and that's the Milwaukee Bucks, who have gone 0 of 8. Yup, all unders.
With Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday and Sam Hauser all questionable and Giannis Antetokoumpo officially out, plus recent NBA trends, I'm taking the under here, but my limit is probably 223.
The road trends, especially as a dog, have generally leaned under for the Bucks, and the Celtics are toward the middle of the pack — closer toward the bottom — in terms of over/unders as a home favorite. They're 16-18 to the over as a home favorite with the 10th most unders by percentage in that scenario.
And regardless of who is out there, I'm expecting a true playoff atmosphere as we inch toward April. That means, for me, under. With Giannis out, I also lean toward Celtics 1H -6.
Pick: Under 224 | Bet to 223
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Jazz vs. Thunder
By Joe Dellera
The Oklahoma City Thunder are a heavy favorite tonight against the Utah Jazz. One player that has a fairly advantageous match up is Chet Holmgren.
Part of why I like Chet is that he presents a matchup difficulty for the Jazz. If Walker Kessler is in, what Chet can do in spacing the floor becomes very difficult for Utah to align their defense against. If John Collins is in, then it stresses Collins as a defender, which is not exactly something he has known for.
In three matchup against the Jazz this season, Chet has 15+ points, but the key is he’s taking a couple more 3s in those games. On the season he’s averaging 4.3 per games but against Utah he’s taken 3, 6, and 6. Utah has one of the worst 3-point defenses in the league, and Chet’s ability to fill it up from long range will help his scoring ceiling tonight.
I expect Chet Holmgren to exceed 15.5 Points.
Pick: Chet Holmgren over 15.5 Points
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76ers vs. Suns
If you look at the board tonight, there are eight games and only three of them are matchups in which both of the teams have a winning record.
This Philly/Phoenix game is the outlier of the three, in my opinion. The Suns just have not been playing well enough to justify this large of a line.
The Sixers, even while dealing with injuries, remain very scrappy and they have made some changes in their lineup/playing rotation of late that are already starting to pay dividends. That said, the 8.5 points here appears to be on the high side.
The Suns have won just six of 13 games and the average margin of victory in the six wins, not including OT points, was just 6.5 points.
Phoenix just has NOT been blowing teams away of late. The Sixers are just 5-5 in their last 10 games, but four of the five losses are by a single digit margin. Don't be surprised when this one goes down to the wire.
Pick: 76ers +9
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