Ricky Dimon
Show Bio
Eleven games are on Friday’s NBA schedule, including a double-header on ESPN featuring the Boston Celtics vs. Philadelphia 76ers and the Denver Nuggets vs. Phoenix Suns. Also in action are the Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks, and Los Angeles Clippers.
Here’s our five-team parlay for Friday:
Pacers ML (-145)
Nets -9.5 (-110)
Celtics +5 (-110)
Hawks -4.5 (-110)
Knicks ML (+150)
Parlay odds: +2781
For this parlay we mix in two favorites against the spread, one underdog and the points, and two outright winners (one favorite and one underdog). Let’s break down each of the five legs one by one.
Indiana Pacers ML over Orlando Magic (-145)
The Magic are coming off a 97-96 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday, when Cole Anthony sprinted down the floor and sank a 25-foot, off-balance prayer at the buzzer. They say it’s better to be lucky than good, and the Magic certainly haven’t been the latter this season. Despite Wednesday’s heroics, they are still under .500 at 7-8. Meanwhile, Indiana is a decent 8-6 and is clearly the better team despite being a bit shorthanded at the moment. The Pacers do, however, have Domanta Sabonis on the floor—and that should be enough. Sabonis has delivered a double-double in each of the first 14 games, averaging 21.9 points, 12.6 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per contest. Malcolm Brogdon is having a career year, scoring 22.5 points and dishing out 7.3 assists per game while shooting 42.4 percent from beyond the arc.
Brooklyn Nets -9.5 over Cleveland Cavaliers (-110)
Brooklyn suffered one of the biggest upsets of the season by falling to Cleveland 147-135 in double-overtime on Wednesday. That marked the first game in which the new big three of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden all played. All three played well, but it stands to reason that they will get even better with one game together under their belts. Collin Sexton went crazy with 42 points, and—even though Sexton is legit (27.0 ppg)—that kind of performance probably won’t happen again. The Nets, who also have Joe Harris on fire from beyond the arc, are simply way too good to stumble against a bad team twice in succession. This one shouldn’t be close, either.
Boston Celtics +5 over Philadelphia 76ers (-110)
This is the second head-to-head meeting between the two teams—and second in Philadelphia—in the span of three days. On Wednesday, the 76ers got the job done 117-109…but it wasn’t easy. The Celtics actually led by six points going into the fourth quarter before Joel Embiid took over to put the finishing touches on a 42-point performance. Kemba Walker is back from a knee injury for Boston and unsurprisingly improved dramatically in his second game of this 2020-21 campaign. After going 3-for-13 from the floor and 1-for-8 from three-point range during his season debut, Walker went 6-for-15 from the field and 5-for-9 on triples against Philadelphia. He should take another step forward in this one. Jayson Tatum is still out, but with Walker having returned and Jaylen Brown in outstanding form (25.8 ppg), the visitors can be competitive again and may even win outright.
Atlanta Hawks -4.5 over Minnesota Timberwolves (-110)
The Timberwolves and are also squaring off for the second time this week, this time in Minnesota. On Monday in Atlanta, the Hawks took care of business 108-97. There is not much reason to think anything will change on Friday, as the T-Wolves are still without Karl-Anthony Towns (Covid-19) and they aren’t any good at home. They are 1-5 in their last six games at the Target Center and three of those five setbacks have come by double-digits. They are 3-10 overall this season and 1-8 without Towns, who is doing it all—when healthy—with 22.0 ppg, 12.5 rpg, and 4.3 apg. Atlanta has gotten back on track with two consecutive victories, good for a .500 overall record (7-7) and first place in the mediocre-at-best Southeast Division. In his first year with the Hawks, Clint Capela produced 23 points and 15 boards against the Wolves and then went for 27 points and 26 rebouds during Wednesday’s win over Detroit.
New York Knicks ML over Sacramento Kings (+150)
The Knicks are on an absolute roll—especially by their standards—and have a real chance to keep it going at Sacramento’s expense. The Kings have lost four in a row and six of their last seven games. Part of the problem is the struggles of guard Buddy Hield, who has reached the 20-point mark only once since the first game of the season. New York leads the NBA in scoring defense and is holding opponents to just north of 30 percent shooting from three-point range, so Hield could be in line for another long day at the office. Look for the Knicks (8-8) to extend their winning streak to four.
Pickswise is the home of free NBA picks and predictions. We will cover all the big offseason news before making picks for every game during the 2021 season.
