Ricky Dimon
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Game 3s in the NBA playoffs are here, so the pressure is on any team that is currently facing a 2-0 deficit. On Friday, that fate belongs to the Atlanta Hawks and Minnesota Timberwolves. Atlanta has not been competitive with the Boston Celtics, while Minnesota unsurprisingly finds itself in a hole against the Western Conference top-seeded Denver Nuggets. Meanwhile, the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers are all tied up at 1 win apiece.
Below is my mega parlay for Friday, and also be sure to check out all of our NBA picks.
Celtics -9.5 alternate spread (+170)
Cavaliers ML (+110)
Nuggets -2.5 (-110)
NBA parlay odds: +957
For this parlay, we are going with 2 favorites against the spread – 1 on an alternate line – and 1 underdog on the money line. Let’s break down each of the 3 legs.
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Boston Celtics -9.5 alternate spread over Atlanta Hawks (+170)
The Celtics ran the Hawks out of TD Garden, which was to be expected. A 112-99 result in Game 1 certainly wasn’t as competitive as the score indicates and Boston also won by 13 on Tuesday. The C’s are simply the far superior team and there is no real reason to think anything will change now that this Eastern Conference first-round series shifts back to Atlanta.
It’s not like the Hawks have one of the more significant home-court advantages in the NBA. Having canned former head coach Nate McMillman during the all-star break and replacing him with Quin Snyder, Atlanta has been playing basically the whole season with an eye on the future. Last-minute playoff qualification as a play-in tournament participant hasn’t done anything to alter that perception. Snyder’s team will likely be 1 loss away from additional planning for the future by the time Game 3 ends.
Be sure to check out our full Boston Celtics vs Atlanta Hawks predictions
Cleveland Cavaliers ML over New York Knicks (+110)
After allowing New York guard Jalen Brunson to go off in Game 1, Cleveland made sure not to make the same mistake in Game 2. Brunson went just 5-for-17 from the field and 1-for-8 from 3, which obviously made a huge difference in turning the tide. The Cavaliers didn’t just bounce back from their series-opening loss; they destroyed the Knicks 107-90. Darius Garland delivered 32 points and 7 assists while draining 6 shots from the land of plenty, giving him a ton of momentum heading into Friday’s crucial Game 3.
It has to be noted that Cleveland is an impressive 6-1 SU in its last 7 on the road. It’s true that a playoff atmosphere is different, but the Cavs appear primed to handle such a situation. If Julius Randle continues to underwhelm, the visitors may be on course to take a lead in this series and regain home-court advantage.
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Denver Nuggets -2.5 over Minnesota Timberwolves (-110)
Similar to the Celtics vs Hawks series, there is no need to overthink this one. The Nuggets are just a much better team and it isn’t particularly close. The Timberwolves have no prospects for the present (the “present” being these playoffs) and they also have none for the future after unloading basically all of their upcoming first-round draft picks for Rudy Gobert. This team is disheartened, and not just because it lost back-to-back games in Denver to begin this mismatch of a series. Although the Nuggets weren’t any good on the road during the regular season, the Timberwolves went an unspectacular 22-19 at home. I will gladly give the 2.5 points with the visitors.
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