Andrew Ortenberg
Show Bio
It feels good to be back. The new NBA season officially got started a couple weeks ago, and we have another nice slate on Thursday. What better way to celebrate than by going for a big payday? That’s right; we’re back with another mega parlay, NBA edition. We’re going big and bold again, so let’s not waste any more time.
But before we dive in, don’t forget to check out our free picks on the side and total for every NBA game.
Utah Jazz -1.5 (-110)
Boston Celtics ML (+245)
Los Angeles Lakers -12.5 (-110)
Parlay odds: +1157
Let’s break down each of the three legs one by one.
Utah Jazz -1.5 (-110) over Atlanta Hawks
To start this mega parlay off we have the Jazz as short favorites. I was skeptical of this Atlanta team coming into the year, and I’m not any less skeptical a couple weeks in. The Hawks have started off 4-4 and have lost three of their last four. Each of those three losses have come by at least nine points. Everyone was super high on them because of the playoff run last season, but that run always felt a bit flukey.
Trae Young hasn’t been shooting well from downtown and the Hawks are also at a rest disadvantage. This is the second half of a back-to-back for Atlanta, and they had to play in Brooklyn on Wednesday before catching a flight back home and playing again Thursday. The Jazz, on the other hand, are well rested and 6-1 on the year–with their only loss of the season coming on the road to a tough Bulls team.
Boston Celtics ML (+245) over Miami Heat
In order to get the odds boost to truly make this a mega parlay, we’ve got the Celtics on the money line. Now is the perfect time to buy low on Boston and sell high on Miami. If this game had been played at the beginning of the year, this line wouldn’t have been anywhere near this high. Oddsmakers, and the media, have overreacted to a small sample size. The Celtics just had a players-only meeting after their recent collapse against the Bulls, and they’ve been getting a ton of bad headlines.
They rebounded with a 13-point win over Orlando in their most recent game, and will be highly motivated here to come out with a home-run effort in their first high-profile game since all the negative press. A few of Boston’s losses have been in really close games, and I’m not ready to crown the Heat just because they have started 6-1.
Los Angeles Lakers -10.5 (-110) over Oklahoma City Thunder
To wrap this mega parlay up and hopefully bring us home, we’ve got the Lakers in the slate’s nightcap. Everyone panicked after Los Angeles got off to a slow start, but they’ve now won five of their last six games. LeBron James broke out of his mini shooting slump on Tuesday night, and this is a great spot for the Lakers. They will be looking to run up the score against the Thunder for the embarrassing loss they handed them last week.
The Lakers blew a 26-point lead to Oklahoma City in humiliating fashion, and will have revenge on their minds here. That is still the only win of the season for the 1-6 Thunder. They have also only topped 103 points once in seven games, which is pretty hard to do in today’s NBA. This one shouldn’t be particularly close.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Oklahoma City Thunder vs Los Angeles Lakers
Pickswise is the home of free NBA picks and predictions. Make sure to also check out our NBA parlays and NBA prop bets tabs for more expert picks.
