Online NBA betting sites are now shifting on their numbers much like the scene shifts to the home of the lower seeds. In this article, we have our early NBA Friday Best Bets for two Game 3’s. Will the home teams hold serve or can the road teams break through? At VegasBetting, we look at things other than just the moneyline.
| NBA Friday Night Picks 4/22 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Hawks | +125 | +130 |
| Miami Heat | -105 | -110 |
| New Orleans Pelicans | +100 | +105 |
| Phoenix Suns | -120 | -125 |
The top-seeded Miami Heat are still favored over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 3. Yes, the scene shifts to Atlanta. However, Miami has versatility. When Atlanta started to shoot better in Game 2, it was Jimmy Butler who lit things up for 45 points on 15-for-25 shooting. That was the difference in another double-digit point win.
A further examination reveals this. Miami scored 115 points again. Atlanta got a little closer but could not make a game of it in the fourth quarter in Game 2. The rest of the game showed the Hawks that they could shoot better than 50% against Miami but again that third quarter and one Jimmy Butler fourth quarter explosion.
So, Miami saw an Atlanta team that came to play. It was a much better and balanced effort from the Hawks in Game 2. Bogdan Bogdanovic is going to be a player to watch. Miami could not contain him and he outpointed Trae Young which is tough to do. Bogadanovic had 29 points in all and was 12-for-18 from the field including 50% from three-point range. Atlanta does have to shoot a bit better than 30% from three overall.
Now, a minor debate starts up for NBA Friday Best Bets. Should Atlanta be the favored team in Game 3 on Friday or should it be Miami?
It is amazing how the Atlanta Hawks are somehow slight underdogs in the odds. The teams do seem evenly stacked and yet Atlanta is still getting 1.5 to as much as 2 points in some circles early. If only believes the old adage that a home team gets a three-point bump. That means the experts are still giving Miami about a two-possession buffer overall. Atlanta feeds off their crowd well and that could allow their players to have those “explosions”.
Now, the key for the Hawks is for Trae Young not to get so rattled. Young turned the ball over ten times and only had four foul shots in Game 2. The guard err slasher looked downright slow at times. Then, his perimeter shot had issues. It seemed Young just could not find the stroke. He had open looks. The guard went 2-for-17 from distance in Miami. He was a 38.2% shooter from beyond the arc during the season.
This has the makings of being a series that could go six or seven games. Atlanta came up with a much better effort as a team in Game 2. They had two key points in the second half where they faltered. That was enough for Miami to make the game look easier than it was.
Atlanta has the potential of giving Miami plenty of problems and has the pace to turn the tables on Miami (especially a young Heat team). This should be a statement game for the Hawks. Hopefully the Hawks can continue to get plus-money on this one.
The NBA Friday Best Bets for this Western Conference clash are trending towards a longer series. That’s right. The Phoenix Suns and New Orleans Pelicans had a Game 1 where Chris Paul saved the day. New Orleans flipped the script in Game 2.
The 1-2 punch of CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram combined for 60 points. New Orleans turned an early third-quarter deficit into a lead and never looked back. They outscored Phoenix 69-53 as the youth ran wild and Phoenix had few answers defensively.
Now, the pressure shifts to Phoenix for Game 3. Worse, the Suns are on the road. Consider that there is the injury to Devin Booker (hamstring strain) that turned the tide some. More importantly, it is expected that Booker will be out at least for the next two games.
The Phoenix Suns say that he is unlikely to play in Game 3 and 4 but again one never knows. It does seem that he will be out for Friday’s game barring something unforeseen. A clearer picture of the injury should be revealed soon enough after an MRI was done late on Wednesday. For what it is worth Devin Booker did have 31 points but was a -8 on the court in Game 2. New Orleans found ways around his offense.
For this NBA Friday Best Bets pick, our best bet is to now take the New Orleans Pelicans and the point. After all, the New Orleans’ youth along with interior presence caused Phoenix some real problems in Game 2. Without Booker, Phoenix may not have the answers as the Pelicans slowed Chris Paul down (5-16 shooting). If Booker misses too much of this series, New Orleans may do more than win a few games, they may just advance.
The Phoenix Suns expect to easily win this Round 1 series. However, New Orleans showed a lot winning Game 2 the way they did. With Devin Booker hobbled by a hamstring injury, maybe we were wrong with New Orleans.
MyBookie has swung a bit already with six and seven game outcomes at shorter odds than five games. Keep that in mind as the series goes on.
See the prime Vegas online betting sportsbooks where you can wager to win some money:
