The New Orleans Pelicans are as consistent as the Milwaukee Bucks… which is to say they are not. It is okay though, yesterday was still more Meat Loaf for Fantasy Alarm NBA Best Bets. The props came through while the straight bet did not. Sometimes you have to take your own advice. Still ‘two out of three, baby that ain’t bad’ and yesterday brought a profit of .32 units. As they say, ‘fish and bread keep a poor man fed." Today there are eleven games in the NBA, beginning at 3:00 PM ET with the Oklahoma City Thunder playing against the Dallas Mavericks, in an I-35 showdown. The Philadelphia 76ers, Charlotte Hornets, Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, Toronto Raptors, and New Orleans Pelicans are all playing the second of back-to-back games as well. The books are onto us this morning as we pre-loaded five bets and four had their odds move and one disappeared altogether. Not to worry. Here at Fantasy Alarm we like winners! That is what we aim to find as well. There is only one nationally televised game today and that is the Phoenix Suns at Golden State Warriors with a 8:30 PM ET tip off. There will be a wager on this match of Western Conference teams of veterans. Our favorite rookie, Victor Wembanyama, makes another appearance in the column tonight as the San Antonio Spurs continue their Eastern Conference road trip against the Brooklyn Nets. There is also a wager in the match between the red hot Cleveland Cavaliers versus the Toronto Raptors, and it segues us perfectly into the Bet of the Night.

 

BET OF THE NIGHT

SCOTTIE BARNES UNDER 7.5 REBOUNDS (FanDuel Sportsbook -140)

The truth is this line is at 6.5 on both DraftKings and BetMGM, and it was tempting to take it at plus-money, as it is an odds difference of about 65%. However, we like winners, we don’t like using the expression, “look how close we were to plus-money.” Being close in betting does nothing positive. In fact it does the opposite. It leads to frustration, doubt, anger, and second guessing on your next bet. With that in mind, the bet was placed on FanDuel at 7.5, and this column has made a small fortune betting Barnes under 7.5 rebounds. The Raptors are playing in back-to-back games against a team that is on a heavy winning streak. They have won eight games in a row, moved into second in the Eastern Conference with little to-no-attention, and have been dominating almost all phases of the game. Barnes was able to earn 10 rebounds last night, earning his first double-double since January 22nd. Tonight he will be dealing with much larger men in the paint contesting his rebounds. Jarrett Allen’s rebounding line is at 10.5, Evan Mobley’s line is at 7.5, and teammate Jakob Poeltl’s line is at 9.5. Barnes is an amazing athlete, selected to the All-Star Game for a reason, but playing on back-to-back nights against a team just leveling their competition with two big men makes it difficult to believe Barnes can cover the over. He has only recorded eight or more rebounds in two of the last 12 games, and as stated this bet was once ‘The Well’ bet prior to the bookies moving his rebounding line down. Trust Barnes to keep stacking to this small fortune FantasyAlarm has built off of his rebounding line.

PROP BETS

VICTOR WEMBANYAMA OVER 10.5 REBOUNDS (-113 FanDuel Sportsbook)

When shopping around for lines, Victor Wembanyama jumped off the screen for his rebounds on FanDuel. On DraftKings and BetMGM his rebounding line was -145 for over 10.5. They removed it and his rebounding line has been moved to 11.5 at different odds for both of them. Wembanyama only earned one rebound in his last game and had a dip in his minutes. Prior to that game though, he covered this prop in four of his last five games, and six of his last seven. The Brooklyn Nets allow the eighth-most rebounds per game in the NBA with 52.9 per game, and they have allowed a 56.7 average in their last three games. The San Antonio Spurs are the worst team in the Western Conference, but it is not as though the Nets are great. This should not be a blow out game and Wembanyama should play closer to 30 minutes, as this is really the biggest threat for him not to cover this line. Nicolas Claxton is a good center, but he does not have the length and wingspan of Wembanyama who should be a true presence in the paint today. He averages 10.1 rebounds per game, and playing against a below average team should cover this prop some point in the fourth quarter. Trust the frequently mentioned 20-year-old with one unit.

BRADLEY BEAL OVER 4.5 ASSISTS (-145 DraftKings Sportsbook)

Bradley Beal makes his first appearance in Fantasy Alarm NBA Best Bets, and it is on his assists. He has been inactive/injured for most of the first part of the season, but has been on a roll lately. Beal has played every game since returning from December 29th, and the Phoenix Suns have benefitted from it. Since his return the Suns record is 16-6, and they have moved into fifth place in the Western Conference. The big three of Beal, Kevin Durant, and Devin Booker are really living up to the hype. Tonight the Suns play at the Golden State Warriors. If you are anxious for the Super Bowl this will be a game to distract you for the evening. The smart bet tonight is the assists line of Beal, as he has covered this line in six of his last seven games, and eight of his last ten. There are shooters on either side of Beal at almost all times, and he will be looking at center Jusuf Nurkic as he has a clear advantage over the Warriors centers. Both of these teams have won three in a row, the difference is the Golden State Warriors are currently not even in the play-in, and the Suns are safely in the playoffs. Beal should have this line covered before the fourth quarter begins. Trust a unit on it.

 

There is serious potential to reach the season long goal before the All-Star break, or even before the Super Bowl tomorrow. If and when this happens we will formulate a new goal, and attack with calculated bets as we have done so far.

Thanks for reading. Remember to check out Fantasy Alarm for all your fantasy and betting needs across multiple sports. 

Bet Smart, Be Lucky - Iggy

*All Bets to be placed at 1 unit unless specified otherwise