Top 3 NBA Betting Picks for Wednesday, January 5th (2021)

Following a relatively shallow Tuesday slate, the NBA is back with 11 games this evening with plenty of value across the board. As the league appears on the back end of COVID-protocol-related issues as the virus has made its way through both teams, rosters are returning to normal.

Let’s take a closer look at where the value remains.

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1. Wizards -7| -110 at DraftKings Sportsbook

The road wasn’t easy for the once top-ranked Wizards through December, as the team tumbled from the top of the Eastern Conference standings down to as low as the #8 seed. Without Thomas Bryant in the lineup and missing Bradley Beal out for an extended time, the team struggled to find a sense of rhythm. With Beal back, however, and wingman Kyle Kuzma starting to come into his own as a solidified #2, the Wizards once again have life, having won two of three.

Their opponent in this one, the Rockets, are trending in the opposite direction. Following a stretch that saw them win seven straight, the Rockets have regressed right back to the bottom and come into this one, having lost eight straight. Look for them to continue to the self-implosion tonight in DC and for the Wiz to pick up their third win (and cover) in four tries.

2. Nets -8 |  -110 at DraftKings Sportsbook

Having just played last night in New York, a 94-104 loss to the Knicks, the Pacers now draw the other New York team as the Nets come to town. The big storyline coming into this one is the return of Kyrie Irving, who will be making his season debut as a part-time player whose not allowed to play in New York because of the vaccine mandate.

Irving will look to play the role of savior in this one, as his Nets team come into this one on their first three-game losing streak of the year, having allowed 110 points or more in all three games. I like for the spark to be enough to take advantage of a reeling Pacers team that has lost five straight of their own.

 3. Thunder-Timberwolves Under 215 | -110 at DraftKings Sportsbook

There are bad offensive teams in this league, and then there are the Thunder, who come into this game as the only team in the NBA averaging less than 100 points per game to this point in the season. Keeping their head above water, however, has been their defensive effort as their 107 points allowed per game place them firmly in the top half of the league defensively.

For the Timberwolves, Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell return to the lineup tonight after missing time due to COVID protocols. Look for the duo to get off to a slow start as they ease back into the lineup and for this one to stay well under the posted total.

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