Top 5 NBA Odds, Picks & Predictions: Monday (1/6)
There are nine games on the slate tonight, which means there will be no shortage of options to explore. Let's not waste any more time and jump right into some of our favorite picks for Monday, January 6th.
Monday’s Best NBA Picks
(Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook)
Cade Cunningham 10+ Assists (-115)
To open the evening, we head to Detroit where the Pistons take on a Portland squad coming off a tremendous road win against the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday. For this contest, we will focus on a heavy number on Cade Cunningham’s assists prop in a spot where the opportunities could be plentiful.
The Trail Blazers concede the seventh-highest amount of assists per game to opponents, allowing 27.6 dimes on the season. Portland is also averaging over nine assists each contest to the point guard position, while Cunningham has dished out 9.7 assists per game over the last 10 games.
The Detroit guard has only eclipsed 9.5 assists in one game over the last five games. However, the increased usage due to the absence of Jaden Ivey should play a major role in getting us beyond the suggested assist total tonight.
These two teams rank in the top 17 of teams in terms of pace, while sitting amongst the top 14 worst teams in regards to defensive rating. We expect a solid amount of scoring in this contest, which should result in Cunningham clearing 9.5 assists.
New York Knicks Parlay: Under 210.5 Points/Knicks Moneyline (+115)
The Orlando Magic simply cannot catch a break as the team once again loses another starting player to injury in the first few months of the season. Jalen Suggs will not be available for the Magic in this contest due to back spasms.
For New York, Jalen Brunson is currently listed as probable, with Karl-Anthony Towns deemed questionable after limping to the locker room late in the game on Saturday. Miles McBride is also listed as questionable with a strained hamstring.
If Towns does miss this contest, the under of this parlay combination looks even stronger. Having said that, the Magic just played yesterday and only managed to score 92 points against the Utah Jazz, who are last in defensive rating across the league.
This matchup gets even worse for Orlando given the fact the team is on the road where they average three fewer points per game and shoot 29.8% from beyond the arc. The last two times these squads matched up on the season, they combined for 191 and 193 points. These two teams also rank in the bottom five in pace on the season.
Indiana Pacers Team Total Over 116 Points (-118)
Indiana faces a Brooklyn team tonight who have set their sites on the future with most of the season as a means to begin a full rebuild. The departure of Dorian Finney-Smith not only hurt the team's three-point efficiency but also highly impacted any kind of defensive presence going forward.
Indiana has scored at least 120+ points in three of their last four games and owns the ninth-highest offensive rating in the NBA on the season, including the highest rating over the last four games. Brooklyn has allowed an average of 121 points over their last three games, with a defensive rating of almost 120 over that span.
We expect Indiana to have every opportunity to score in this contest, exceeding 116 points against a gracious Brooklyn defense.
Dallas Mavericks-Memphis Grizzlies Under 232.5 Points (-110)
Injuries play a major role in this selection as the two best scoring options on each team are set to miss this contest. For the Mavs, Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving will not be available. As for Memphis, Ja Morant and Desmond Bane have been ruled out.
Frankly, that doesn't scream a matchup where at least one team will score at least 115-120 points. These are professional basketball players highly capable of getting buckets, yet, the absence of these four players removes a combined 90.3 points from this contest. That's a full total for a 90s NBA team.
Seriously, it's extremely difficult to imagine these two teams will have the firepower to make up that kind of scoring volume. We are going with the safe, and logical approach, taking the lower side of 232.5 points. It wouldn't be a surprise if this total trickled down to under 230 before the contest began.
Los Angeles Clippers Moneyline (+132)
Onto what will no doubt be the biggest sweat of our selections, where the Clippers are on the road to face the Minnesota Timberwolves. These two teams allow the fourth- and fifth-fewest points per game, separated by .01. This should be a closely contested battle and we feel Los Angeles has a sound chance to pick up the win on the road.
With the return of Kawhi Leonard, even in a limited capacity (played 19 minutes in his first game back), the Clippers are slowly forming back into some semblance of full strength. Los Angeles was masterful with Leonard back on the floor, dismantling the Atlanta Hawks by 26 points.
While Minnesota has previously bested the Clippers twice on the season, the Timberwolves have lost three games in a row, as well as three of their last four home games. Los Angeles has been victorious in four of their last six games, including winning three of their last six contests on the road.
Over the last five games, the Clippers are ranked sixth in defensive rating, only allowing the opposition to score 109.6 points each contest, limiting three-point success to only 32%.
Enjoy the games tonight and best of luck with your picks.
Make sure to check out our other best bets for Monday: