Best bets to consider for Sunday's NBA playoff slate
With a handful of first-round NBA postseason games tipping off Sunday, we dove into every matchup to deliver the ins and outs from a betting perspective.
Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics
Line: Celtics -7
Total: 209.5
The Celtics get a much-needed blank slate in their first-round series against the Pacers. After falling short of expectations during the regular season with a 49-33 record, the Celtics start the playoffs in TD Garden, where they've been unconventionally cold of late. Boston closed the year 0-8 against the spread at home and 4-4 straight-up, but there are greener pastures ahead. The Celtics went 10-1 against the spread at home during last year's postseason - without Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward - and are on a 9-2 run against the number in first-round playoff games.
A Celtics squad looking to flip the switch welcomes a Pacers team that would have preferred different results down the final stretch of the campaign. The Pacers and their top-ranked scoring defense went 3-9 overall in their final 12 games, during which they allowed more than 117 points per contest.
Indiana took the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers down to the wire in last year's opening round, though the Pacers had a healthy Victor Oladipo to carry the offense. With Oladipo out for the season, Indiana is light on star power against Irving and Co., and it should be evident early on.
Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Portland Trail Blazers
Line: Trail Blazers -3
Total: 225
Portland-Oklahoma City is expected to be the closest series based on first-round prices set by the oddsmakers. After the Trail Blazers won six straight head-to-head meetings coming into the 2018-19 regular season, Oklahoma City rebounded with a clean 4-0 sweep this year.
Following consecutive first-round exits, the Thunder will need to get off to a fast start in more ways than one. They closed out the regular season on a 3-20 run against the first-half spread. Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers rank No. 7 in the NBA in first-half net margin at plus-2.7.
In what should be a tightly contested game Sunday, the first-half line - Portland -1.5 - might be the better look.
Detroit Pistons at Milwaukee Bucks
Line: Bucks -13
Total: 219.5
The Pistons figure to bend the knee in the first round against the Bucks, who are -5000 to take the series. Milwaukee sliced up Detroit in all four meetings during the regular season, winning by roughly 15 points per contest. The Pistons, who have the lowest offensive efficiency of any team in the postseason, will now have to take on the NBA's top-ranked defense.
Milwaukee has struggled the past two first-round playoff series, as it is on a 2-8 run against the spread. However, this might be the biggest mismatch of the entire first round, especially if Blake Griffin - who is listed as questionable for Game 1 - is forced to miss any time.
The Pistons didn't have an answer for the Bucks during the regular season, and you can expect more of the same in a playoff setting.
Utah Jazz vs. Houston Rockets
Line: Rockets -6.5
Total: 214
Styles will clash in the first round between Utah's second-ranked defense and Houston's No. 2 offense, both in terms of efficiency metrics. Of the four meetings during the regular season, three went under the total while the lone over was by a single bucket. The Jazz held a Rockets offense that shot 44.9 percent from the field during the regular season to under 41 percent in three of the four meetings. The total opened up at 219 and has dipped all the way down to 213.5 in some places.
The Jazz gained valuable postseason experience last year when they beat Oklahoma City in six games before a second-round exit in five to these same Rockets. The stage doesn't figure to be too big for a Utah team that went 10-3 against the spread in its previous 13 road games and 3-0-1 in the last four games in Houston.
Alex Kolodziej is theScore's betting writer. He's a graduate of Eastern Illinois who has been involved in the sports betting industry for 11 years. He can quote every line from "Rounders" and appreciates franchises that regularly wear alternate jerseys. Find him on Twitter @AlexKoIodziej.