Can the Bucks enter the All-Star break on the right note?
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It's the final day of NBA games before All-Star Weekend festivities commence Friday. However, most teams have already begun their weeklong break, with regular-season games resuming next Thursday.
There are only three contests Thursday night, and we have two best bets to finish the week.
Bucks @ Grizzlies (+11.5, O/U 223)
The Eastern Conference standings are incredibly tight, as 4.5 games separate seeds two through five. The Bucks are two games behind the Cavs for the 2-seed.
Milwaukee has gone through a tough stretch since hiring Doc Rivers - losing six of its last 10 - but picked up an impressive win over the Nuggets on Monday. However, it followed that up with a blowout loss to the Heat on Tuesday.
It's concerning the Bucks play their third game in four days on Thursday, and the looming All-Star break could be a distraction. But they have a perfect matchup against the Grizzlies.
Milwaukee must capitalize against bad teams as it claws for every win it can find to secure a spot toward the top of the East. Memphis has one of the NBA's worst rosters and is on the second leg of a back-to-back. The Bucks won't mess around and will head into the All-Star break with a dominant win.
Pick: Bucks -11.5
Anthony Edwards: Over 26.5 points
Anthony Edwards poured in 41 points against the Blazers on Tuesday. The Timberwolves play at Portland again Thursday night.
Edwards won't have another 40-point outing, but the Blazers don't have the point-of-attack defensive personnel to slow him down. He's averaging 30.3 points per game in February and 26.1 points on the season.
The only concern is that the Timberwolves have Edwards listed as questionable due to knee soreness. Assuming he plays a normal workload, he should soar past 26 points against a bottom-tier defense.
Odds: -115
Sam Oshtry is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X @soshtry for more betting coverage.