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The NBA may be an afterthought to basketball fans as everyone rushes to fill out a bracket and place bets on the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament.
However, the Association is still churning along. We'll keep providing our best bets with only a few weeks left in the regular season. Here are Monday's plays.
Knicks @ Warriors (-5, O/U 211.5)
The Knicks are slowly looking like the team that went 14-2 in January. While they still aren't completely healthy, Jalen Brunson looks like an All-Star again after a minor knee issue and OG Anunoby returned last week after missing over a month.
Anunoby is still nursing his elbow injury, but his defensive presence and role as a catch-and-shoot threat help New York.
The Knicks have won three straight and four of their last five. Although the Warriors are a formidable threat with Steph Curry back, New York's defense with Anunoby is one of the NBA's best. Their last five games have gone under, which is why this total is low. A defensive-oriented game should favor the Knicks.
Pick: Knicks +5
Heat @ Sixers (-2.5, O/U 209)
The Heat are on the second leg of a road back-to-back after Bam Adebayo's buzzer-beater three lifted Miami to victory over Detroit on Sunday night.
Although the Heat traveled to Philadelphia following the win, they've been mostly unphased when playing on consecutive nights. Miami has covered more games than it hasn't with no rest.
Jimmy Butler and Nikola Jovic also missed Sunday's game with injuries. Assuming they're good to go Monday, Miami will be in good shape to take advantage of an atrocious Sixers squad.
Every game matters for the Heat moving forward as they fight to avoid the play-in tournament. For Philadelphia, which has lost five of its seven, its only hope is to pray Joel Embiid returns before the season ends.
Pick: Heat +2.5
Darius Garland: Over 22.5 points
Darius Garland's scoring inconsistencies make this a somewhat risky bet. But Garland's usage rate increases without Donovan Mitchell, who's out Monday night.
The Cavs need Garland to carry the scoring load and increase his ball-handling responsibilities when Mitchell is out. Cleveland's opponent Monday night is the Pacers, who have a suspect perimeter defense. Garland will have plenty of scoring chances against the league's sixth-worst defense.
Odds: -120
Sam Oshtry is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X @soshtry for more betting coverage.
