Betting Guides

The Houston Rockets (39-23, 3rd in the West) travel to Frost Bank Center on Sunday to close out the regular season series against the San Antonio Spurs (46-17, 2nd in the West), tipping off at 8:00 PM ET in a nationally televised Southwest Division game with playoff seeding genuinely at stake. Kevin Durant, Alperen Sengun, and Amen Thompson come in fresh off a 106-99 win over Portland on Friday, while Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs finished a 25-point comeback against the Clippers to win 116-112 in what their own star described as leaving "zero left" physically. San Antonio opened as a 5-point favorite and has ticked up to -5.5 at most books, with the total sitting at 222.5. Sengun averages 20.2 points and 5.4 assists across nine career matchups with Wemby, and the season series sits at 2-1 Spurs heading into the fourth and final regular season meeting.

The Dallas Mavericks (21-42), sitting on a six-game losing streak and their fourth road game in five days, visit Scotiabank Arena to face the Toronto Raptors (35-27) on Sunday, March 8, tipping off at 6:00 PM ET, with Cooper Flagg listed as questionable due to a left midfoot sprain and both Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II confirmed out. This is a matchup between a Toronto team fighting for playoff seeding in the East and a Mavs squad that has won twice in their last 18 games, running on empty through a brutal stretch of road basketball with a rookie star who re-aggravated his foot injury on the floor at TD Garden just 24 hours ago. The Raptors opened as 10-to-10.5-point home favorites depending on the book, and the total sits at 228.5, setting up a number that asks both teams to score above what either has actually done in weeks.

The Detroit Pistons (45-17), owners of the East's best record and a three-game skid that nobody saw coming, fly into Kaseya Center to face the Miami Heat (35-29) on Sunday, March 8, tipping off at 6:00 PM ET, with Cade Cunningham listed as a game-time decision due to a left quad contusion and Ausar Thompson confirmed out with a right ankle sprain. Detroit is playing the second night of a back-to-back after dropping a Saturday home game to Brooklyn, a squad that entered the week with the NBA's longest losing streak. Miami, meanwhile, just knocked off Charlotte on Friday in a 128-120 thriller and has a full day of rest. The Pistons opened as -1.5 road favorites depending on the book, and the total sits around 222.5, setting up one of those spots where the favorite's credentials and the actual conditions they're walking into are telling two different stories.

The New York Knicks (41-23), riding the Eastern Conference's most convincing stretch run at 16-5 in their last 21 games, fly into Crypto.com Arena to face the Los Angeles Lakers (38-25) on Sunday, March 8, tipping off at 3:30 PM ET on ABC, one day after dismantling Denver 142-103 on the road while the Lakers pulled their own 128-117 win over Indiana with Luka Doncic torching the Pacers for 44 in the first three quarters. LeBron James (left elbow contusion, left foot arthritis) and Maxi Kleber (lumbar back strain) are both questionable for Sunday, while Deandre Ayton returns after sitting out Friday, and Miles McBride remains out for New York through the playoffs following core muscle surgery. New York opens as a 3.5-point road favorite with the total at 227.5, a number that looks clean on paper but comes loaded with a LeBron health question that could swing this line before tip, a Jalen Brunson who has quietly gone cold since the All-Star break, and a Lakers squad that is 19-12 at home and absolutely has the firepower to keep this one competitive.

The Boston Celtics (42-21) visit Rocket Arena on Sunday, March 8 to face the Cleveland Cavaliers (39-24) in an ABC national showcase with genuine East playoff-seeding stakes, tipping off at 1:00 PM ET. Jarrett Allen is out with knee tendinitis, Donovan Mitchell is probable after sitting four straight games with a groin issue, and Jayson Tatum clears the injury report entirely for his first road start since tearing his Achilles last May. Cleveland opened as a slim home favorite, with the line sitting between Cavaliers -1 and -1.5 depending on the book, and the total ranging from 223.5 to 224.5 across books. Two bottom-five pace teams on the floor, the #1 defense in the NBA showing up on the road, and a starting center on the shelf for the home squad: 224.5 is a number bettors should find very interesting.