NBA best bets today (Predictions for Bulls-Raptors, Thunder-Pelicans and Coby White)

The No. 9 vs. No. 10 seed matchups in the NBA Play-In Tournament take place on Wednesday night, and I have picks in each game, including two player props to bet.

The Chicago Bulls are underdogs against the Toronto Raptors, and the Oklahoma City Thunder are the same against the New Orleans Pelicans. The winners will take on the Miami Heat (Eastern Conference) and Minnesota Timberwolves (Western Conference) for the No. 8 seeds on Friday.

Let’s dive into today’s picks:

NBA best bets record to date

NBA best bets today

• Oklahoma City Thunder +5.5 (-110) vs. New Orleans Pelicans
• Coby White OVER 9.5 Points (+100)
• Nikola Vucevic to Record a Double-Double (-155)

Oklahoma City Thunder +5.5 (-110) vs. New Orleans Pelicans

If there has been one thing that I’ve done all season long, it’s bet on the Thunder as road underdogs.

OKC is an impressive 19-11-3 ATS as a road dog, losing those games by an average margin of just 3.5 points.

The Pelicans are a solid team at home (27-14 straight up), but they are just 16-13-1 ATS as home favorites.

OKC won just one of the regular season matchups between these teams, but each of its three losses were by four points or less.

With Zion Williamson still out for New Orleans, I don’t think the talent gap between these teams is wide enough to justify a 5.5-point spread. I’ll rock with OKC to at least cover in this game.

Coby White OVER 9.5 Points (+100)

Coby White has come on strong as of late for the Bulls, scoring in double figures in 11 of his final 15 games of the 2022-23 season.

White is averaging 9.7 points per game on the year, but over that 15-game stretch he is putting up 13.6 points per game while shooting 52.3 percent from the field and 44.2 percent from beyond the arc.

The Raptors are a tough defensive team with all of their length, but the Bulls need White’s scoring if they’re going to win this game. He’s taken double-digit shots in eight of his last 15, so I think the volume will be there for him to go OVER this number, as long as he is efficient as well.

Nikola Vucevic to Record a Double-Double (-155)

Nikola Vucevic is averaging 17.6 points and 11.0 rebounds per game this season, picking up a double-double in two of his three meetings with Toronto in the 2022-23 campaign.

Vuc played in all 82 games for the Bulls, picking up a double-double in 51 of them. He’s also been on a bit of a hot streak, hitting this prop in 12 of his last 17 games.

Job Poeltl gives the Raptors some more size down low, but the team is still 15th in the league in rebounding percentage.

I think Vuc plays plenty of minutes tonight as the team’s best offensive option at center and clears this prop.

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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.