NBA parlay picks March 5: Bet on the Rockets, Pistons and Celtics on alt spreads

The Boston Celtics seek to keep their win streak alive, and an alt spread from their matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers is part of this three-leg NBA parlay.

The pregame narrative: Elsewhere, I like the Detroit Pistons to at least not get laughed out of the building when they face the Miami Heat, and the Houston Rockets should be able to pick on the San Antonio Spurs from the comfort of home court.

NBA parlay picks overview

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NBA odds as of 1:00 p.m. on 03/05/2024.

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NBA parlay picks

Parlay: Celtics -4.5 + Pistons +16 + Rockets -4.5 (+242)

Celtics -4.5 (-205): The Celtics are trying for a 12th straight win tonight and should be able to pick it up against a beaten-down Cavaliers squad.

Cleveland won't have Donovan Mitchell or Max Strus in the lineup tonight, and the team is riding a five-game home ATS losing streak.

I've trimmed the spread down a bit for added security, but hopefully that won't be necessary. Each of Boston's past five wins has come by at least 14 points — including a 140-88 bludgeoning of the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.

Also, Boston has covered this number in both matchups against Cleveland so far this season.

Other picks

Pistons +16 (-200): The Heat are 9-1 ATS in their past 10 games, but this would still be quite a lofty number for them to cover.

During this ATS hot streak, the Heat have only been favourites four times. And they've only covered this number twice.

There's been very little opportunity to speak positively of the Pistons this season, but this is a spread that even they have found to be manageable. Detroit has covered a +16 spread in 21 of 22 games since Jan. 12.

Also, the Pistons have a strong history of playing tough against the Heat.

Detroit is 7-1 ATS against Miami since the beginning of the 2021-22 season, and that includes a one-point Heat win in South Beach earlier this year.

Rockets -4.5 (-190): Credit San Antonio for figuring some things out at home and pulling off back-to-back upsets against the Thunder and Pacers. But a new reality should set in now that the Spurs return to the road.

As visitors, the Spurs are 6-27 this season with an abysmal -10.2 net rating. They went 1-8 on a recent road trip, and all eight of those losses came by at least five points.

Houston is an awful road team, too, but has played well inside Toyota Center. At home, the Rockets are 20-10 with the ninth-best net rating in the NBA (+5.6).

Back in December, the Rockets earned an 11-point win over the Spurs in Houston.