Those pesky Vegas online NBA betting sites are now moving their numbers much like how the scenes shift on Monday night. In this article, we have our early NBA Monday Top Cuts for two Game 5’s and a Game 4. Will the home teams hold serve or can the road teams breakthrough? At VegasBetting, we look at persuasions besides the money lines.
| NBA Monday Night Picks 4/25 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Boston Celtics | +100 | -105 |
| Brooklyn Nets | -120 | -115 |
| Toronto Raptors | +270 | +265 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | -340 | -330 |
| Utah Jazz | +135 | +130 |
| Dallas Mavericks | -160 | -150 |
The fourth-seeded Philadelphia 76ers are still favored over the Toronto Raptors in Game 5. Yes, the scene shifts back to Philly. Game 4 felt like a reprieve for Toronto as they staved off elimination. Philadelphia has been the better team throughout this series. It is partly why the 76ers have been installed as 7.5 point favorites on Monday night to eliminate Toronto and advance to the second round.
A further look showed that Toronto had a little bite in Game 4 as they topped 110 points. However, the first two games of this series were played more at a pace suited to the 76ers. They won Game 1 by 20 and even Game 2 by 15. Toronto never got into either contest and whenever they did, Joel Embiid and James Harden found a way to pull them further way. Even with a torn thumb ligament, Embiid is the most pivotal player in this series.
So, Embiid has to be better in Game 5 on Monday against Toronto. The expectation is that he will be. Typically, the forward learns from his mistakes quickly. He shots just 7-of-16 for 21 points and turned the ball over a series-high five times.
Now, NBA Monday Top Cuts focuses on the following question. Does Philly finally finish off Toronto?
It is amazing how the Philadelphia 76ers are somehow just 7.5 point favorites in the odds. The teams do not seem that evenly stacked and yet Toronto (a more defensive minded team) is expected to just better keep up on the road than expected against a young and angry Philadelphia team. For better or worse, James Harden and company are going to push this pace. Toronto is not going to be eased into this one.
Now, the key for Toronto is that defensive concept. Philadelphia shot more than 50% in both Games 1 and 2. That was capped by a 52.2% effort in the second game. Adding insult to injury was the fact that the 76ers made their foul shots. They went 26-for-30 to the tune of 86.7%.
This has the makings of being a series that end tonight. Toronto found a way to steal Game 4 and arguably Philadelphia could have swept. Do not expect the Raptors to get so lucky in the “City Of Brotherly Love”. Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris should see more open looks on Monday as Philly cranks up their offensive rating. It was well over 125 in both of their home contests.
Toronto just cannot match the offensive thrust that Philly has for more than short and controlled bursts. Philadelphia can slow down Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVliet enough. There are quite a few options. For one, the over at just 209.5 points could be considered low-hanging fruit, the moneyline is a given, and lastly that 7.5 point spread all go the Philly way. This NBA Monday top cuts is worth a possible parlay even.
The NBA Monday Top Cuts for this Eastern Conference rivalry are trending towards a very short series. That’s right. The Boston Celtics had a Game 1 where Jayson Tatum and company narrowly held off a fierce Brooklyn Nets charge. Since then, Boston has just kept winning while Brooklyn has found ways to lose again and again.
All three games have been relatively close. The good thing for bettors is that each game has benefitted Boston one way or the other. That plus-money continues again for Game 4. With the spread staying around one to two points, the moneyline is a better bet (marginally) compared to “against the spread”.
Brooklyn feels all the pressure now. There’s no question. They cannot be swept. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving could not expect to go out like this. No team has come back from down three games to zero. In the critical moments, Brooklyn has not shown once an ability to finish things off. With the offense running through Tatum, Brooklyn cannot slow him down enough. Even Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart have played well on both sides of the ball.
For this NBA Monday Top Cuts pick, our best bet is to now take the Boston Celtics and the point with a moneyline. After all, both picks come in at right around even money. Combine the two for a decent plus-money parlay if need be.
The Dallas Mavericks are even in this series against the Utah Jazz.
Online sites like MyBookie expected a long series between Dallas and Utah. The series has lived up to that hype. Dallas nearly pulled off a Game 4 win as Utah held off the Mavericks by just one point. Luka Doncic and company let their foot off the pedal and Jordan Clarkson smashed through the open door. Dallas will not let that happen at home on Monday.
Fortunately, the Mavericks are even in the series despite missing Doncic for two games. With him fully healthy, Dallas should cover on Monday and win outright to take a 3-2 series lead. Take Dallas minus the three points in the Monday night NBA Top Cuts.
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