NBA Best Bets Today: October 31 Picks & Predictions

Halloween night brings a frighteningly good 7-game NBA Cup slate, with plenty of tricks, treats, and high-stakes action on the menu. Friday’s Cup games did not disappoint, we can only hope tonight’s action is as good. The action starts as early as 3 pm ET, NBA TV will have a double-header featuring the 76ers vs Hornets game at 6 pm ET, followed by the Thunder vs Rockets clash at 8.30 pm ET.

I’ve spent a good part of this morning digging through all seven matchups in search of potential tricks, and I’ve come away with my three favorite NBA Best Bets. So, grab your candy, get comfortable, and let’s see if my NBA Picks can make this Halloween a treat at the betting window!

NBA Best Bet: Under 216.5 Points in 76ers vs Hornets (-105)

Points will be hard to come by in this Eastern Conference affair, between two teams playing on a 2nd night of a bac-to-back scenario. Philadelphia recorded a hard fought 98-93 win over the champion Knicks, while the Hornets lost 95-79 in Washington. The Hornets now hold the two lowest scoring games by a team in the NBA this season, they also scored 81 against Atlanta in the first week. Their leading scorer Brandon Miller averages 24.5 ppg, but is shooting just 37.7%.

As a team the Hornets are shooting under 40% from the field, until Kon Knueppel and Coby White return from injuries they’ll have a hard time putting points on the board. The Sixers could also be without a very important player here as Jaylen Brown is once again listed as questionable, after sitting out last night’s game against New York. There is no room for panic though as Philly’s defense has been elite at just 105 points allowed per game (3rd best), they’re going up against a team that ranks dead last in pace at 100.2 possessions per game. All signs point to a low scoring game, let’s back the under.

NBA Best Bet: Mario Hezonja Over 3.5 Rebounds vs Milwaukee Bucks (-122)

Mario Hezonja said it himself – more often than not he will help his team coming off the bench by playing hard on the defensive end. He’s done brilliantly to transition from being an MVP in the Euroleague, to a bench role in his 2nd stint back in the NBA. His energy off the pine might be the key factor for Cleveland on Saturday as they look to win their first road game of the season. The Croatian forward has delivered on the rebounding front in all five games so far, averaging exactly 4 boards a night.

The Bucks are a mediocre team in this area, allowing 53.8 rebs a night which ranks them 15th in the NBA. They do like to push the tempo quite a bit, right now Milwaukee ranks 4th averaging 107.2 possessions per game. That’s two spots above the Cavaliers who are at 107 per game, so I think it’s safe to say we can expect plenty of action on the offensive end which should hopefully result in more rebound opportunities across the board. Hezonja just cleared this line with 6 rebounds in the loss to Atlanta, I have him collecting at least 4 on Saturday.

NBA Best Bet: Houston Rockets -2.5 over OKC Thunder (-114) 

The injury situation in OKC just keeps getting worse and worse. The champs from two season ago just announced Chet Holmgren will be out 8-10 weeks with a knee injury, a devastating blow to an already injury hit roster. We just saw OKC get dismantled by the Dallas Mavericks 120-96, it was their first loss of the season in a game in which they could just never get going from the perimeter (5-for-32). It’s not often you see a zero in the fastbreak points category for a team like OKC, but that’s exactly what happened on Thursday. 

Houston will look to take advantage of this situation, even though they too lost to Dallas last night in an NBA Cup game. They too struggled from the three-point line, going just 7-for-29, but unlike the Thunder they were in the game until the very end. It might have just been a bad day at the office, Houston remains 5th best in accuracy from downtown, that’s 20 spots better than the Thunder. They’re also the healthier team here, so despite playing on a back-to-back scenario I still fancy the home team here.