NBA Expert Picks and Best Bets | June 17

The Dallas Mavericks managed to stave off elimination with a convincing win over the Boston Celtics in Game 4. Alas, the Mavs are back in Boston for another must-win game in Game 5 on Monday. With at least one game left in the NBA season, there are plenty of sportsbook promos to explore ahead of Game 5. Meanwhile, the US Legal Sports Betting team is here to help with three picks from three of the best betting sites as the Celtics try to seal a championship on Monday night.

Celtics -6.5 | -110 at bet365

Somewhat predictably, the Celtics folded in Game 4 after getting down early. But the same thing isn’t going to happen in Game 5. They probably prefer to win the NBA title on their home floor anyway. That should be good news for the folks using Massachusetts sportsbooks to support the home team. Thus far, the three games that Boston has won in this series have all come by at least seven points. That makes the 6.5-point spread from bet365 a manageable one. Also, don’t forget to check out our bet365 review.

During the playoffs, the Celtics have gone 8-2 at home, which is on par with how dominant they were during the regular season. They also went 5-2-1 against the spread in those eight playoff home playoff wins. With the motivation of wanting to close out the series at home and the pressure off with a comfortable 3-1 series lead, we expect the Celtics to be at their best and win Game 5 convincingly, so we’re not too worried about the spread.

Under 209.5 | -115 at BetMGM

In all four games of this series, the point total has remained under the pre-game projection. While that over/under has consistently moved down from 217.5 points in Game 1 to 209.5 points for Game 5, it seems foolish to go against the grain now. Of course, feel free to learn more about over/under betting before making this pick.

As far as Game 5 is concerned, the losing team in this series is yet to score 100 points in all four games. In fact, the loser has failed to reach 90 points twice. At the same time, the winner has failed to reach 110 points in all four games. The 206 total points scored in Game 4 was the highest of this series. But since that game was a clear aberration compared to the rest of the series, we expect another low-scoring affair in Game 5. As long as BetMGM is at 209.5 points, we’ll stick with the under. Also, make sure you read our BetMGM Sportsbook review.

Jayson Tatum Over 2.5 Made Threes | -155 at BetRivers

While Tatum hasn’t been Boston’s best player during the NBA Finals, he hasn’t been shy about hoisting shots. In fact, he’s been more than happy to take a lot of threes throughout the playoffs. Taking a high volume of perimeter shots is why we like Tatum to make at least three in Game 5. He’s going to keep shooting them, and Tatum is too good of a shooter for a few of them not to fall.

Dating back to the conference finals, Tatum has made at least three shots from three-point range in four of his last six games. Game 4 was such an outlier that it’s not taking his 1 for 4 shooting from outside seriously. Before Game 4, Tatum had attempted at least seven three-pointers in 10 straight games. Again, the volume is why we like this bet from BetRivers in Game 5. Also, read our BetRivers Sportsbook review to see how much we like the app.