3 NBA Best Bets and Predictions for Monday 11/25/24

The 82-game NBA regular season offers us a wide variety of betting options, including point spreads, moneylines, and totals. The Association features 1,230 regular season games, which can make sifting through the odds an overwhelming task.

However, various advanced statistics can help narrow the choices. numberFire's NBA power rankings and NBA game projections paired with advanced stats from the NBA can help give the inside track to quality bets.

While utilizing some of the mentioned tools, which NBA odds from FanDuel Sportsbook look like the best bets today?

Please note lines are subject to change throughout the day after this article is published.

Today's Best NBA Betting Picks

Los Angeles Clippers at Boston Celtics

Clippers +11.5 (-114)

The Boston Celtics (14-3) and Los Angeles Clippers (11-7) will meet up for the first time of the season.

This will be the second leg of a back-to-back for both groups, though yesterday's contests looked a lot different for each side.

The Clips hammered the Philadelphia 76ers by 26 points and got to rest their starters in the fourth. The Celtics, on the other hand, gritted out an intense two-point win over a Minnesota Timberwolves team that knows how to wear Boston down. Last year, the Celtics went 0-2 in games that followed Minnesota. Though I'm certain Joe Mazzulla has reminded the team of their historical post-Timberwolves hangover, it's still part of the reason why I like the Clippers to cover an 11.5-point spread tonight.

LAC comes in with the 10th-best net rating and the 5th-best defensive rating. They force teams to shoot threes at a 33.4% clip (second-worst in the NBA) and allow the fifth-fewest made threes per game. That stellar three-point D should help keep them in the game against a Boston group that is attempting upwards of 50 trios a night. The Celtics are 4-2 against the top 15 three-point defenses in the league. Two of those four wins were finished in overtime. The only victory to be decided by more than four points in this split came against a meh Brooklyn Nets team.

Kristaps Porzingis will make his long-awaited season debut tonight. It's never a negative to have the Unicorn on the court, though he'll likely be on a minutes restriction, and the C's might have to figure out rotations on the fly. To add, Al Horford and Luke Kornet are both listed as doubtful. In turn, Neemias Queta figures to get some run against Ivica Zubac, who is off to a career-best season.

It's hard to bet against the Celtics considering they can balloon a lead within minutes from long range. Plus, they're an extra special team at home. Even still, I like the Clips to stay somewhat in the game tonight.

New York Knicks at Denver Nuggets

Under 232.0 (-110)

The New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets will meet up for one of Monday's most intriguing matchups, and I can get on board with the under.

A 232.0 over/under is good for the second-highest on today's slate. That's a tad odd considering the Knicks are playing at the third-slowest pace in the NBA. Now, Denver is running at the sixth-fastest tempo thus far, but last year, both of these teams fared in the bottom five in pace. That's a big reason why their meetings resulted in just 206 and 213 points a season ago.

Defensively, neither the Nuggets (12th DRTG) nor Knicks (21st) have been -- by their standards -- up to snuff. But in a non-conference game that carries a close spread (4.0) and features a pair of championship contenders, we could expect more pointed defensive efforts than normal.

The Knicks are attempting 36.6 threes (16th) while the Nuggets are throwing up just 32.1 trio attempts (29th) per night, so this contest isn't exactly primed for any three-point barrages. numberFire's game projections has this total all the way down at 219 points.

Dallas Mavericks at Atlanta Hawks

Over 236.5 (-108)

A meeting between the Dallas Mavericks and Atlanta Hawks carries Monday's highest game total, one that is deserved.

The Hawks are running at the second-fastest pace in the league. The Mavs aren't too far behind them, ranking 13th in pace. Even in games without Luka Doncic (out; wrist), the Mavs have maintained the same tempo.

Atlanta struggles with the ninth-worst defensive rating in the league. More importantly -- as this total is concerned -- they're allowing the most 3PA, 3PM, and the highest 3P% (39.7%) in the league. The Mavs are averaging 123.5 points across their last four games and have scored 118 and 123 points in two Doncic-less games. The offense is hot and could go haywire when handed a matchup against the second-quickest team that's also extremely exploitable from downtown. Kyrie Irving can get to them, and so too can PJ Washington, who has scored 21 and 22 points on efficient shooting during his last two times out.

This season, the Mavs have played six contests against teams that rank in the top eight in pace. Here's how the totals looked in those games: 237, 242, 243, 240, 261, and 218 points. So, in this split, the games averaged 240.2 points and cleared 236.5 points in all but one instance.

The Hawks have played eight contests versus teams that rank in the top 15 in pace. These games averaged 238.5 points and eclipsed 236.5 in all but two contests. Trae Young's points prop is worth targeting in a game that could explode.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.