Each day, one of our experts will offer up a best bet (or two or three) that mobile sportsbooks are offering. It might be a traditional spread bet, a player prop or one of the various odds boosts that books offer.
Here are our best bets for Monday, March 13:
TOP PLAY
The play: NBA, Timberwolves (+5.5) over Hawks
The odds/bet: -110 ($33 to win $30)
The book: Caesars Sportsbook
Time/TV: 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass)
Our take: The Timberwolves and the Hawks are in similar spots, as they both have .500 records and are in position to host play-in games, but this spread is wider than expected in favor of the Hawks to where we see value in the T-Wolves.
The reason for the spread being this wide seems to be because Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert is dealing with an ankle injury that will likely keep him off the floor, but they have a capable backup in Naz Reid to help make up for Gobert’s absence.
There’s still a chance Gobert can go, but we still like Minnesota even if he’s out since 5.5 points is enough of a cushion to where they should be able to cover even if they can’t win outright.
NBA MONEY LINE PARLAY
The play: NBA money line parlay: Heat over Jazz, Celtics over Rockets, Warriors over Suns
The odds/bet: +125 ($10 to win $12.50)
The book: Caesars Sportsbook
Time/TV: Jazz at Heat 7:30 p.m. (NBA League Pass), Celtics at Rockets 8 p.m. (NBA League Pass), Suns at Warriors 10 p.m. (ESPN)
Our take: There weren’t any other NBA spreads that we liked, so we’re going with a money line parlay of favorites that we feel confident will all win.
The Heat will be at home against a Jazz team that’s taken a step back in the second half, and the Celtics are a near-lock against a young Rockets team that’s been among the NBA’s worst.
The tricky part could be the Warriors defeating the Suns, but the Dubs have been on fire ever since Stephen Curry’s return, so they should be able to keep that going tonight with Kevin Durant out for the Suns.
HOW WE’VE FARED
- NCAA men’s basketball money line parlay, Alabama over Texas A&M and Houston over Memphis (LOST $30)
- XFL money line parlay, St. Louis over Arlington and DC over Vegas (WON $11)
- Jason Day to finish in the top 20 at The Players Championship (WON $40.50)
- Players Championship parlay – Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas and Keegan Bradley all to make cut (LOST $10)
Sunday’s profit/loss: +$11.50 (2-2)
Final total for the week: +$14.50 (7-8)
Total for March: +$110.50 (14-11)
Total for 2023: -$21.50 (46-51)
NOTE: If a line or odds are minus, it considers the juice one must lay to place the bet. Ex: Team A is -160 on the money line, one would have to bet $160 to win $100 (or $16 to win $10). OR Team B is a 5-point favorite at -110, one would have to bet $110 to win $100 (or $11 to win $10.)
