basketball | Friday, April 8, 2022 9:16 AM (Revised at: Monday, April 11, 2022 11:13 AM)

NBA Best Bets: Friday April 8th

Sam Cox

Just a couple of days remain in the 2021-22 NBA regular season. While the postseason teams are settled in both conferences, there’s still potential for considerable changes when it comes to playoff seeding.

Among a host of interesting games on Friday night, we’ve picked out our two best bets below.

NBA Best Bets Tuesday, April 8th

Brooklyn Nets vs Cleveland Cavaliers: Nets -7.5 at 1.95
Chicago Bulls vs Charlotte Hornets: Hornets to win at 2.15

Odds as at 12pm April 8th 2022. Odds may now differ.

Brooklyn Nets vs Cleveland Cavs Best Bet

Sat, Apr 9. 00:30 (UK)

Injuries have taken their toll on the Cavaliers. They are 8-14 since All-Star. Having fallen into the Play-In, they are at risk of slipping from seventh over the final two games of the season. Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen, Collin Sexton and Dean Wade are unavailable for this Friday night duel with the Brooklyn Nets, who are coming of consecutive wins.

Brooklyn is 7.5-point favourites at most books. They have covered in under 14% of games as a home favourite this season, but three of their last four wins have been by eight or more.

Steve Nash’s team remain flawed. Goran Dragic, who is in Covid protocols, has joined Ben Simmons and Joe Harris on the injury report. Their defence is subpar. However, the Nets still own a 2.9 net rating over the last 10. Cleveland is at -4.6 over the same period.

The Cavs defence was not the same without Allen. Without Allen and Mobley, they are bottom 10 on that end of the floor. As special as Darius Garland has been on offence, there’s only so much he can do on his own. Cleveland at full strength could potentially slow down Brooklyn, but this version of the team is severely overmatched against a Brooklyn offence led by Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

Despite a 14-11-1 record against the spread as an away underdog, it’s hard to back the Cavs at the moment. It has been a fun break through season for this young team, but it’s threatening to end with a whimper. The Nets should blow them away at Barclays Center on Friday night.

Selection: Nets -7.5
Best Odds: 1.95 (Boyle Sports)
Stakes: 8/10

More tips for Brooklyn Nets vs Cleveland Cavs

Chicago Bulls vs Charlotte Hornets Best Bet

Sat, Apr 9. 01:00 (UK)

Following a blowout win over the Orlando Magic on Thursday night, the Charlotte Hornets are still clinging to hope that they could move out of 10th. Their Play-In berth is secure, but there’s still home court advantage to play for and potentially even moving up to eighth.

Chicago clinched its first playoff spot since 2017 a couple of days ago. This is a team trending in the wrong direction, however, with three consecutive blowout losses. Only the Thunder, Blazers, Lakers and Magic have a worse net rating since the All-Star break. The Bulls are 7-14 over that period.

The Hornets are 12-8 and +3.1 over the same spell. They lost both of their previous matchups with the Bulls, but their offence has been lethal of late. Powered by the ever-entertaining LaMelo Ball, Charlotte ranks fourth in offensive rating since All-Star, which is particularly concerning for a Bulls team which leaks so many points.

Favoured by a couple of points at most books, the Bulls cover more often than anyone else as a home favourite. Charlotte, meanwhile, is 22-17-1 against the spread on the road.

With nothing to play for, the Bulls could manage the workload of their key men on Friday night. Lonzo Ball is out for the year, while Zach LaVine and Alex Caruso both appear on the injury report. This game means much more to the Hornets than it does to the Bulls, and Charlotte is fully healthy except from long-term absentee Gordon Hayward.

With such a small spread, it’s worth going to the moneyline for this one. We’re backing the Hornets to pick up their 21st road win of the season.