Best NBA Betting Lines Today: Sidelines Best Bets For Sunday, April 3

The NBA season has rounded third and is heading home. A week from today, the playoffs and play-in tournament will be set. We’ll know which unfortunate Eastern Conference powerhouse is locked into a first-round battle with sleeping giant Brooklyn.

We’ll know who in the Western Conference is lined up against the seemingly unstoppable Suns. And we’ll know if LeBron and the Lakers are starting their summer vacation much earlier than anticipated before the season.

Today’s whopping 12 games will go a long way toward delivering those answers, and there are a lot of long spreads today, but for our NBA betting picks of the day, we’re eyeing one short favorite and two shorter underdogs:

Denver @ LA Lakers

The Bet: Nuggets -3.5

LeBron James and Anthony Davis returned from injury on Friday against New Orleans, but the result was the same – another Lakers loss. There’s no reason to assume that changes on Sunday when the Nuggets and presumptive NBA MVP Nikola Jokic come to town.

The last time the two teams played was on January 15, and the Nuggets won by 37. Davis wasn’t available in that game, but he’s not worth 34 points, which is the difference between that result and the Lakers covering today. The team is not going deep into the playoffs, even if it makes it there (a long, long, long shot), and we’ve seen this from LeBron before. He’s championship or bust at this point in his career, and he’s not going to put valuable miles on his vehicle without any real purpose.

Denver, meanwhile, is trying to hang on to a top six seed and has an outside chance of playing its way into a top four spot and home court advantage in the first round. There’s also Jokic’s MVP candidacy, which looks good but is far from assured with Giannis and Joel Embiid having similarly phenomenal seasons. A big game against a high-profile opponent could put him over the top. It’ll be worth backing the more motivated favorite in this one.

Detroit @ Indiana

The Bet: Pistons +1

What does this Detroit Pistons team still need to do? It’s won two in a row, including one against Philadelphia, and it’s covered 17 of its last 21, bucking the NBA odds like few other teams in recent years. It’s 2-1 straight up against the Pacers this season, and it has covered the spread in all three games.

The Indiana Pacers have lost six straight (2-4 ATS over that stretch), and they’ll be without Myles Turner and Chris Duarte for this game. Malcolm Brogdon is questionable, and you have to wonder: Why would this team overdo it with any of its players? They have nothing to play for but pride, and right now, this Detroit team, led by Cade Cunningham, is prouder. They should be favorites, so you might as well grab the point.

New Orleans @ LA Clippers

The Bet: Pelicans +3

Paul George is back, and he looks as good as ever. In his two games since returning from a two-month-long injury absence, he’s averaging 28 points per game. In those games, the Clippers won by six against Utah at home and lost by five at Chicago.

On the season, the Clippers have lost to the Pelicans three games, all by double digits. And you’re probably thinking, “Yes, but the Clippers are a different team with Paul George,” and that’s true, but two of these losses, including one at home, came with Paul George in the lineup.

And this is a very different, and much better, New Orleans team with CJ McCollum averaging 25 per game over his last ten and really elevating the play of guys like Brandon Ingram. The Pelicans are 6-2 ATS over their last eight. The Clippers are 2-6 ATS over the same stretch. Take the hotter team getting points.