It's tough to see my beloved college hoops leave the daily odds sheet, but the hot streak we've started here on Tuesday's Top Picks is bound to continue, thanks to our diligence and commitment to delivering winners to you.
Tonight we turn our attention to the conclusion of the NBA regular season, where intangibles like motivation become factors with playoff positioning still up in the air for a handful of teams. We're also going to take a head-first dive into baseball to start getting our systems honed for the long summer months between basketball and football season.
Here's what we're picking for Tuesday, April 9. All odds via Westgate.
1. Celtics at Wizards: Wizards -5
The Celtics are resting Kyrie Irving, Al Horford, Jason Tatum and trotting out a bench-heavy rotation for Tuesday night's road game with the Wizards. While the home court advantage is yet to be determined, Boston and Indiana are locked into the 4-5 spot in the Eastern Conference Playoffs already, and Brad Stevens has an opportunity to get some rest for his key players. It can be nerve-wracking to ask the Wizards to not only beat the Celtics but cover the number, especially considering their current three-game losing streak, but in this case I'm siding with the oddsmakers. Wizards over Celtics by 7.
The SportsLine Projection Model has also identified Celtics-Wizards as a value play, with one side of the spread covering in 67 percent of simulations. Head over to SportsLine to see the pick, as well as which side of the total you should play.
2. 76ers at Heat: 76ers +6
Maybe you're like me and spent a solid chunk of the morning in your feels with the Dwyane Wade video, and the occasion of his home finale is going to be one of the biggest storylines of the night. Maybe it was this steam of public support and emotion for Wade, one of the sport's finest champions, and the likelihood that Joel Embiid won't be playing that has pushed the Miami line way out to six points. I believe that the Heat can and might win the game, but in the name of fade the public, I'm going to take the rest of the Sixers in a spot where I think we have some value.
The SportsLine Projection Model has also identified a clear edge on one side of the Rockets-Thunder total, with that pick cashing in 67 percent of simulations as well. You can see which side has the clear value over at SportsLine, along with the computer's ATS pick.
3. Yankees at Astros: Under 8 (-105)
After a seven-run total in the first game of the series between these two teams, the Under has now cashed in 9 of the Astros' 11 games in this early part of the season. With Minute Maid Park's dome -- and even if the roof is open, the expectation is warm temperatures and calm winds in the Houston area -- it's not likely that I'll be circling a ton of Astros Wnders during the year, but it's possible there's some value at this point in the early season. We'll get more into "Wunders" next week, with a sharper eye on the forecast across the country.
Need help building a winning DFS lineup on Tuesday? DFS millionaire Mike McClure has you covered, with his tournament lineups for DraftKings and FanDuel, which include a certain Rockies outfielder with a great matchup. Check out his picks here.
