Day one of the 2022-23 NBA season takes place this Wednesday with a Juicy double-header. Boston hosts the first game of the season with the Celtics locking horns with the visiting 76ers. Following that will be Steph Curry and the Warriors taking on LeBron James and the Lakers. Jake Smit takes you through his best bets for both games!
Also, be sure to check out our best futures tips article, as well as our NBA tips page where you will find our best bets for multiple slates each week!
Picklebet is running an NBA promotion called 3-2-Win! Get $3 odds for 2 or more three-pointers scored in the first 2 minutes of Wednesday’s Warriors v Lakers game and the Celtics v 76ers game. Max bet $50. Available on select games throughout the season.
NBA Betting Tips: Wednesday, 19th October
Philadelphia 76ers at Boston Celtics
TD Garden, 10:30am AEDT
Two teams expected to be key challengers in the Eastern Conference this season will get the NBA season underway on Wednesday morning.
The 76ers will be hoping that better chemistry and natural improvement from some of their younger players will see them take the next step this season. James Harden looks to be in better shape this time around, which is obviously a great sign for their chances of doing something special.
Immense disappointment will still be fresh in the minds of the Celtics after going down to the Warriors in the NBA Finals a couple of months ago. They’ve chosen to run it back with a similar squad for the most part, adding just a couple of different pieces here and there.
These teams played each other four times last season and tied the series 2-2 with each club winning once at home and once on the road.
It’s always tough to predict which way the result will go on opening day games. However, what you can expect from this game is an intense battle, as it’s just been part and parcel of this matchup in recent seasons.
Due to the rivalry and nature of this matchup, four of their last five meetings have resulted in 211 or less points being scored. This is a trend I expect to continue on Wednesday.
Under 216.5 Points
$1.90 (1 Unit)
Los Angeles Lakers at Golden State Warriors
Chase Centre, 1pm AEDT
Modern rivals, Los Angeles Lakers and the Golden State Warriors will do battle in the main event on opening day.
The Lakers are coming off a horrible 2021-22 campaign where they failed to make the playoffs despite being the Championship favourites leading into the season. They made a couple of nice additions to their roster, although outside shooting ability is still the obvious concern.
The Warriors have been the centre of off-court drama in recent weeks. Footage of Draymond Green knocking out Jordan Poole at practice certainly ruffled some feathers, and the true aftermath of that incident remains to be seen. Regardless, the Warriors have a roster littered with talent and are favourites to go back-to-back.
The Lakers have won their last two exhibition games against the Warriors but haven’t tasted much success in games of meaning; they’ve won just one of their last four regular season clashes.
Being on the road first-up doesn’t help the Lakers chances, nor does the fact that the Chase Centre crowd will be jumping on ring presentation night for the Warriors.
The home side should be able to take care of business and cover the spread.
Golden State Warriors -6
$1.90 (1.5 Units)
Prop Bets
Steph Curry is generally a slow starter to the season and has particularly struggled on opening night throughout his career. This turns him into more of a passer more often than not, which is why he’s had 10 assists in each of his last two season openers.
Steph Curry Over 6.5 Assists - $1.82 at Ladbrokes (0.5 Units)
LeBron James has a couple more shooters around him in LA this season, which will help take some of the scoring load away from him. I expect his assists numbers to be high this campaign and for him to look to get his teammates going on opening night.
LeBron James Over 6.5 Assists - $2.20 at Ladbrokes (0.5 Units)
