The NBA Playoffs continue on Saturday with another important double-header. As always, we have you covered with some great spread and player prop bets for both games right here!
NBA Playoffs Betting Tips: Saturday, 19th of June
Philadelphia 76ers at Atlanta Hawks
State Farm Center, 9:30am AEST
What a crazy series this has been to lead us up to the point now where the Hawks have a chance to close it out the #1 seed 76ers at home. There have been some big comebacks in the playoffs this season, but none bigger than the one the Hawks pulled off on the road in Game 5 where they trailed by as many as 26 points in the third quarter, before rallying back and winning by three points.
The 76ers were dominant through two-and-a-half quarters in Game 5 thanks to some huge performances from Joel Embiid and Seth Curry who ended up combining for 73 points, but no other Sixer scored in double-figures with Ben Simmons (eight points) and Tobias Harris (four points) really struggling. For the Hawks, Trae Young (39 points) was phenomenal once again, but Danilo Gallinari and Lou Williams were also huge in their comeback.
We were all about the 76ers heading into Game 5 but have certainly lost some confidence in them after their collapse in the fourth quarter. There is still some value in Game 6 of this series however, with the total points line looking 5-10 points too high in our opinion. Each of the last two and three of the past four games have seen 220 points or less scored and in such a pivotal game where every possession means something, we expect another slow tempo game that will be a battle of the two defences.
The only shining light in Game 5 for the 76ers besides Joel Embiid’s big performance was the playoff career high of 36 points for Seth Curry. He’s been playing a lot like his brother of late with four games of 21+ points in his last six, including two games of 30+ points. We like him to cover his 15.5-point line again here.
Prop: Curry O15.5 Points ($1.89)
Utah Jazz at Los Angeles Clippers
Staples Center, 12pm AEST
The home team was an undefeated 4-0 in this series when the #1 seed Jazz returned to Utah to take on the Leonard-less Clippers in Game 5, but the Clippers, led by Paul George, were able to defy the odds and record a famous eight-point win that has now put them in the box seat to advance to the Western Conference Finals.
The Jazz got off to a red-hot start in Game 5 with 17 made threes in the first half, but still only found themselves up by five points. They simply couldn’t keep up with that level of shooting after the main break and fell apart somewhat offensively. Donovan Mitchell didn’t look himself and is clearly hampered by his ankle injury, while Mike Conley is still yet to take to the court this series. For the Clippers, Paul George simultaneously wrestled his demons and the Jazz crowd as he poured in 36 points in one of the best performances of his career to lead his team to victory.
Despite winning on the road and taking a 3-2 lead in the series, the Clippers will start this huge game at home as the slight underdogs, which just doesn’t make sense to us. Jazz’s backcourt of Mitchell and Conley are both listed as ‘questionable’ and even if both suit up, it’s fair to say they won’t be at 100%. As a result, we’re more than happy to be with Paul George and the Clippers to close out the series in front of their home fans.
It was vitally important that Paul George was able to step up in the absence of Kawhi Leonard in Game 5 and it’s vitally important he does the same again in Game 6. He was relentless at attacking the basket with just nine of his 37 points coming from three-point range, which hasn’t always been the case in the past. Now that he has plenty of confidence after a number of big games in a row, we’re keen to back PG13 in to have another great night scoring the ball.
Prop: George 35+ Points ($2.63)
Los Angeles Clippers H2H
$2.05
