Three Game 2’s are on deck for Wednesday night’s NBA Playoff action, with a pair of home teams needing to win to avoid the dreaded 0-2 start. The Milwaukee Bucks were the latest victim of Jimmy Butler’s playoff heroics in Game 1 on Sunday, losing by 13 points at home as 8.5-point favorites. The Heat are underdogs again by that margin ahead of Game 2, and the status of Giannis Antetokuonmpo remains a question mark after the two-time MVP missed practice on Tuesday due to a back injury.
In Memphis, the Grizzlies and Lakers are in a pick ‘em situation on Wednesday after LA’s win by 16 points in Game 1. Ja Morant will be a game-time decision after re-aggravating a hand injury while taking a charge in the fourth quarter on Sunday. Memphis was out-shot and out-rebounded by the Lakers despite a standout performance from recently named Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr.
Finally, the Nuggets will host the Timberwolves after a convincing victory in Game 1. Jamal Murray led Denver in scoring, while Nikola Jokic posted 13 points and 14 rebounds in 28 minutes. Denver is an eight-point favorite for Wednesday’s Game 2.
After a 2-1 finish to our plays on Tuesday night, we’ve got another batch of best bets for tonight’s lineup of Game 2’s in Memphis, Milwaukee, and Denver.
Bane shot 6-of-18 from the floor in Sunday’s home loss, connecting on 3-of-10 three-pointers and hitting all seven free throws to finish with 22 points. We’d expect him to have even more shot attempts and scoring chances with an injured or missing Ja Morant, but that did not play out as such in the 2022 playoffs.
Bane averaged 12 shots and 18 points per game in three matchups with Golden State that Morant missed last postseason. Not having the All-NBA point guard didn’t hamper his three-point shooting (10-of-17), but we’re not sure Morant will miss the game.
Either way, we don’t anticipate the circumstances will lead to a 24+ point effort from Bane and are on his under.
Holiday’s 16 points, 16 rebounds, and seven assists in Game 1 couldn’t propel Milwaukee to victory, but it was a rarity to witness. Only four other players since 2000 have posted that stat line in a playoff game, a list that includes LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Rajon Rondo, and Jason Kidd, who did it twice.
The point is that, while impressive, it’s unlikely that Holiday comes close to that kind of stat-stuffing performance in Game 2. As a result, we project him to land somewhere between 28-32 combined points, rebounds, and assists tonight, and will play the under.
Sunday’s game marked Murray’s first playoff action since the bubble playoffs of 2020. That stretch served as his coming out party, during which he posted four games of 40+ points, and Denver made a run to the Western Conference Finals.
Murray looked like his old self in Game 1 and racked up 24 points to go with eight assists despite not shooting well. We expect him to connect on a higher percentage of shots in Game 2 while still acting as a playmaker in the Nuggets’ offense. Take Murray’s over for Pts+Asts in Game 2.
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