3 Best NBA Bets and Predictions for Friday 3/7/25

The 82-game NBA regular season offers us a wide variety of betting options, including point spreads, moneylines, and totals. The Association features 1,230 regular season games, which can make sifting through the odds an overwhelming task.

However, various advanced statistics can help narrow the choices. Our NBA projections paired with advanced stats from the NBA can help give the inside track to quality bets.

While utilizing some of the mentioned tools, which NBA odds from FanDuel Sportsbook look like the best bets today?

Please note lines are subject to change throughout the day after this article is published.

Today's Best NBA Betting Picks

Cleveland Cavaliers at Charlotte Hornets

Under 234.5 Points (-110)

The Friday night slate features long injury reports, but the Cleveland Cavaliers are featuring a healthy rotation -- an uncommon sight especially this time of year from a contending squad.

Meanwhile, the Charlotte Hornets will be without Brandon Miller (wrist), Mark Williams (foot), and Grant Williams (knee). After losing eight consecutive games while going 2-6 against the spread (ATS), Charlotte listed as 17-point underdogs isn’t much of surprise.

This is far too lofty of a spread, though, turning my attention to the 234.5 total. Cleveland should have its way on offense, for it has the fifth-highest shot distribution from three while the Hornets allow the highest shot distribution from beyond the arc (per Dunks & Threes). Pair that with the Association’s top offensive rating and the Cavs should flourish in the scoring department. The over for the Cavaliers’ team total is enticing, but I’m still hesitating on the over for the overall total.

DRatings has the total reaching 230.5 projected points while MasseyRatings is forecasting 226 points. Pairing the two projections, Charlotte has a mean scoring total of 106.9 points. This means we are completely leaning on Cleveland for 125+ points when it comes to the over.

The stats check out for the Hornets struggling to score. Charlotte has the 11th-highest shot distribution from three and posts the 7th-most three-point attempts per contest. Meanwhile, the Cavs cede the 10th-fewest three-point hoists per game and the 7th-lowest shot distribution from deep. Plus, the Hornets are shooting a dreadful 26.6% on triples over their last seven.

I’m leaning on Cleveland’s seventh-best defensive rating with this side. Charlotte is totaling only 107.0 PPG over three head-to-head meetings this season. This total is asking too much from the Cavaliers offense.

San Antonio Spurs at Sacramento Kings

Kings -6 (-110)

Two teams trending in opposite directions will collide in the San Antonio Spurs- Sacramento Kings bout. The Spurs are 2-5 outright and ATS over the last seven, and the Kings are 4-1 outright and 5-0 ATS over the last five.

While a San Antonio team minus Victor Wembanyama isn’t much, Sacramento causes some hesitation due to the injuries of Malik Monk (toe) and Domantas Sabonis (hamstring). That’s two of the Kings’ top four scorers, and both are over 17.0 points per game (PPG).

Fortunately, the Spurs’ style and defense plays into Sacramento’s strengths. For example, the Kings make and attempt the seventh-most shots per game, and frankly, they need it with a meh 54.6% effective field goal percentage (14th-highest). San Antonio plays at the 11th-quickest adjusted pace, giving up the 2nd-most shots and 6th-most makes per contest.

Additionally, Sac Town posts the 14th-most points in the paint per game, and the Spurs cede the 13th-most points in the paint per contest and the 5th-highest shot distribution around the rim. These numbers should continue to come down as opponents average a 34.2% at the rim shot frequency while shooting 63.5% at the rim when Wembanyama is not playing, compared to 28.8% and 61.9% when he is on the floor.

An advantage in the rebounding battle could be the final straw to vault the Kings to another cover; they are 15th in offensive rebounding percentage and 4th in defensive rebounding rate compared to the Spurs ranking 22nd and 26th in the categories. Zach LaVine recording 25.2 PPG over his last five helps alleviate some of the missed production from Sabonis and Monk, too.

New York Knicks at Los Angeles Clippers

Knicks Under 105.5 Points (-120)

Jalen Brunson suffered a leg injury in Thursday night's loss against the Los Angeles Lakers. As if the New York Knicks' continued struggles against the league's top teams isn't frustrating enough, Brunson is now in danger of missing time. The Knicks' leading scorer (26.1 PPG) has missed only one game this season, which came at good timing against a struggling Utah Jazz squad. As Brunson's team-high 30.4% usage rate suggests, New York will likely have a tough time scoring tonight.

The Knicks aren't as a fortunate as the last time when Brunson missed a game. The Los Angeles Clippers are a solid team, and their fourth-best defensive rating should only add to New York's scoring concerns. L.A. plays at the 10th-slowest pace, which the Knicks only feed into with the 7th-slowest pace. The Clips look to make it ugly by holding opponents to the fourth-fewest field goal attempts per game.

Along with a slow pace aiding the under, neither team shoots the three much. New York has the fourth-lowest three-point shot distribution while attempting the fourth-fewest triples per contest, and the Clippers aren't much better by holding the seventh-lowest shot distribution and launching the third-fewest three-pointer per contest. Fewer threes will certainly aid the under.

Additionally, Los Angeles has an excellent interior defense that holds opposing teams to the eighth-lowest shot distribution around the rim and the third-fewest points in the paint per game. With Brunson likely out -- who is second on the team with 6.0 three-point shots per game -- the paint attack should only become more important for New York. Karl-Anthony Towns will step into the lead scoring role, and he takes 62.7% of his shots within 10 feet of the basket. Ivica Zubac boasts a 108.8 defensive rating, further bolstering this strong Clips paint D.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.