Free NBA Western Conference Playoff Picks, Best Bets, and Parlays for 4/16/22

Today the first round of the NBA playoffs gets underway with 4 games on the schedule. There will be three games in the Western conference and Toronto-Philadelphia in the East.

We broke even on our Best Bet last night as the Hawks covered the spread and eliminated Cleveland, but the Pelicans upset the Los Angeles ending another disappointing year for the Clippers. That improved our Best Bet of the Day record to 73-34 in 2022.

We went 1-1 betting the MoneyLine our overall record is 435-218.

Let’s dive into the 3 games in the Western Conference for today.

*PAPA DUDES BEST BET* #5 Minnesota at #2 Memphis (-6.5): The T-Wolves come into Memphis after an impressive win over the Clippers in the Play-In game. They are a high-scoring bunch led by Karl-Anthony Towns (24.3 pts. per game) and Anthony Edwards (21.3 pts.). If they get on a roll they can be a handful for anyone. However, they have a leaky defense and tend to give up points in bunches. The Grizzlies will look to exploit that poor Minnesota defense with the threesome of Ja Marant, Dillon Brooks, and Desmond Bane. I like the tougher, more physical Grizzlies to prevail in Game 1. PAPA DUDES BEST BET: Grizzlies -6.5

*PAPA DUDES BEST BET* #6 Denver at #3 Golden State (-6.5): The Nuggets and Warriors open this series in California for Game 1. Denver is led by all-everything Nikola Jokic, who is averaging 27 points and 14 rebounds per game. They rely on him to do it all and that will be a problem in this series. He is going to have to have some help from the supporting cast. The Nuggets are somewhat inconsistent, but they are a dangerous team when they are playing well. On the other hand, Golden State is well known for their experience and ability to make deep playoff runs. They finished the season on a 5-game winning streak without Steph Curry and he will be back tonight. I see no reason not to back the Warriors. PAPA DUDES BEST BET: Golden State -6.5

#5 Utah (-5) at #4 Dallas: This game has been changed because of the hamstring injury suffered by the Mavs’ Luka Doncic. He has been ruled out for today’s game and possibly Game 2 as well. This is a severe blow for Dallas and presents a golden opportunity for Utah to get a big win on the road. The Jazz were fully capable of beating the Mavericks with Doncic in the lineup and now it greatly heightens their chances. They better take advantage of it. I think they win, but fail to cover. PAPA DUDES PICK: Dallas +5