Denver Nuggets vs Miami Heat Game 3

The NBA Finals now hang in the balance. That sounds very melodramatic, but the reality is that Miami hasn’t been concerned by that sort of stress throughout the playoffs. If anything, it’s the Nuggets who, for the first time, might be feeling a degree of pressure.

Although they didn’t win both games in Colorado, the Heat have relied on excellent play from Bam Adebayo through two games in this series. 26 points in a losing effort in Game 2 and 21 points to help his team even the series in Game 2. Both are higher than his playoff average of 17.5. One would think that Denver will tighten up defensively It nearly cost them in Game 1 and certainly did in Game 2. As such…

Best Bet: Bam Adebayo under 18.5 points in Game 3

Denver Nuggets vs Miami Heat Game 3: Jamal Murray’s Offence

Switching over to the Nuggets, Jamal Murray had a quiet Game 2. So much ink had been spilled about his heroics through the first three rounds, but Sunday night he didn’t quite look himself, tallying only 18 points. Not a horrible figure, and he pitched in with 10 dimes, so it wasn’t a forgettable night overall. As much as Nikola Jokic is this team’s motor, Murray’s presence is keenly felt when he’s firing on all cylinders.

Miami’s zone defence can make it difficult for the opposition to set itself up. Transitionally they’re very quick to regroup when missing shots or turning the ball over. As such, teams need to be even faster to take advantage of the few seconds they have before the Heat set themselves up. Jamal Murray will have to strike in these moments. Isolation ball is very tough to make work against Miami.

Best Bet: Jamal Murray under 24.5 points

Astros vs Blue Jays: Toronto Scoring

After suffering another miserable loss with Alek Manoah on the mound – to be fair, Odds and Bets warned readers on Monday – and bouncing back with Kevin Gausman on Tuesday (13 Ks!), the Blue Jays will look to take a 2-1 lead in their four-game series with the defending champion Houston Astros.

The visitors are sending Ronel Blanco to the mound, whereas Toronto will give starting pitcher duties to Chris Bassitt. Blanco isn’t typically a starter, meaning Houston will probably have to go through a few pitchers to get through the game. So far, Bassitt is having an excellent season. The 6-4 record might not shine, but a 3.41 ERA does, putting him on the bubble of being a top-25 starter in MLB. Possibly an iffy night on the mound for Houston against a Toronto team that’s climbed to second in the majors with a collective batting average of .265.

Best Bet: Blue Jays on the moneyline