The Brooklyn Nets (42-20) drop by Bankers Life Fieldhouse Thursday for a 7 p.m. ET game against the Indiana Pacers (29-32). Below, we analyze the Nets-Pacers odds and lines, with NBA picks and predictions.
Brooklyn has won three games in a row and four of its past five while going 4-1 against the spread, including an impressive 128-119 victory over the Western Conference’s second-place Phoenix Suns Sunday.
The Nets are 1 game ahead of the Philadelphia 76ers for first place in the Eastern Conference with two pivotal games at the third-seeded Milwaukee Bucks next week.
Indiana was run over 133-112 by the Portland Trail Blazers as a 6-point home underdog Tuesday.
The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for the Pacers, who are ninth in the East. They’re 3 games behind the sixth-seeded Boston Celtics and 3.5 games in front of the 11th-place Chicago Bulls.
Brooklyn won and covered the spread against Indiana in three straight meetings, which includes a 124-115 win in the most recent meeting March 17.
Nets at Pacers: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 11:40 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Nets -400 (bet $400 to win $100) | Pacers +300 (bet $100 to win $300)
- Against the spread/ATS: Nets -8.5 (-110) | Pacers +8.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 243.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Nets at Pacers: Key injuries
Nets
- SG James Harden (hamstring) out
- SG Bruce Brown (knee) out
- C Nicolas Claxton (health and safety protocols) out
Pacers
- SG Jeremy Lamb (knee) questionable
- C Goga Bitadze (ankle) questionable
- C Myles Turner (toe) out
- PF Domantas Sabonis (back) out
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Nets at Pacers: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Nets 125, Pacers 109
Money line (ML)
PASS because I’m not in the business of laying more than -175 for any NBA regular-season money line favorite. This rule applies even to the almighty Nets, especially this season.
The “Pacers SG Caris LeVert revenge game” is enough of a reason for me to avoid betting Brooklyn as well.
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Against the spread (ATS)
The only pro-Pacers betting angles for this one are the Nets possibly looking ahead to their meetings with the Blazers and Bucks next week and the obvious possibility of getting a “backdoor” cover with garbage time 3-pointers.
I’d assume Brooklyn is motivated to crank its production into another gear as the season is winding down and Indiana is missing its best player in Sabonis.
Furthermore, the Pacers are 24th this month in defensive rating and dead-last in points in the paint allowed per game.
“LEAN” to the NETS -8.5 (-110) for a half unit.
Over/Under (O/U)
BET UNDER 243.5 (-110) for 1 unit because the Nets have gone Under the total in four straight games as a road favorite and Brooklyn’s defense does a good job of defending what Indiana does frequently, which is attacking the basket.
According to CleaningTheGlass.com, the Pacers attempt the second-highest volume of field goals at the rim whereas the Nets are surprisingly eighth in defensive field-goal percentage vs. shots at the rim.
Finally, if this game gets out of hand early, what’s the incentive for the Nets to keep its star players on the floor and when will Indiana abort this contest?
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