Friday’s NBA slate gave bettors plenty to work with, featuring six matchups spread across the afternoon and evening. The card was headlined by intriguing spread angles, including the Knicks visiting Boston, the Mavericks heading to Indiana as sizable underdogs, and the Pistons making the trip down to Miami. With most lines sitting within a possession or two, razor-thin margins were expected all night, and the results delivered exactly that kind of drama.
XO Sports finished the day 3-3 on top picks. The wins came from Dallas covering the +7.5 spread in Indiana with the Pacers winning by just three, Detroit covering +1.5 in Miami by two points, and New Orleans covering +3.5 in Utah by one. On the other side, Milwaukee fell short against the +1.5 spread despite winning outright, the Knicks couldn’t hold on to cover +2.5 in Boston, and Charlotte lost outright against Atlanta despite carrying the highest model confidence on the board at nearly 75 percent. A split day, but the model kept it competitive.