3 NBA Best Bets and Predictions for Wednesday 1/8/25

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. numberFire's NBA power rankings and NBA game 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

Toronto Raptors at New York Knicks

Knicks -3.5 First Quarter Spread (-110)

The New York Knicks have lost three in a row and are in need of a bounce-back spot. The schedule gods have gifted them a pretty ideal one tonight as the Knicks get a home date with the Toronto Raptors. Given New York's recent woes, I think they come out aggressively tonight, which puts me on the Knicks' first-quarter spread.

New York is an 11.5-point favorite, so oddsmakers are expecting them to get back on track. It makes sense, too, as the Knicks are 5th in net rating (+6.8) while the Raptors are 27th (-7.7). Plus, these two teams have met up twice already this season, with New York winning both games.

numberFire's NBA projections have New York winning by roughly 14 points, but I prefer targeting the first-quarter spread. After each of their past two losses during their recent cold run, the Knicks have come out the next game and won the first quarter by at least four points in each outing before going on to eventually lose the game.

New York should be extra motivated tonight, and with one of the NBA's worst teams as the Knicks' opposition, I like backing New York to win the first quarter by at least four points.

Detroit Pistons at Brooklyn Nets

Nets +8.5 (-106)

This spread seems a little too big for tonight's Detroit Pistons-Brooklyn Nets matchup, which pushes me to back the Nets to cover.

Admittedly, these two teams have played just once this year, and the result was a 14-point Pistons win in Brooklyn. But by net rating, the Pistons (-1.7) and Nets (-5.6) aren't super far apart, and this game being in Brooklyn should aid the Nets.

While Detroit has won four straight, two of those victories were close home wins against bad teams -- a four-point victory over the Charlotte Hornets and a three-point win against the Portland Trail Blazers.

numberFire's model has tonight's game being a slim win for the Nets. I'm going to play it safer and take Brooklyn to cover as an 8.5-point 'dog.

Washington Wizards at Philadelphia 76ers

Over 221.0 (-110)

Points should be flowing today when the Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers meet up.

Washington's defense is a big reason why the over is appealing as the Wiz are next to last in defensive rating. They're also playing at the fourth-fastest pace and are a huge pace-up spot for a Philly team that checks in 27th in pace.

Plus, it's not like the Sixers are some defensive juggernaut, with the 76ers ranking 15th in defensive rating.

The three-ball is going to be crucial to the over hitting, and we should see a lot of three-point tries. Both defenses rank in the top 10 for highest three-point rate allowed, with Philly giving up the third-highest three-point attempt rate (44.2%).

numberFire projects there to be a total of 225.9 points in this game.

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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.