NBA picks, best bets for playoffs on Monday: Can Knicks go up 2-0 vs. 76ers? Will Lakers guard struggle again?

Now that the 2024 NBA postseason has begun, the basketball betting market is hotter than ever. CBS Sports will be providing daily picks for the duration of the postseason. Sam Quinn will make at least one pick for every game between now and the NBA Finals.

I was excited to hammer the under again in this series, and truthfully, you could probably justify under bets in every game these two teams play. But aside from the fact that doing so would be boring, the line dropped five points between Games 1 and 2. I’d still advocate the play, and would do so at any total until it drops down into the 195-point range, but for now, let’s turn our attention to an individual player. Georges Niang shot 1-of-7 from the floor and 0-of-4 from deep. He’s in the game to make 3s. The Cavaliers have a better version of that player in Sam Merrill. He’s smaller, but Orlando’s offense is so inept that the Cavs can stomach his defense. Niang played 24 minutes and 42 seconds in Game 1, the highest total of his playoff career. His minutes tend to go down as series progress because his weaknesses are relatively simple to game-plan against. I’m expecting more Merrill minutes and fewer Niang minutes. The Pick: Niang Under 1.5 3’s

The 76ers were +14 with Joel Embiid in the game on Saturday and -21 when he sat. That’s basically the story of every playoff series he plays in (go back to the 2019 Toronto series if you want to see the most horrifying plus-minus splits you can possibly imagine). Embiid is currently listed as questionable. He’ll probably play just given the moment. But if you watched him play in the second half on Saturday at all, you know he’s physically compromised. Until I have reason to believe he’s healthy, I’m picking the Knicks in every game of this series. He is simply too important to every facet of 76ers basketball to bet on in his current state, and it does not help matters that Tyrese Maxey is listed as questionable with an illness. The Pick: Knicks -5.5

Looking for more NBA insight? Alex Selesnick is SportsLine’s No. 1 NBA expert, and he’ll be choosing his favorite picks all postseason long. Check them out here.

I picked D’Angelo Russell to go under 15.5 points in Game 1. He attempted 20 shots… and still went under. Russell has played seven games against the Nuggets as a Laker and has reached 16 points only once, in a regular-season game in which he scored 17. He is averaging 7.6 points on 31/13/75 shooting in five playoff games against the Nuggets. This isn’t his matchup. It’s obvious to everyone who watches the games. Lakers coach Darvin Ham vowed not to turn away from a key player after one bad shooting game, but remember, he benched Russell in last year’s Denver series. I’m going to keep taking this under until it either drops or Russell hits an over. There’s just too much evidence suggesting he can’t score on the Nuggets in the playoffs. The Pick: Russell under 15.5 Points