![]() ![]() What about hungrier? Of the three players, he’s the one without a ring. Nikola Jokic nearly grabbed a third straight Kia NBA MVP and over the last few years has proven better - and definitely sturdier - than LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Nuggets didn’t deal with many injuries, kept their key pieces intact, had no reason to desperately seek help at the trade deadline and easily assumed home-court advantage throughout the playoffs by earning the best record in the West (and second-best home record in the league). Give the Nuggets this: Denver avoided all the drama that dogged the Lakers for much of the season. But as we all know, the real state of the Western Conference finals is much deeper than that. If we go strictly on that and nothing more, the Nuggets would be all but ticketed to the NBA Finals. What a contrast, at least according to the standings: The top seed in the West versus a Play-In Tournament survivor. Heat spread to back, at SportsLine.The Nikola Jokic-Anthony Davis showdown will likely be the most important during this conference finals. You can find out what it is, and see which side of the Nuggets vs. Hartstein is leaning Over on the point total, and he has identified a critical X-factor he says makes one side of the spread a must-back. Martin has reached double-figure scoring in 15 games, including four with 20 or more points. He is connecting on 53.3% of his field goals, including 44% from 3-point range. In 22 postseason games, including four starts, he is averaging 13 points, 3.6 assists and 1.5 rebounds. ![]() He also has four double-doubles.Ĭaleb Martin is coming off an 11-point and five-rebound effort in Game 4. He is averaging 27.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.7 steals per game in the playoffs. He has reached double-digit scoring in all 21 playoff games, including 16 with 20 or more, five with 30 or more and two with 40 or more, including a 56-point effort against top-seeded Milwaukee in the first round. Jimmy Butler has been Miami's offensive catalyst, leading the team in scoring in 16 of 21 postseason games. Over the past 100 Denver matchups, he is 60-38-3 against the spread (plus $1,825 for $100 players, every bet 1 unit). Hartstein also excels in MLB, college basketball and the NBA, especially when picking Denver Nuggets games. Those selections formed the basis of his SportsLine NFL best bets article, which finished 36-25-1. Larry tied for 52nd place (out of 1,598 entries) in the 2022 Westgate Las Vegas SuperContest, going 53-34-3 ATS (61%). Heat picks, make sure you check out what SportsLine NBA expert Larry Hartstein has to say.Ī former lead writer for Covers and The Linemakers, Larry combines a vast network of Vegas sources with an analytical approach he honed working for Pro Football Focus. Nuggets odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under for total points scored is set at 210. The Nuggets are 8.5-point favorites in the latest Heat vs. Tip-off from Ball Arena in Denver is set for 8:30 p.m. ![]() The Heat have won four of their past six road playoff games. 8 seed to make it this far in the postseason, joining the 1999 New York Knicks. Denver has won nine of 10 home playoff games, with the only loss coming in Game 2 against the Heat (44-38). The Nuggets (53-29), seeking their first-ever NBA title, took a commanding 3-1 series lead on Friday with a 108-95 victory in Miami. ![]() The Miami Heat will look to stay alive in the series when they take on the Denver Nuggets in Game 5 of the 2023 NBA Finals on Monday. ![]()
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