Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
The Miami Heat are looking to snap a four-game losing streak on Monday against the Philadelphia 76ers, and this is a rematch of the second round of last season’s Eastern Conference playoffs.
That’s going to help us in the prop market, as we have plenty of games from these two teams to go off of. Here are my three favorite plays on Monday:
Joel Embiid is having a great season, but I’m going to fade him against the Miami Heat, a team that he has failed to score 32 or more points against in eight of his last nine games against them.
The Heat are a perfect team for low-scoring games, ranking No. 5 in defense, No. 26 in offense and No. 28 in pace this season. They would much rather play a slugfest than allow Philly to push the tempo on offense.
Bam Adebayo is one of the best defensive big men in the NBA, and he held Embiid under this number in four straight games in the playoffs last season. I’ll trust him to keep up that play on Monday night.
Jimmy Butler OVER 21.5 Points
Miami Heat @ Philadelphia 76ers
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Today at 6:00 PM
Odds last updated
February 27th, 2023, at 3:58 pm
Jimmy Butler has cleared this line in seven of his last 10 games, and he enjoys playing the Sixers after they let him walk in favor of giving Tobias Harris a max deal and letting Ben Simmons be the primary ball-handler (what a move that was).
Butler has scored 22 or more points in six of his last seven games against Philly, including last season’s playoffs.
He may need to score even more if Tyler Herro and Kyle Lowry (both questionable) can’t suit up for this game.
Bam Adebayo OVER 2.5 Assists
Miami Heat @ Philadelphia 76ers
•
Today at 6:00 PM
Odds last updated
February 27th, 2023, at 3:58 pm
I already sung my praises for Adebayo as a defender, but he deserves them as a passer as well.
This season, Bam is averaging 3.3 assists per game, clearing this line in seven of his last 10 games.
If Lowry sits, the Heat play Gabe Vincent at the point, which means Adebayo and Butler will have the ball in their hands more to initiate offense. Since Embiid is a tough defender down low, I’ll ride with Bam to get his teammates involved on Monday.
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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
