NBA Play-In Tournament Tuesday Betting

The NBA postseason officially gets underway on Tuesday with the beginning of the play-in tournament. Getting things started are the No. 7 vs No. 8 seed matchups in both the Eastern and Western conferences.

In the East, the No. 7 seed Miami Heat host the No. 8 seed Atlanta Hawks as 5.5-point favorites at Bovada Sportsbook.

The Heat closed out the regular season 5-1 straight up and 4-2 against the spread in their last six home games. They were also a strong OVER play for totals bettors in those games with six straight OVERs.

In the playoffs, the Heat are 2-4 SU and ATS in their last six, while at home in the postseason they’ve dropped three straight both SU and ATS.

Atlanta is 3-7 SU and 4-6 ATS in its last 10 road games. The Hawks have been a bad bet in the playoffs lately at 1-4 SU and 2-3 ATS in their last five games, and on the road in the playoffs they’re 1-5 SU and 2-4 ATS in their last six.

This season, the Heat and Hawks met up four times with Miami taking the season series 3-1 SU with a 2-2 ATS record. The teams last clashed on March 6 when Miami won 130-128 as a 2.5-point home favorite.

Atlanta and Miami also met up in the 2022 NBA playoffs. Miami won the series 4-1 with a 3-2 ATS record.

Lakers have been a winning wager for OVER bettors

In the Western Conference on Tuesday night, the No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers host the No. 8 Minnesota Timberwolves as 5.5-point favorites at Bovada.

The Lakers head into the play-in tournament winners of six of their last seven with a 4-3 record ATS. Los Angeles has been a solid OVER play for totals bettors lately with eight straight OVERs. In the playoffs, the Lakers have lost three in a row SU and ATS.

Minnesota has won three straight both SU and ATS. On the road, the Timberwolves are 5-1 SU and ATS in their last six. The T-Wolves have struggled on the road in the postseason, though, going 1-10 SU and 5-6 ATS in their last 11.

This season, Minnesota was 2-1 SU and ATS against Los Angeles. The teams last met up on March 31 and the Lakers won 123-111 as 1.5-point road favorites.

In the short history of the NBA Play-In Tournament, No. 7 seeds are undefeated in opening matchups against No. 8 seeds.