The Dallas Mavericks ended a lengthy drought last week, winning their first playoff series since capturing the first NBA championship in franchise history in 2011. Dallas begins its quest for another series victory when it visits the top-seeded Phoenix Suns for Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series on Monday at 10 p.m. ET in the 2022 NBA playoffs. The latest NBA odds from Caesars Sportsbook lists Phoenix at -5.5. After losing six consecutive postseason matchups, the Mavericks finally got over the hump by eliminating Utah in the first round, while Phoenix advanced by defeating New Orleans.
The Eastern Conference semifinal series between the top-seeded Miami Heat (-7.5) and visiting Philadelphia 76ers also gets underway on Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET. Miami got past Atlanta in five games in the opening round, while Philadelphia ousted Toronto in six after winning the first three contests. The 76ers will have to overcome the absence of Joel Embiid, who is expected to miss at least the first two games of the series with a concussion and a fractured orbital bone. Before locking in any NBA picks or parlays, be sure to check out the NBA predictions and betting advice from SportsLine's proven computer model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past three-plus seasons. The model enters the third full week of the 2022 NBA playoffs on a stunning 86-58 roll on all top-rated NBA picks, returning over $2,100. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Monday's NBA playoff schedule and revealed its best bets. If you parlay its NBA playoff picks, you could be looking at a payout of over 12-1. You can see the model's NBA picks only at SportsLine.
Top NBA picks for Monday, May 2
One of the top NBA playoff picks for Monday the model recommends: The over 215 in the Suns vs. Mavericks game. Phoenix's offense was clicking against the Pelicans in the first round as the team scored 103 points or more in each of the six games despite being without Devin Booker for three of them.
Booker returned from a hamstring injury in Game 6 but finished with only 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting. Prior to being sidelined, the 25-year-old shooting guard recorded 25 and 31 points while going a combined 11-for-19 from beyond the arc in his first two contests this postseason. Booker averaged 23.7 points in the Suns' three meetings with Dallas during the regular season.
Booker (23 points) is one of three members of the Suns averaging more than 20 points in the playoffs. Chris Paul is scoring 22.3 per contest while Deandre Ayton is producing 20.5. Dallas star Luka Doncic appears to be in fine form after missing the team's first three contests against Utah as he averaged 29 points over the final three games of the series. The 23-year-old Slovenian point guard has offensive help in the form of Jalen Brunson, who scored at least 23 points in each first-round contest and set a career high with 41 in Game 2.
How to make NBA picks and parlays for Monday
The model also has identified three other extremely strong picks that need to be in your NBA parlays, including one pick that hits well over 60 percent of the time, bringing plenty of value. You can only see the model's NBA parlay picks and best bets at SportsLine.
What are the top NBA picks for Monday? And which pick can you bank on well over 60 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see the NBA best bets for Monday, all from the model that is on an 86-58 roll on all top-rated NBA picks, and find out.
