Saturday, May 25 NBA Playoff Parlay Picks

If Game 1 of the NBA playoff Eastern Conference Final between the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers is any indication the series will be epic. Posting the best record in the Association and winning the East by 14 games, the Celtics had to be here. It would have been more surprising if they didn’t reach the conference final again. That wasn’t so much the case for the Pacers, who avoided the play-in tournament thanks to beating the Philadelphia 76ers in two of three regular season games to secure the tie-break advantage for the No. 6 seed.

Indiana was on the verge of stealing homecourt advantage in the opener only to see Jaylen Brown hit a corner three in the waning seconds to send the contest into overtime. There, Jayson Tatum took over scoring 10 of his 36 points as the Celtics prevailed 133-128. It was the sixth game between the clubs this season with the winning squad scoring at least 118 points in every one while eclipsing 130 points three times. The teams cashed the OVER on the NBA odds for the third straight game and for the fourth time in six meetings. 

Something has to give in Game 3 in what will be the first conference final game in Indianapolis since 2014. The Pacers are perfect at home this postseason winning all six games while going 4-2 against the NBA betting line. And the Celtics have yet to lose on the road winning both away games in each of their first two series and going 3-1 as a NBA pick against the spread. Indiana won two of three home games against Boston during the regular season. 

Bet on the NBA Playoffs at Caesars sportsbook 

NBA Playoff Schedule for Saturday, May 25

Boston Celtics at Indiana Pacers, 8:30 p.m. ET / TNT

I’ll try and start the conference final the same way I ended the second round, with a nice winning NBA parlay. I’ve enjoyed some success on my playoff NBA picks and parlay and last week’s winner was a beaut. I backed OKC +4.5 and OVER 210.5 in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinal with Dallas. The Thunder lost, 117-116, in an elimination game, but they stayed within the NBA point spread and the teams easily went over the total. As a kicker I also backed the OVER on the point total for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. One of a few bright spots in an otherwise dreadful series for the No. 1 seed, SGA dropped 36 points to eclipse his NBA odds total of 31.5 points. So, yeah, that was a good day for me.

I don’t have a horse in either of the conference races and that sometimes is helpful when it comes to NBA betting. You avoid the personal bias and take an objective view to, hopefully, have a better shot at winning. I do like how the Pacers play with plenty of pace leading to entertaining and high-scoring games. And after all isn’t that what the NBA is … entertainment? Indiana plays the same way no matter what using a balanced scoring attack and the floor leadership of Tyrese Haliburton to lead the NBA in playoff scoring with an average of over 115 points. 

Indy knocked off No. 3 seed Milwaukee in the first round and bounced No. 2 seed New York in the second round scoring 130 points in the decisive Game 7 road win. They cashed the OVER for a third straight time in Game 1 of the Boston series and stayed within the 9.5-point NBA point spread for their third straight payout. 

The Celtics responded to home losses in Game 2 in each of the first two series to win Game 3 on the road. And they did so quite convincingly with a 20-point margin against Miami in the first round and a 13-point spread against Cleveland emerging as a NBA point spread winner both times when laying at least 7.5-points. The Pacers are a lot healthier than Boston’s first two opponents and that will be reflected on the NBA betting line. The Heat were without Jimmy Butler for the entire opening round series while Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley missed the last two games of the Cavs series. 

The Pacers are fearless and they’ve enjoyed success at home this postseason winning all six games. However, the Celtics are on a mission and they don’t want what happened last season to take place this year. They were upset in the East final by No. 8 seed Miami in a result that led to their success this season. And the duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown is one of the best in the NBA. 

NBA Playoff Parlay Picks for Saturday, May 25

Boston Celtics ATS

Celtics / Pacers OVER

Tyrese Haliburton OVER 27.5 Points+Assists

Bet $100 to Win $612 On This NBA Parlay at Caesars sportsbook