Our free NBA picks are out for Sunday, April 17th, 2022! Make sure you check our expert NBA picks before the action kicks off.
Look below to find our free NBA picks for the four Round 1 games on today’s schedule!
Atlanta Hawks @ Miami Heat – 1pm ET
The Atlanta Hawks hit the road to kick off their Round 1 playoffs series with the Miami Heat. The Hawks had to take the long way round, playing in two play-in games before making it to the official playoffs, they won both play-in games against the Hornets and Cavaliers. The Heat have been resting up for a while, and they did beat the Hawks in their second last game of the regular season, 113-109.
Noah Dunlap
The only reason this matchup should be entertaining at all is the fact that the Atlanta Hawks just seem to magically find rhythm in the postseason, and use that to fuel huge runs. They did that last season, as after a mediocre year, they made a run to the Eastern Conference Finals, and now, after another shaky year, they managed to get out of the play-in in the Eastern Conference, which has set them up with a series with the top-seeded Miami Heat. Trae Young can take games over, as he’s shown multiple times, but for them to have a chance against a tremendously balanced Heat squad, they’re going to have to get some serious help from guys like Clint Capela and John Collins.
But with Capela going out in the play-in final, it remains to be seen whether he’ll even be available for this series or not, which would further hinder their chances. Miami, on the other hand, has a lineup that features Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, Bam Adebayo, and Kyle Lowry, and when they’re all healthy, this is a team that can flat out embarrass people with the firepower that they have. There’s a reason they managed to win a hotly contested Eastern Conference regular season title, and I think they come out and show that in this series. For Game 1, give me Miami by double-digits at home, as I think they look to make an early statement.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Miami Heat -6.5 (-110)
Tony Battalio
The Atlanta Hawks are coming into this game off of a huge playoff play-in victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road and the Charlotte Hornets at home. In both games they were led by Trae Young as he put up two spectacular performances to get the Atlanta Hawks the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. Now they will face off with a familiar foe when they play a fellow Southeast Division team, the Miami Heat. However, they will likely be without Clint Capella after he was hurt in their victory on Friday night.
The Miami Heat have been the best team in the Eastern Conference for the majority of the regular season. Now they will get the opportunity to prove it in this one. They finished the regular season with a record of 53-29 and beat out teams like the Bucks, 76ers and Celtics to finish on top of the conference. As long as Jimmy Butler remains healthy, this team is a serious NBA championship contender. As they are looking to make it back to their second finals in the last three seasons and get a win this time around after losing to the Los Angeles Lakers last time around. As for the result of this one, I have the Miami Heat taking game one.
Tony’s NBA Pick: Miami Heat (-270)
Brooklyn Nets @ Boston Celtics – 3.30pm ET
The next cab off the rank on Sunday in the NBA Round 1 playoffs will see the Brooklyn Nets face off against the Boston Celtics. The Nets did have to go through the play-in tournament for a spot in the regular playoffs, but they made quick work of the Cavaliers, winning 115-108. The Celtics didn’t have to go through the play-ins, and to end their regular season they won four of their last five games.
Noah Dunlap
This is a series that has the potential to be the best series of the first round. The Boston Celtics struggled to start the year, but by February, they turned things on and have been the best team in basketball since, which is what managed to catapult them into the two-seed. The problem for them is that I seriously doubt they were expecting to be matched up with the Brooklyn Nets in the first round, as the Nets are a team that are almost certainly one of the most talented seven-seeds we’ve ever seen. The biggest reason they slipped in the standings was due to a Kevin Durant injury that made him miss a quarter of the year, but with him healthy, and Kyrie Irving being able to play home games now, as well, they’re a Brooklyn team that could easily be more like a two or a three seed themselves.
Boston won’t back down, as they have Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who are both stars in their own right, but those two don’t have the sheer talent that KD and Kyrie bring to the table. The good news is that I think the Celtics are the more balanced roster all around, but if they’re supporting cast struggles on any given night, I think things could get a bit ugly for the Boston team. I’m not ready to make a prediction about the series yet, but for Game 1, I’m taking the C’s in a tight one at home.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Boston Celtics (-168)
Tony Battalio
It may be fair to say that the Brooklyn Nets are the best seventh seed in National Basketball Association history. As they have two of the greatest scorers in NBA history on their roster in Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. The Brooklyn Nets controlled the game the entire way last Tuesday night when they got a play-in game victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers to clinch the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. Now they will be looking to win Game 1 of this series against the Boston Celtics.
The previously mentioned Boston Celtics looked good for the entirety of the regular season. With as long as their core of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart have been together, this year could quite possibly be the season that the Celtics finally make a run to the NBA Finals. They finished the regular season with a record of 51-31 which was good enough for second place in the Eastern Conference. However, as for the result of this game I am taking the Brooklyn Nets to get the victory over the Boston Celtics to open up the series.
Tony’s NBA Pick: Brooklyn Nets (+142)
Chicago Bulls @ Milwaukee Bucks – 6.30pm ET
The Chicago Bulls are on the road for the first two games of the first round when they travel to Milwaukee to take on the Bucks. The Bulls ended their regular season with a win over the Timberwolves, 124-120. On the other hand, the Bucks ended their regular season with a loss to the Cavaliers, 115-133.
Noah Dunlap
Milwaukee wins this series, and they do so in no more than five games. The defending champions have struggled a bit more than they would’ve liked to so far this year, but they’ve still shown that they can be the best team in the NBA at any given time, as Giannis is virtually always going to show up in a big way, and if they’re getting decent production from Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton, they become a major force to be reckoned with. And, against a Chicago team that has shown no real ability to beat the top teams from either conference, I don’t think they have many issues with dismantling this Bulls team with relative ease.
Chicago has had a good year, compared to their seasons in the past, but I don’t think they’re ready for a postseason series against this Bucks team. Lonzo Ball is out for the year, which proves to be a bit of a problem, and while DeMar Derozan and Zach LaVine can keep things close, I don’t think those two guys can get them over the hump against the talent and balance of Milwaukee. As I mentioned earlier, if we needed one piece of evidence to show that, it’s the fact that they’ve been atrocious against the top teams in both conferences all year long. That won’t change in this game, or series, as the Bucks cruise.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Milwaukee Bucks -10 (-110)
Tony Battalio
The Chicago Bulls were one of the best teams in the National Basketball Association for the first three quarters of the regular season. However towards the end of the year they started to get a bit shaky coming down the stretch and ended up as the sixth seed in the conference. As they finished the regular season with a record of 46-36 on the year. Now they will be looking to get their momentum back as they face off with the reigning and defending NBA champions in the first round of the playoffs.
The Milwaukee Bucks road to a second straight NBA championship starts now in this first round series with their Central Division rivals the Chicago Bulls. As long as Giannis Antetokounmpo stays healthy this Bucks team will always be in the mix to bring home a title during this postseason. They finished the regular season with a record of 51-31 which put them in third place in the Eastern Conference. As for the result of this game, I am taking the Milwaukee Bucks to get the victory at home over the Chicago Bulls.
Tony’s NBA Pick: Milwaukee Bucks (-590)
New Orleans Pelicans @ Phoenix Suns – 9pm ET
The final Round 1 game of the day will see the New Orleans Pelicans face off against the Phoenix Suns. The Pelicans are into the playoffs – it wasn’t without hard work though, they had to beat the Spurs and the Clippers in the play-ins for a spot. The Suns had no such struggles and have been putting their feet up since the regular season ended.
Noah Dunlap
This series is going to prove to be similar to what I’m expecting from the Milwaukee/Chicago series. New Orleans has played much better as of late, as they managed to come out of the Western Conference play-in as the nine seed, but I don’t think that’s going to make much difference in this series, as they take on the team that has been the best team in basketball for the entire season. CJ McCollum has shown to be a great addition for this Pelicans team, and adding him to the duo of Brandon Ingram and Jonas Valanciunas has been great, but I think that stops here.
Phoenix is just going to be way too much for this New Orleans team. Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and DeAndre Ayton have shown to be the best core in basketball all year, and then when you throw in the fact that they may have the best bench in the league as well, this series is a virtual lock. The Pels are going to play hard, and may keep two or three games close, but in the end, they don’t have enough, especially not without Zion, to keep this series close. Phoenix in four or five, and that starts with a statement win in Game 1. Suns by 12 or more.
Noah’s NBA Pick: Phoenix Suns -10 (-115)
Tony Battalio
The New Orleans Pelicans were basically dead in the water with a couple weeks left in the regular season. Behind some spectacular play from their trade deadline acquisition CJ McCollum they managed to win the eighth seed in the Western Conference. Now they will take on the best team in the National Basketball Association in the first round of the playoffs. They will look to keep the momentum rolling against a Phoenix Suns team that is dead set on getting back to the NBA Finals and getting a ring after last year’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
As previously mentioned, the Phoenix Suns will be looking to get back to the NBA Finals this season after losing a heartbreaker to the Milwaukee Bucks last time around. The Suns were clearly the best team in the National Basketball Association all season long and no one else even got close enough to touch them. As they finished the year with the best record in the league with a mark of 64-18 on the year. As for the result of this game, I have the Phoenix Suns taking Game 1 of this series.
Tony’s NBA Pick: Phoenix Suns (-550)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of publication, courtesy of FanDuel.
