During the postseason, there's no such thing as irrelevant online NBA betting. Every game is ultra high-stakes. A win and a loss can be the difference between making and breaking your season. Wednesday night will be no different.
In particular, as we study up for our latest 2022 NBA playoff picks, the Brooklyn Nets and Toronto Raptors are two teams that desperately need upset victories. Of course, we've also got picks for Game 2 of Milwaukee Bucks vs. Chicago Bulls, because we're predicting everything on the NBA's plate for April 20.
First and foremost, though, let's go over the latest betting odds on the 2022 NBA playoffs:
| Favorite |  | | Underdog |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Celtics | -158 | +134 | Brooklyn Nets |
| Philadelphia 76ers | -130 | +110 | Toronto Raptors |
| Milwaukee Bucks | -500 | +385 | Chicago Bulls |
While these 2022 NBA playoffs betting lines shouldn't change dramatically, they are subject to tweaks right up until opening tipoff. Make sure you're double-checking them for accuracy prior to settling on any NBA picks.
With odds to win the 2022 NBA Finals constantly moving as well, it's a great idea to go through our reviews of the top online sportsbooks. All of the information within them is uniquely designed to help you find the best 2022 NBA playoffs betting sites.
Toronto's Season is on Life Support vs. Philadelphia
Time is running out for Toronto. The Raptors looked great heading into this series, but a combination of ice-cold offense and injuries has basically killed any chances they have of making it to the semifinals.
Scottie Barnes and Thaddeus Young are both banged up and might not play in Game 3. Fred VanVleet is playing hurt, and he looks it. The offense has struggled mightily in the half-court, even when VanVleet and Pascal Siakam are hitting shots.
The good news for Toronto? The Sixers will be without Matisse Thybulle for both Games 3 and 4, as they take place in Toronto, which does not allow players who aren't fully vaccinated against COVID-19 into the country. His absence will hurt Philly's transition defense, which has been touch-and-go all year.
Unfortunately for the Raptors, we're not sure that matters. They don't have the offensive depth to fully take advantage of Thybulle's absence, and Danny Green has played admirably on the wings anyway.
No one ever thought this series would be a sweep. Many even thought the Raptors would take it. But that's just no longer the case.
OSB Prediction: Philadelphia 76ers (-130)
Can Brooklyn Steal Game 2 in Boston?
Though the Nets find themselves in a 1-0 series hole, they can at least take away silver linings from their loss in Game 1. Not only was Kyrie Irving spectacular, but the defense kicked it up a notch in the second half, and Brooklyn held a fourth quarter lead despite Kevin Durant's uncharacteristic struggles on offense.
Still, this comes as only minimal comfort. The Nets' supporting cast struggled to take advantage when the Celtics blitzed KD and Kyrie, and Brooklyn doesn't have the requisite depth to do much better moving forward.
We also have to wonder if the workload being shouldered by KD and Kyrie, who is fasting for Ramadan, will ever catch up with them. They've been routinely logging over 40 minutes per game since the start of March. Either one of them could peter out later in games.
Mostly, we just believe in Boston's league-best defense. Even without the injured Robert Williams III, they've shown that they can switch and hang space without issue. This is a game they should win.
OSB Prediction: Boston Celtics (-158)
Milwaukee will Cruise to Game 2 Win Over Chicago
Kudos to the Bulls for giving the Bucks a real fight in Game 1. They made it a one possession game inside two minutes to play, forcing Milwaukee to out-talent them the rest of the way.
That probably won't happen again. The Bulls got lucky when it came to Nikola Vucevic's three-point shooting, and Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer shouldn't be so averse to giving his best players more minutes in Game 2.
It doesn't bode well for Chicago that Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton, two of Milwaukee's three best players, combined to shoot 10-of-29 from the floor in Game 1. Both stars seldom have off nights to this extreme, let alone on the same night.
To the Bulls' credit, they might be a hair deeper than the Bucks at this point. But their defense just isn't built to hang with Milwaukee full-time. Alex Caruso and Patrick Williams already seem overworked after Game 1, and it's unclear whether downsizing to Derrick Jones Jr. at center will be an effective adjustment for longer periods of time.
Maybe Chicago will be able to steal a game once they're at home. For now, we should default to the Eastern Conference favorites, who figures to only get better from here.
OSB Prediction: Milwaukee Bucks (-500)
Take a look at this list of the top online sportsbooks so you can decide which one to use for all of your NBA playoff betting:
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