All odds are provided by Caesars Sportsbook.
What you need to know for Friday's playoff games
Luka Magic: Touting Luka Doncic on a small slate isn't exactly groundbreaking, but his value Friday night is understated. Doncic's heliocentric style suggests a high usage rate and a fantasy floor of around 65 DraftKings points. With a statistical ceiling approaching triple-digits in DFS upside and a reasonable path to a triple-double(+400), Doncic is a megastar with meaningful value.
Push It To The Max: James Harden has struggled from 3-point range and has more assists than 2-point attempts this postseason. He is struggling to get in the paint and his patented step-back jumper isn't falling. At this point, he's more of a traditional point guard than a game-breaker, leaving the primary backcourt scoring role to Tyrese Maxey. Maxey has been up to the task thus far this series and has averaged 26.5 PPG while shooting nearly 60% from inside the arc. His ability to get to the rim has given Miami all sorts of problems. But the Heat are up 2-0 and have outscored Philadelphia by 30 points through two games. It's difficult to see the 76ers changing much game plan wise, but leave the door open for Maxey to continue to produce.
Cashing Cam? While Cam Johnson's minutes are underwhelming and the Suns are usually a three-man band on the offense, keep an eye on his props and DFS leverage. Johnson is averaging a shot every 2.56 minutes through two games in the series. Of course, a stat like that is only valuable if he plays more minutes, but there seems to be upside in both Johnson's markets.
Bam Bam: Bam Adebayo had his three highest-usage performances of the postseason over the past two games. Regardless of whether Joel Embiid plays, the Heat will continue to feature Adebayo as a key cog on both sides of the ball. He has multiple stocks (steals + blocks) tallied in four of seven playoff games and currently is +100 to get a double-double, something he has accomplished in three of the past five games. There is plenty of value in betting Bam.
-- Jim McCormick & Kyle Soppe
Breaking down Friday's games
Miami Heat at Philadelphia 76ers
7 p.m ET on ESPN, Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia
Line: Heat (-3)
Money line: Heat (-145), 76ers (+125)
Total: 210 points
BPI Projected Total: 211.6 points
BPI Win%: 76ers (53%)
Questionable: Joel Embiid (concussion), Kyle Lowry (hamstring), Caleb Martin (ankle), Max Strus (hamstring), Gabe Vincent (knee), P.J. Tucker
Ruled Out: None
Note: BPI numbers factored in players who are ruled out but assumes questionable players will play
Notable: The Heat are 11-3-1 ATS in their past 15 road games.
Best bet: Jimmy Butler over 34.5 points + assists + rebounds. The 76ers have struggled to slow down Butler and the Heat in this series. He has averaged 18.5 PPG, 7.5 APG, and 7.5 RPG over his past three games. With Embiid expected to miss Game 3, Butler should continue to thrive. The 76ers have been outscored by 36 points when either DeAndre Jordan or Paul Reed have been on the court. -- Eric Moody
Best bet: Heat -3. Miami is 5-1 against the spread in its past six games following a win of more than 10 points. The 76ers have struggled without Embiid, especially on defense, which has contributed to Miami's 54% effective field goal percentage. You can count on the Heat to take care of business. -- Moody
Best bet: Tyrese Maxey over 22.5 points. Maxey has been the most aggressive scorer for the 76ers against the Heat, and that's likely to be even more true with the series shifting to Philadelphia. Maxey has now played 119 minutes in the playoffs without Joel Embiid on the court and is averaging almost 26 points per 36 minutes during that stretch. In Games 1 and 2, Maxey has averaged 39 MPG, so his scoring expectation is several points over the 22.5-point line. -- André Snellings
Phoenix Suns at Dallas Mavericks
9:30 p.m ET on ESPN, American Airlines Center, Dallas
Line: PICK
Money line: Mavericks (-110), Suns (-110)
Total: 219.5 points
BPI Projected Total: 217.2 points
BPI Win%: Mavericks (65.3%)
Questionable: None
Ruled out: None
Note: BPI numbers factored in players who are ruled out but assumes questionable players will play
Notable: The Mavericks are 7-1-1 in their past nine home games, a positive trend as they look to recover from failing to cover both games in Phoenix.
Best bet: Suns (PK). Phoenix laid -6 in Games 1 and 2 of this series and dismantled Dallas in both contests. Now bookmakers have adjusted the price all the way to even because the Mavericks are at home. The Suns should be laying -2 in my opinion, so there's value in Chris Paul and company at PK. Dallas is shooting a healthy 46% from the field and 41% from 3-point range in this series. They have attempted 10 more free throws than the Suns and have still been outscored by a total of 27 points. Doncic is going to run out of gas carrying this team on his back. -- Joe Fortenbaugh
Best bet: Chris Paul over 26.5 points+ assists. Paul has averaged 22.6 PPG and 10 APG so far during the playoffs. He's been particularly lethal against opponents in the fourth quarter, averaging 10.3 PPG on 64% shooting. Paul can translate the Suns' game plan from the whiteboard to the court and his positive momentum should continue in Game 3. -- Moody
Best bet: Devin Booker over 26.5 points. Booker and Paul were dominant in In the second half of Game 2. This dynamic duo scored or assisted on 53 points for the Suns while the Mavericks scored 49 points. Booker has averaged 24.4 PPG during the playoffs. He'll want to deliver an epic performance to put the Mavericks on the ropes. -- Moody
Best Bet: Devin Booker over 35.5 points + assists+ rebounds. Outside of the game when he left early with a hamstring injury, and his first game back when he was still limited, Booker has gone over 35.5 PAR in six straight games and 10 of his past 11. When healthy, this line is too low for Booker. -- Snellings
Best bet: Jalen Brunson over 24.5 points + assists + rebounds. Brunson must step up for Doncic to match the intensity and statistical production of Paul and Booker. It's hard to believe this is the same Brunson who averaged 27.8 PPG, 4.2 APG, and 4.8 RPG against the Utah Jazz. The home-court advantage should help resurrect that version of Brunson. -- Moody
Best bet: Mikal Bridges over 2.5 assists. Bridges has averaged 41.5 MPG and 3.3 APG in the playoffs. He has been excellent on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court this postseason. During his past 10 games, Bridges has at least two assists. -- Moody