NBA Best Bets For Wednesday, Jan. 8: Cavaliers To Open Strong

The NBA has an extraordinary slate for Wednesday, Jan. 8. 

Cleveland (31-4) takes on Oklahoma City (30-5) in a battle between titans, while Giannis Antetokounmpo battles Victor Wembanyama.

Keep reading for NBA best bets below, and bet with your favorite sportsbook apps. 

NBA Best Bets For Wednesday, Jan. 8

Check out three bets below for Wednesday’s NBA games.

Cavaliers -1 1st Half (-112 DraftKings)

The Thunder have won their past 15 games (officially), but the Cavaliers are poised to end that streak. 

Oklahoma City’s historic defense neutralizes rim attempts and isolation scorers at a high level. The tradeoff is that it bleeds catch-and-shoot triples, especially from the corners. Look for the Cavs to capitalize. They are shooting 40.4% from deep and sinking 46% of their wide-open triples — both marks lead the NBA. 

On the other end, Cleveland lacks a great option to throw at Shai Gilgeous-Alexander besides Isaac Okoro, who is questionable with an injury. However, the Cavs own an elite interior defense. Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen can limit Oklahoma City’s scoring on drives and force more kick-outs than usual. SGA will still get his typical production (he’s unguardable at this point), but it’s an uphill climb for Jalen Williams to make his usual offensive impact, barring an exceptional 3-point shooting night. 

The Thunder’s depth when healthy is superior, yet injuries to Chet Holmgren, Alex Caruso, and Ajay Mitchell have vaporized the advantage. 

Finally, the Cavs are 18-1 and have been outscoring opponents by 22.7 points per 100 possessions in the first half when they have home-court advantage. OKC also tends to get stronger as the game goes on, which is another reason why I am taking the first-half spread here. 

I would play it at one and a half units. 

Luguentz Dort First Thunder Basket (+550 FanDuel)

As stated above, Cleveland’s interior defense will be a tough challenge for Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams to navigate. The Thunder could, however, open the game with a barrage of perimeter shots in order to soften up the paint. 

Luguentz Dort leads Oklahoma City in 3-point attempts per game during the first quarter. He has also taken the Thunder’s first shot in 26.4% of his starts, which ranks second on the team behind Gilgeous-Alexander. 

Snagging +550 is a great price, and I would play it at half of a unit. 

Toronto Raptors +12.5 (-115 DraftKings)

Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley handle the bulk of playmaking duties for Toronto. Both can score off the bounce, while RJ Barrett and Gradey Dick bring extra firepower. Those four have the chops to lead a competent offense. 

The Raptors also have two-way glue guys like Jakob Poeltl and Ochai Agbaji, along with offensive or defensive specialists who fill in the gaps based on what the team needs. 

Essentially, Toronto quietly has a decent roster — injuries are mainly responsible for its atrocious record. Factor in the revenge game angle for Quickley and Barrett, and one could see the Raptors doing enough to keep this game within 12 points, especially if Karl-Anthony Towns (questionable) is out. 

I recommend playing it at one unit.