NBA Best Bets Today | Expert Picks for Wednesday, April 3

Orlando has been a great story this season, in position to break into the playoff picture following four straight losing seasons. The Magic are 44-31 and currently in the #4 position in the Eastern Conference though the 2-7 spots are currently separated by just five games as a lot can happen in the next two weeks.

The Magic have the worst average scoring differential of any team in the Eastern Conference top six while also featuring the worst road record of those teams at 17-19. The Magic are also just 14-14 vs. Western Conference teams and this is likely to be a difficult road test with the Magic last playing away from home way back on March 15.

The Magic barely held on Monday against Portland at home winning 104-103 but now will finish the season with five of seven on the road as holding the #4 position is unlikely. The Magic beat New Orleans at home in March 121-106 in a game where they shot nearly 55 percent to pull away as Paolo Banchero had a triple-double for one of the best games of his young career.

New Orleans has only one more win than the Magic this season but has an average scoring differential that is more than double Orlando's average at +4.7. The Pelicans are also in a tight race in the middle of the Western Conference playoff picture, currently #6 but only two games out of #4, while only one game out of #8 and four games out of #10.

Off back-to-back losses for the first time since February the Pelicans should be sharp tonight in a favorable matchup after going 1-3 through a difficult week last week, losing to Oklahoma City, Boston, and Phoenix, but defeating Milwaukee.

After tense back-to-back games with the Bucks and Celtics, the 13-point loss to Phoenix Monday was understandable but this should be a bounce-back opportunity.

New Orleans has a stronger net efficiency ranking than Orlando over the past 10 games and the record for the Pelicans is more meaningful given that Orlando has faced what is currently the league's weakest schedule among all 30 teams.

The Magic have won eight of the past 10 in this series but both franchises have gone through significant change and these teams don't play often.

The Magic were +2.5 at home less than two weeks ago in this series and are now only a slightly larger underdog at the Smoothie King Center in what feels like a critical game for the Pelicans.

The Cavaliers (45-30) take on the Suns (43-31) on Wednesday, marking their 3rd stop in a 5-game road trip. Tip-off at Footprint Center is set for 10pm ET, airing live on ESPN.

With the Suns leading the season series 1-0, expect a good showdown after Cleveland's convincing 129-113 victory against the Jazz last night, halting a 1-6 ATS slump. Meanwhile, the Suns have been strong, securing 5 wins in their last 7 outings and boasting a 5-2 ATS record.

Cleveland's recent 1-6 ATS record and 17-19-1 away record could pose challenges for them, plus they're on G2 of a B2B. Phoenix comes back after a nice road trip to take on a Cleveland team that has been far too inconsistent. They catch the Cavs in a good spot, who will be playing their 2nd game of a back to back after a win last night in Utah.

Donovan Mitchell sat the win out and while he will likely play here, he simply is not at 100%. This team isn't the same when he's not playing or at his best and they're going to run into a lot of issues with the Suns. Phoenix has covered 6 of their last 8 games and they've done it with games where they're finding a ton of offensive production all around.

Bradley Beal has been the biggest key as he has taken pressure of Durant and Booker with his ability to attack and score. Phoenix just has too many weapons and they're getting Cleveland at the right time here.

Look for the Suns to put an emphasis on attacking this Cavs team with their speed, as the fatigue factor will come into play too. This is a good spot on the Suns. You know what to do. Hop ON!