It pays to back the Boston Celtics, folks.
The Celtics sped to their NBA-leading eighth win Monday night against the Dallas Mavericks -- and made those who took our advice very happy, as our moneyline, point spread and point total predictions all hit.
Wednesday will be an emotional night at TD Garden with Isaiah Thomas returning as the Washington Wizards' starting point guard. But let's table the emotions for now and focus on nailing those picks again.
Here are our moneyline, point spread and point total picks for Celtics-Wizards, as well as two locks against the spread from around the association.
(All odds provided by WestGate Superbook.)
Washington Wizards at Boston Celtics, 7:30 p.m. ET
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Moneyline: The Celtics (-450) have developed a bit of a habit of playing down to their competition. (See: slim wins over the Knicks and Cavs.) But they're still talented enough to beat the Wizards on an off night. Don't get cute here.
Point Spread: Remember when this used to be a fierce rivalry? The Wizards are 1-5 straight up and against the spread in their last six games against Boston and haven't beaten a team above .500 this season. Daniel Theis' injury is cause for mild concern and Thomas could show out, but I'm still picking the Celtics (-9) to cover.
Point Total: The Wizards have allowed more than 120 points in four of their eight games to date. The concern is Washington scoring enough points to reach the lofty 228 point total but the OVER has hit in eight of these teams' last 10 meetings, so I'm riding the hot hand.
Darren's record picking the Celtics' moneyline, point spread and point total: 13-7-1
NBA Locks of the Night
Memphis Grizzlies at Charlotte Hornets (-1.5): The Grizzlies upset the Spurs on the road Monday night (and made me look like a fool in the process), which means they're primed for a letdown game. The Hornets grind out a home win against a bad team to snap a three-game losing streak.
Toronto Raptors (+3) at Portland Trail Blazers: The Raptors pushed as road dogs Monday night, but I like them to win outright here against a Blazers team that's looked very shaky out of the gate and just lost to the Sacramento Kings.
Darren's record picking NBA locks against the spread: 8-5-1
Don’t miss NBC Sports Boston's coverage of Celtics-Wizards, which tips off Monday at 7:00 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live, and then Mike & Tommy have the call of the game at 7:30 p.m. You can also stream the game through the MyTeams App.