There's a plethora of games gracing the schedule on Saturday, Oct. 24, and our basketball analysts have NBA predictions for each of them.
We've isolated the top NBA picks from tonight's games below, ranging from spreads to moneylines and everything in between.
Dive into our complete breakdown of tonight's top picks below.
NBA top picks at a glance (Saturday, Oct. 24)
| Matchup & time | Top pick & analyst |
|---|---|
| Bucks vs. 76ers 7:30 p.m. |
Bucks +12.5 Chris Walder |
| Spurs vs. Mavericks 8 p.m. |
Spurs -12.5 Zak Hanshew |
| Rockets vs. Hawks 8 p.m. |
Rockets moneyline Ed Scimia |
| Pelicans vs. Nuggets 9 p.m. |
Nuggets -11.5 Shawn Krest |
| Warriors vs. Suns 10 p.m. |
Suns -5.5 Geoff Clark |
Picks courtesy of Polymarket, one of our best prediction market apps.
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Bucks vs 76ers pick: Bucks +12.5
- Time: 7:30 p.m.
- TV: NBA TV, NBC Sports Philadelphia
- Analyst: Chris Walder
Top pick: Bucks +12.5
Siding with a squad playing on the second night of a back-to-back stretch that just allowed 135 points to the Chicago Bulls — a team that got decimated by 43 points in their season opener — obviously comes with inherent risk. As the saying goes, though, with great risk comes great reward.
What keeps a cover at +12.5 points in play here is that the Milwaukee Bucks are scoring 113.1 points per 100 possessions through two games, which is good enough for 13th in the Association. That's nearly 10 points better than tonight's opposition in the Philadelphia 76ers, who, despite being a perfect 2-0 straight up, only rank 23rd overall in that department (103.8 points per 100 possessions).
The Bucks are essentially trotting out last year's Miami Heat depth chart after shipping Antetokounmpo off to South Beach, with the team's three top scorers — Tyler Herro, Kasparas Jakucionis, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. — all being new additions. For what it's worth, the 2025-26 Heat ranked first in covering the spread on no rest with a 13-4 record, with Milwaukee not far behind at 9-6 ATS.
Philadelphia is rock-solid defensively (97.1 points allowed per 100 possessions, fourth), but it can be caught napping, evident by a 29-point deficit it had to claw back from on Thursday to stun the Cleveland Cavaliers. That provides enough optimism for me to back the Bucks at +12.5, even down to +10.
Walder also analyzes player props for Jaime Jaquez Jr. in his Bucks vs. 76ers predictions.
Spurs vs Mavericks pick: Spurs -12.5
- Time: 8 p.m.
- TV: FanDuel Sports Network
- Analyst: Zak Hanshew
Top pick: Spurs -12.5
The San Antonio Spurs will be hungry for a win, and I’ll trade this line up to 13.5.
Just like the New York Knicks, the Spurs are 0-2. This isn’t a Finals hangover, however, as the pair have faced elite competition through their first two games.
The Spurs get a chance to bounce back against a lesser opponent, and despite their losing record, I’m backing them to cover a big road spread.
Cooper Flagg injured his shoulder late in the second quarter of Friday’s win, and after the Dallas Mavericks scored 77 in the first half, they managed only 44 in the second half with Flagg sidelined.
I expect Kyrie Irving, already on a minutes restriction, to have a limited workload on the second night of a back-to-back. With Flagg, the team’s offensive engine, presumably out and Irving limited, the Spurs should win comfortably.
Hanshew examines Dylan Harper's scoring upside in his Spurs vs. Mavericks predictions.
Rockets vs Hawks: Rockets moneyline
- Time: 8 p.m.
- TV: FanDuel Sports Network
- Analyst: Ed Scimia
Top pick: Rockets moneyline
Both teams have looked great early in the season, with the Houston Rockets knocking off the San Antonio Spurs on the road and the Atlanta Hawks picking up two away wins.
But it's Houston that looks to have the more impressive talent overall. Veteran Kevin Durant doesn't have to carry the load alone, as Alperen Sengun (26.0 ppg) looks ready to step up and share the scoring load this year.
Atlanta has held opponents to 103.0 ppg over its first two outings, but it hasn't yet played an offense as deep or as efficient as Houston's. The Rockets love to play as slow as possible, and yet are still scoring 121.0 ppg to start the year.
I like Houston to win outright on the road tonight at up to 55%.
See why Jalen Johnson is also a prop target for Ed Scimia's Rockets vs. Hawks predictions.
Pelicans vs Nuggets pick: Nuggets -11.5
- Time: 9 p.m.
- TV: NBA League Pass
- Analyst: Shawn Krest
Top pick: Nuggets -11.5
The spread is wide, but the Denver Nuggets are capable of covering it, especially at a probability 50% or lower.
The moneyline might be a safer pick, but it would need to come down more than 20 points—to 60% or so—to be worthwhile.
The Nuggets have a double-digit spread over the New Orleans Pelicans for the fourth time in their last five clashes. Denver has covered it two of three times so far. The Nuggets opened the season with a road loss at title contender OKC.
The Pelicans have lost twice by close margins to 60-loss teams from last season.
Look for Denver to find its league-best offensive rhythm against New Orleans and for the Pelicans to revert to its low expectations against a strong Nuggets team.
Shawn Krest breaks down Zion Williamson's outlook in their Pelicans vs. Nuggets predictions.
Warriors vs Suns pick: Suns -9.5
- Time: 10 p.m.
- TV: NBA TV
- Analyst: Geoff Clark
Top pick: Suns -9.5
Give me the Phoenix Suns -9.5, up to -10.5, because this is just a terrible spot for the Golden State Warriors, who are playing the second of a back-to-back after losing to the Memphis Grizzlies Friday.
Because of this, Golden State will probably be missing its starting backcourt. Steph Curry is unlikely to play, while Brandin Podziemski has already been ruled out.
That’s a massive problem. Through two games, Golden State has been outscored by 28.6 points per 100 possessions with Curry off the floor.
I'm also throwing out Phoenix's 41-point loss to the Trail Blazers. I picked Portland in that game because their frontcourt presented a major size mismatch.
The Warriors don't have that same advantage, making this a much cleaner matchup for the Suns to get right.
Read the full game preview in our Warriors vs. Suns predictions.
More NBA picks
Want to build a bigger card? These Covers roundups cover every bet type for today's games:
Check the NBA injury report and compare numbers across basketball betting sites before finalizing today's picks.
All of today’s matchups are also on the NBA scores and matchups page, and the full pick archive lives in free NBA picks.
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
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