Peter’s Points: NBA Best Bets Today (Predictions, Prop Bets for Thunder-Nuggets, Jalen Brunson, Cavs)

There may not be any football on the first Sunday of February, but there is a loaded NBA slate that features 10 games, including a potential Western Conference Finals preview between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Denver Nuggets to close out the night.

With the trade deadline coming up on Feb. 5, the NBA season is getting more and more interesting as we’re starting to see which teams can truly contend for a title. The Cleveland Cavaliers made an attempt to improve their NBA Finals odds on Saturday night, as they traded away De’Andre Hunter to the Sacramento Kings in a deal that brought Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroder to Cleveland.

Those teams are also two of the 20 teams that will take the floor on Sunday, but they won’t have their new players ready to go.

As always, I’m betting on this massive Sunday slate with picks for Thunder-Nuggets, Jalen Brunson and more. Can we start February on a high note?

Here’s a full breakdown of every play and the latest odds for Sunday’s NBA action.

1 Season, 600 Bets: NBA Betting Record

2025-26 season record: 157-117 (+12.68 units)
2024-25 season record: 281-293-5 (-4.94 units)
OVERALL (since 2021-22 season): 1448-1354-27 (+45.83 units)

Find Peter Dewey's NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on BetStamp here.

NBA Best Bets Today

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Denver Nuggets +6.5 (-118) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
Jalen Brunson OVER 26.5 Points (-118)
Cleveland Cavaliers Moneyline (-148) vs. Portland Trail Blazers

Denver Nuggets +6.5 (-118) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder

Nikola Jokic is back in the lineup for the Denver Nuggets, and he promptly put up 31 points, 12 rebounds and five assists against the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night in a 13-point win.

Jokic only played 24:32 in that matchup, but he still made a profound impact on the game, leading Denver to an impressive plus-11 in his minutes. Now, the Nuggets are home dogs against an OKC team that has looked beatable as of late, going just 6-4 in its last 10 games.

Jalen Williams, Alex Caruso and Ajay Mitchell remain out for the Thunder, which may give this short-handed Denver team (down Aaron Gordon, Cameron Johnson and Christian Braun) a shot to hang around.

Even with Jokic on a minutes limit, having the star big man out there is a huge boost for Denver, and it shouldn't be a two-possession underdog at home as long as he’s playing.

As great as the Thunder have been this season, they are just 13-8 against teams that are .500 or better (25-3 against everyone else) and are 11-12 against the spread when favored on the road.

I think Denver is live to win this game, and I’ll gladly take the 6.5 points on Sunday night.

Jalen Brunson OVER 26.5 Points (-118)

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson is having a great 2025-26 season, averaging 27.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game while shooting 47.5 percent from the field and 38.4 percent from 3-point range.

While Brunson has failed to score 27 or more points in four of his six games since returning from an ankle injury, I love this matchup for him against the Los Angeles Lakers, who are allowing over 26 points per game to opposing point guards this season.

L.A. enters Sunday’s matchup at 25th in the NBA in defensive rating, and Brunson should be able to take advantage of this backcourt, even if Marcus Smart ends up guarding him for most of the game. Brunson has 37. 29, 26, 17 and 39 points in his games against the Lakers as a Knick, and the Lakers’ defense has been steadily falling after a decent start to the season.

Brunson is worth a look with this prop set below his season average on Sunday.

Cleveland Cavaliers Moneyline (-148) vs. Portland Trail Blazers

The Cavs are the talk of the NBA after trading away De’Andre Hunter, and I’m buying them to pick up a win on the road on Sunday against the Portland Trail Blazers.

Portland is on a four-game skid and returning home from a long East Coast trip where it was blown out by the Knicks on Friday night.

The Blazers have slipped to 23-26 this season, and a loss (and a Los Angeles Clippers win) would move them to the No. 10 seed in the West on Sunday.

Portland has not been good this season despite its spot in the standings, as it ranks 23rd in the NBA in net rating and 22nd in offensive rating. The Cavs, despite all the talk of their down season, are still ninth in net rating and have won seven of their last 10 games.

Cleveland is just two games out of the No. 2 seed in the East, and I think it’s a little undervalued against a Portland team that simply cannot shoot the ball efficiently (28th in effective field goal percentage) this season.

The Blazers are also down Jrue Holiday (personal) and have listed Deni Avdija as questionable for this matchup. With the Cavs starting to turn their season around as of late, I think they’re worth a look as small road favorites as their offense (eighth in the NBA) continues to look better and better.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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