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NBA Tuesday betting preview: Fade Celtics without Brown

Issac Baldizon / National Basketball Association / Getty

After splitting our NBA picks against the spread Monday, we're back to find value in the final Tuesday of the regular season. Here are our favorite bets for one of the busiest days of the campaign.

Heat (-2) @ Celtics

In a season that's been sullied by a string of injuries down the stretch, the Celtics' final home game of the year will be the first since they announced rising star Jaylen Brown will miss the rest of the season with a torn ligament in his left wrist.

Boston is 4-6 ATS this season without Brown, which includes a 22-point defeat to the Bulls on Friday and a six-point loss to the Heat two days later. Robert Williams also left Sunday's game with a foot injury and is doubtful to play on Tuesday; the C's have lost four straight without him.

That win over Boston extended Miami's ATS run to 9-3 and set the team up to clinch a top-six seed with a win on Tuesday, which would keep the Heat out of the play-in tournament. Expect Jimmy Butler and Co. to take care of business against a wounded conference rival.

Pick: Heat -2

Clippers (-12) @ Raptors

The Raptors may finally be tanking. After three consecutive losses - the first of which came to the Clippers - Toronto coach Nick Nurse is resting four of his five starters Tuesday and could also be without super-sixth man Chris Boucher, who has missed the last nine games with a knee injury.

Conversely, the Clippers should have a healthy Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, who are 25-15 ATS when playing together this season. Los Angeles is 9-4 ATS as a double-digit favorite, including 6-2 ATS with its two stars, and has outscored teams by an average of 14.2 points in that spot.

Pick: Clippers -12

Mavericks (-2) @ Grizzlies

Are we sure the Mavericks aren't better without Kristaps Porzingis? The big man has played a combined 20 minutes in the last 10 games, and his team is 7-3 ATS with the third-best net rating (+9.7) over that span - nearly seven points better than their season mark (+2.8).

The difference has been on defense, where Dallas ranks fifth in efficiency over its last 10 games. Porzingis has the worst defensive rating (114.8) on the team, while Willie Cauley-Stein, who has started the last four games at center, ranks sixth in the team in defensive rating (105.1) and is nearly as efficient offensively as his injured teammate.

The Grizzlies, meanwhile, have been outscored by 2.9 points per 100 possessions over their last 10 games and have a 3-6-1 ATS record to show for it. In a crucial game for playoff seeding, bet on the better side on a great number.

Pick: Mavericks -2

C Jackson Cowart is a betting writer for theScore. He's an award-winning journalist with stops at The Charlotte Observer, The San Diego Union-Tribune, The Times Herald-Record, and BetChicago. He's also a proud graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, and his love of sweet tea is rivaled only by that of a juicy prop bet. Find him on Twitter @CJacksonCowart.

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