Sports Handicapper Sean Murphy's Picks & Predictions

My selection is on Pittsburgh over New York (Game 2 of double-header) at 7:05 pm et on Wednesday.

I really like the price being offered with the Pirates in Game 2 of this day-night double-header in the Bronx. Max Fried will make his return from injury for New York. He wasn't pitching particularly well prior to getting hurt and now faces a tough spot as starting the second game of a double-header is never ideal for the creatures of habit that are big league starting pitchers. Add on to that the fact that the Pirates rank top-10 in the majors in wOBA against left-handed pitching this season. Bubba Chandler will counter for Pittsburgh. He was saddled with high expectations entering this season after a strong showing as a rookie last year. It's admittedly been a struggle here in 2026 but he does have something to build off of as he held a tough Brewers lineup to just two earned runs over 4 2/3 innings in a 3-2 Pirates victory last time out. Interestingly, that was also a spot where he started in the second game of a double-header giving him some familiarity to the stiuation. Look for the Pirates bats to give Chandler enough run support to come away with a victory here. Take Pittsburgh (8*).

My selection is on Connecticut plus the points over Indiana at 8 pm et on Wednesday.

The Sun were written off by most bettors early in the season as they got off to a terrible start, looking like they already had one eye on next year's move to Houston. However, they've turned it around lately, going 5-4 SU and 7-2 ATS over their last nine games. Here, they'll be looking to avenge an earlier 10-point defeat at home against Indiana. That loss came at a time when they were in the midst of a season-long seven-game losing streak. Indiana checks into this game off a 20-point rout of the Liberty on Saturday. That snapped its two-game ATS slide. I still don't like the way the Fever are playing defensively as they've allowed 12 of their last 15 opponents to connect on 30+ field goals. Connecticut has shown the ability to effectively shorten proceedings, holding each of its last five opponents to 65 or fewer field goal attempts and 15 of its last 18 foes to 31 or fewer made field goals. Take Connecticut (8*).

Eastern Conference Game of the Year. My selection is on Chicago plus the points over New York at 7 pm et on Wednesday.

This is a difficult spot for New York as it had to extend its road trip after a stop in Dallas was postponed on July 16th. That puts the Liberty in a two-in-three situation with travel on Wednesday and they'll be facing a Sky squad that has been playing much better basketball lately. Chicago gave Atlanta everything it could handle in a two-point loss but cover on Friday. That marked the Sky's second straight ATS victory and pushed them to 10-5 ATS over their last 15 contests. New York on the other hand entered Monday's game sporting a 3-9 ATS mark over its last 12 games. Chicago will be out for revenge in this spot after it dropped a tough 96-95 decision at home against New York back on June 17th in the only previous meeting between these two teams this season. Take Chicago (10*).