Straight Outta Vegas AM

Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk betting for Friday. Munaf Manji and Uncle Diamond Dave Essler are back on the Straight Outta Vegas AM feed for the May 1 edition of Cash That Ticket, and the slate is as loaded as any Friday of the playoffs. The show opens with a full Thursday night recap after Minnesota eliminated Denver in six games, with Jaden McDaniels going for a career-high 32 points and 10 rebounds while Terrence Shannon Jr. added 24 in a starting role forced by a three-guard injury pile that left the Timberwolves shorthanded going into the clincher. Jamal Murray shot 4-of-17, finished with 12 points and four assists, and the Nuggets are done. Minnesota advances to face San Antonio on Monday. The Knicks destroyed Atlanta 140-89 on a night where the Hawks never threatened, and Philadelphia beat Boston to force a Saturday Game 7 in the Eastern Conference. Then the guys get into tonight's three elimination games and that is where the real work begins. In Orlando, the Magic are catching four points at home against Detroit in a game where Franz Wagner is out and the Pistons are laying points for the first time in the series on the road in a must-win spot for the home team. Dave likes the Magic plus four and the under at 210. Munaf builds a detailed case for Desmond Bane over 2.5 three-pointers made at plus-117 on DraftKings, citing three consecutive games with three-plus threes, five-plus threes in both Orlando home games, 8.83 attempts per game from deep, and 35-plus minutes of run with Wagner sidelined. In Toronto, Cleveland has never won on the road in this series and the Raptors outplayed the Cavaliers in every stat but three-point shooting in Game 5, losing by five while outrebounding Cleveland by 13 and posting 32 assists to Cleveland's 20. Brandon Ingram moves to doubtful mid-show and the line shifts a full point across every book, but both Dave and Munaf had already made their call on Toronto at plus points before the downgrade was official. In Houston, the Rockets try to force a Game 7 without Kevin Durant, who is out again with a bone bruise in his ankle. LeBron James is 41 and playing six games in thirteen days on the road. Austin Reeves is back but has become a defensive liability. Reed Sheppard had his coming-out moments in Game 5. Amen Thompson is playing like a seasoned postseason veteran. Dave and Munaf both land on Houston to cover and the under at 205.5, noting that three of five games in this series have finished at 205 or below. The MLB card gets a full breakdown too, with Dave delivering his best bet of the year candidate in the Red Sox team total over 4.5 runs against Mike Burrows and the porous Astros bullpen at Fenway Park. Munaf adds the Royals at Mariners under with Cole Ragans and Bryan Woo on the mound as his cleaner baseball play. There is also discussion of the Dodgers at St. Louis under, the Twins team total against Patrick Corbin, the White Sox run line against San Diego, and whether Shane McClanahan at minus-150 is worth it against San Francisco. All this plus the Pregame.com promo code HIT20 for twenty dollars off a thirty-day MLB all-access package at one hundred and nineteen dollars, and a Monday preview that will bring the official April best bets recap, second-round series previews, and the full Timberwolves versus Spurs Game 1 breakdown. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk betting for Thursday. Munaf Manji and Uncle Diamond Dave Essler close out the month of April on the Cash That Ticket podcast, airing on the Straight Outta Vegas AM feed, with a full breakdown of Thursday's NBA playoff slate and a sharp late MLB play. Coming off a five and one week and a productive month across the board, the guys come in focused and pick apart every angle on a loaded three-game NBA card before turning their attention to Kevin Gausman and Bailey Ober squaring off in a late Blue Jays-Twins matchup in Minnesota. The episode opens with a Wednesday night recap covering the Pistons-Magic game, where both Cade Cunningham and Paolo Banchero finished with 45 points in a high-scoring affair, and then pivots to the bigger story, which is the Houston Rockets beating the Los Angeles Lakers on the road in Game 5 without Kevin Durant. Jabari Smith Jr. led Houston with 22 points and seven rebounds while Dorian Finney-Smith turned in a dominant 18-point, 17-rebound performance to help send the series back to Los Angeles with the Rockets holding the edge. For the NBA slate, the guys dig into all three Game 6 matchups. In the Knicks-Hawks game, both Munaf and Dave land on the Atlanta team total over at 105.5 on DraftKings, citing the zigzag theory and CJ McCollum's strong bounce-back case after combining for just 23 points in Games 4 and 5 while going cold from three. Josh Hart's questionable status with a lower back contusion adds more reason to target McCollum over his points total as the top player prop of the evening. In the Celtics-76ers game, Dave targets the Philadelphia team total under, arguing Boston's defensive dominance and near-total statistical control of Game 5 outweighs Philly's one hot shooting night, while Munaf backs the Sixers plus six and a half on the side and points to Joel Embiid's 33-point, 39-minute Game 5 performance as evidence the big man is fully healthy and in command. Dave's player prop is Embiid's combined points, rebounds, and assists over 41 at DraftKings, which Embiid has already cleared in both series games. In the Nuggets-Timberwolves game, Dave offers three angles, including Minnesota in the first half as a live home underdog, the game under 224.5, and Denver minus 150 to win the series rather than the individual game, while Munaf co-signs the under and targets Nikola Jokic's rebounds and assists over 24.5 as a prop rooted in pace, playmaking, and the Timberwolves' depleted front court. Both hosts agree that Spencer Jones and Cam Johnson combining for 38 points in Game 5 on the road is not a reasonable expectation. On the MLB side, Dave's best bet is Bailey Ober recording over 17.5 outs against Toronto, supported by three straight six-inning starts, a career-low 83-pitch effort against Tampa Bay, and Blue Jays hitters batting just .191 against him on the season. Munaf's best bet is Jamal Murray's combined points and assists over 33.5 at minus 107 on DraftKings, a volume play built on Murray's season-long usage and the Nuggets' need for him to shoulder the offensive load in a must-win road game. Use promo code HIT20 at Pregame.com to get 20 dollars off a 30-day All Access MLB package, bringing the price from 119 down to 99. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Griffin Warner talks betting for Thursday. Griffin Warner returns for Episode 33 of What I Bet with a full Thursday betting card breakdown across Major League Baseball and the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The show opens with a quick look back at a winning Chicago Cubs underdog pick before moving into a busy MLB slate led by Detroit at Atlanta, where Framber Valdez as a plus money underdog against Bryce Elder immediately catches Griffin’s attention. The Braves have been dangerous offensively, with Ronald Acuña Jr. heating up and the bullpen holding together better than expected after Raisel Iglesias went on the injured list, but Detroit’s matchup still creates value because Griffin likes backing Framber Valdez in underdog roles. From there, the card shifts to St. Louis at Pittsburgh, where Hunter Dobbins faces Paul Skenes and the under becomes the main question if Dobbins can do enough to support the low total. Houston at Baltimore brings Peter Lambert against Chris Bassitt, and Griffin points to Bassitt’s struggles, Houston’s strong hitting, and the Astros’ pitching problems as reasons over nine could be live. Colorado at Cincinnati gives Andrew Abbott another important test against the Rockies, with Griffin noting that Cincinnati has not yet played in the kind of heat that can punish a fly ball pitcher. Washington at the New York Mets becomes a run line discussion, as Griffin is not eager to lay a big price with the Mets and instead finds Washington plus one and a half runs more interesting with Miles Mikolas facing Freddy Peralta. The strongest MLB position comes in Arizona at Milwaukee, where Michael Soroka faces Brandon Woodruff. Griffin likes the Brewers at minus 120, pointing to Woodruff’s improved control, Soroka’s durability concerns, and Arizona’s early body clock spot. Kansas City against the Athletics in Sacramento brings interest in both the Royals and under nine and a half, with Griffin pushing back on the idea that the park should already be priced like peak summer conditions. Toronto at Minnesota closes the baseball portion, with Kevin Gausman against Bailey Ober and the under drawing some attention despite concerns about Minnesota’s bullpen. The NHL playoff section begins with Dallas at Minnesota, where Griffin has a live viewing perspective after attending multiple games in the Stars and Wild series. He believes Minnesota has looked like the better team overall and is more drawn to the total than the Dallas side. Edmonton at Anaheim closes the betting breakdown, with the Oilers trying to stay alive and the Ducks holding a 3 to 2 series lead. Griffin expects strong Edmonton fan support in Anaheim, questions whether Connor McDavid is fully healthy, and says Anaheim plus money is tempting after a competitive series. The episode finishes with a Pregame promo code and the official What I Bet best bet, Milwaukee Brewers minus 120 behind Brandon Woodruff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk betting for Wednesday. Munaf Manji and Uncle Dave Essler are back for the Wednesday edition of Cash That Ticket on the Straight Outta Vegas AM feed, coming off a perfect 2-0 Tuesday that included the San Antonio Spurs covering big and the Cincinnati Reds cashing the team total over four and a half thanks to Elly De La Cruz's 10th home run of the season in an eighth-inning two-run blast. Before diving into the card, Uncle Dave makes a point of crediting one of his best decisions of the week as a bet he chose not to make, targeting José Soriano and the Angels in a first-five spot that he ultimately passed on after the market signaled something was off. That discipline is the theme of the early conversation, with both hosts discussing the mental game of hot streaks, the danger of overconfidence, and why the process matters more than any single result. On the NBA side, all three games on the board get deep analysis. In Detroit, Franz Wagner's calf strain puts the Magic in an interesting position with a 3-1 series lead, and Uncle Dave identifies Detroit at plus 210 to win the series as the smart play rather than laying or taking nine-plus points, pointing to a massive Pistons bench edge over a shallow Orlando reserve unit. The Orlando team total under gets flagged as a secondary play, along with a Jalen Suggs regression prop on DraftKings after a historically bad shooting game. In Cleveland, Uncle Dave makes a strong case for Toronto with the eight and a half points and the over, citing brutal combined shooting in Game 4 that he expects both teams to correct at home. Donovan Mitchell's points prop over twenty-seven and a half and Jarrett Allen scoring twelve or more are both identified as supporting plays. The Raptors-Cavaliers game total over two eighteen and a half at minus one-oh-five on DraftKings is Munaf's official best bet for the night. In Los Angeles, both hosts lean under in the Rockets-Lakers closeout game with Kevin Durant already ruled out, and Munaf makes a case for a signature LeBron performance, identifying his rebounds-plus-assists combination at fifteen and a half as an intriguing prop. Uncle Dave likes Jabari Smith Junior's PRA over twenty-seven at minus one-oh-eight on DraftKings. On the MLB side, Uncle Dave runs through the full evening card, identifying the Brewers with Eduardo Rodriguez as a viable minus-one-twenty play, the Astros as a live underdog against Chris Bassitt with their team total over as the vehicle, the Royals team total over facing Luis Severino at his worst home environment, and the Braves in the first five against JR Ritchie at around minus one-oh-five as the most interesting matchup-specific angle of the night given Detroit's complete unfamiliarity with the rookie. Uncle Dave's official best bet is the Reds team total over four and a half against Tomoyuki Sugano, the Rockies right-hander who Uncle Dave had pegged as Tuesday's starter before Kyle Freeland took the ball. The same logic applies tonight in a hitter-friendly park with a favorable wind. The show closes with a preview of the Denver-Minnesota Game 6 on Thursday and a reminder to use promo code HIT20 at Pregame.com for twenty dollars off the thirty-day all-access MLB package, available right now for just ninety-nine dollars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Will Doctor gives you the sharpest preview and picks for the Blue Monster, Paul Cush joins to breakdown the Kentucky Derby Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk betting for Tuesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk betting on Monday. Monday is here and Munaf Manji and Uncle Diamond Dave Esler are all over the final week of April with a loaded episode of Cash That Ticket on the Straight Outta Vegas AM feed. The guys kick things off with a weekend recap that features two painful hook losses for Uncle Dave — a baseball team total that finished at exactly four runs after he passed on buying it down, and an NBA team total where he took the number at the wrong time and paid for it by a single point. Despite those close calls, the podcast remains solidly in the green, sitting at 71 and 51 lifetime for 58.2 percent and plus 16.64 units, with April holding at 19 and 16 at plus 4.14 units heading into the final stretch. Three NBA playoff games anchor Monday's card and all three get the full treatment. For Orlando Magic versus Detroit Pistons, Uncle Dave is on the over at 214 and a half after the series has gone 221, 218, and 215 in successive games, calling this another market overreaction on a number that has drifted too low. He also has a Paolo Banchero double-double prop at minus 120 after the Magic star posted 25 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists in Game 3. Munaf takes the Pistons side at minus two and a half, expecting Desmond Bane's 7-of-9 three-point shooting from Game 3 to regress hard and Detroit's offense to show up collectively. For Oklahoma City Thunder versus Phoenix Suns, Uncle Dave leans toward first-half Phoenix scoring angles while Munaf makes his official best bet the Thunder team total over 112 and a half at minus 112 on DraftKings, noting OKC has scored at least 119 in all three games of the series. The most emotional segment covers Minnesota Timberwolves versus Denver Nuggets, where Donte DiVincenzo tore his right Achilles just over a minute into Game 4 and Anthony Edwards left with a bone bruise and knee hyperextension in the second quarter. Minnesota still won 112-96 behind 43 points from Ayo Dosunmu, one of the greatest bench performances in NBA playoff history, 13 of 17 from the field, 5 of 5 from three, 12 of 12 from the line. Uncle Dave takes the Wolves team total under 105 and a half for Game 5 in Denver, while Munaf likes Denver first half and discusses Nikola Jokic combined rebounds and assists as a prop target. The MLB rundown covers all seven games including Dustin May regression risk for St. Louis against Pittsburgh, the Padres matchup edge over Chicago, Yoshinobu Yamamoto caution in Los Angeles, Parker Messick trust for Cleveland against Tampa Bay, Dylan Cease strikeout props against Boston, Angels team total over versus Jonathan Kochanowicz in Chicago, and Jack Leiter plus-money value for Texas against Max Fried in New York. Best bets to close: Uncle Dave is on Connor Prielipp over 4.5 strikeouts against Seattle and Munaf is on OKC Thunder team total over 112 and a half. Use promo code PICK25 at pregame.com for 25 percent off everything including early football season packages. Do not sleep on this discount. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk betting for Friday. Munaf Manji and Uncle Diamond Dave Esler close out the week on Cash That Ticket, the sports betting podcast on the Straight Outta Vegas AM feed, with three NBA playoff Game 3s and a full MLB Friday card on the board. The guys are coming off a 3-and-2 individual week and a 6-and-4 combined mark, and they are locked in to finish strong. On the NBA side, the show opens with a deep breakdown of Celtics and 76ers in Philadelphia, where Dave admits he loves the Sixers at plus seven and a half despite his loyalty to Boston, pointing to VJ Edgecombe and Tyrese Maxey as two players capable of shooting right over the Celtics defense at home. Munaf fires back with a compelling multi-year trend under head coach Joe Mazzulla showing Boston at 12-and-2 straight up and against the spread in playoff road games following a loss, including five straight covers and seven wins in the last eight such situations, every one by at least eight points. He also notes positive shooting regression is coming for Derrick White, Jayson Tatum, and Sam Hauser after a combined cold night in Game 2. Moving to Houston, the short-handed Lakers hold a stunning two-game series lead with Luke Kennard and Marcus Smart having combined for 48 points in Game 2, and both hosts land on the Lakers plus eight and a half while debating whether the over makes more sense given how suppressed the total has become. Munaf makes the case that Reed Sheppard's 11 minutes of playing time in Game 2 is the single biggest problem for Houston's offense, and he names Kevin Durant points over 23.5 as his prop bet of the night given Durant's 41 minutes of usage and his role as the Rockets' primary scoring option in a must-win home environment. In Portland, Victor Wembanyama's concussion status dominates the conversation as the Spurs arrive with their best player officially listed as questionable. Both hosts lean the over given the pace rankings of both teams and Portland's higher three-point accuracy at home, while Dave endorses the Blazers team total over and names Robert Williams III points, rebounds, and assists over 15 at minus 122 as his best bet of the day, citing Williams' 11-point, nine-rebound, four-assist performance off the bench in Game 2. Munaf backs Jrue Holiday PRA over 27.5 on FanDuel as his other best bet, building the case around Holiday's 30 PRA in Game 2 and his locked-in usage for Portland. On the MLB side, Dave highlights the Nationals and White Sox over as a prime bullpen game spot with favorable weather and two of the worst relief corps in baseball, while Munaf adds the Brewers at plus odds against Paul Skenes, the Yankees team total over against Lance McCullers Jr., and the Cleveland Guardians riding a nine-and-one straight-up after-a-loss trend against Max Scherzer and Toronto. Use promo code PICK25 at pregame.com for 25 percent off everything including Uncle Dave's season-long best bet package and all-access football picks at an already-discounted price. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk betting for Thursday. Munaf Manji and Uncle Diamond Dave Esler are back on the Cash That Ticket podcast for the Pregame.com Podcast Network's Straight Outta Vegas AM feed with a full Thursday breakdown covering three NBA first-round Game 3 matchups, the opening night of the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, and an MLB getaway day card with a pair of solid night games in the mix. Coming off a split Wednesday where Dave cashed on the Mets first-five-innings under and Munaf got the hook on Cade Cunningham's PRA by exactly one total point, the guys waste no time getting into the Thursday action. CJ McCollum's 32-point Game 2 performance at Madison Square Garden — where he came back from 12 down in the fourth quarter to lead Atlanta to a 107-106 win over the Knicks — sets the stage for Game 3 in Atlanta, and Dave makes his case for the over at 216.5, pointing to Atlanta's pace, their weak defensive interior, and a market that has moved too far off two cold Knicks fourth quarters. Munaf adds first-quarter Hawks and first-half over angles in the same game. In the Cavaliers-Raptors series, both hosts land on Toronto at home despite the 0-2 hole, citing Cleveland's brutal 9-and-19 road ATS record as a road favorite this season and the reality that the Raptors have actually played Cleveland even across six of the eight quarters in this series. For Denver and Minnesota in Game 3, Dave puts the Wolves at home on the side at plus-2.5 after breaking down why Minnesota was the better team in Game 2 despite the drama of falling behind 14 early, while Munaf makes his official best bet the Timberwolves-Nuggets first-half over at 113.5 — both games in this series have seen both teams combine for 62-62 and 64-64 at the half. On the baseball side, Dave goes back to Joe Ryan and the Twins in the first five innings against a Mets team that is sending Christian Scott to the mound for his first MLB start since returning from Tommy John surgery, and both hosts caution strongly against forcing action on getaway day games without confirmed lineups. The NFL Draft segment covers the near-certain Mendoza-to-Raiders pick one, the Reese-to-Jets pick two, and the burning question of whether New Orleans executes their trade up to the three spot to grab Reese ahead of Arizona's Jeremiyah Love decision. Monroe Freeling gets a spotlight as the projected first offensive lineman off the board to Cleveland at six. Use promo code PICK25 at Pregame.com for 25 percent off everything on the site including football season all-access subscriptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Munaf Manji and Dave Essler talk betting for Wednesday. Wednesday, April 22, 2026 on Cash That Ticket, Munaf Manji and Uncle Diamond Dave Esler open a loaded episode fresh off a two-and-oh best bet night, with Jrue Holiday delivering for Portland and the Celtics-Sixers under cashing in a tightly contested Game 2 that evened the Eastern Conference series heading back to Philadelphia. The big injury news from Tuesday night centers on Victor Wembanyama, who went down hard in the second quarter against Portland after hitting his chin on the floor and has been placed in the NBA's concussion protocol, a development both hosts expect to cost him at minimum Games 3 and 4 of the Spurs-Blazers series and one that will reshape betting lines across the Western Conference bracket as the week progresses. Over in the Lakers-Rockets series, Munaf and Dave dig into why a short-handed Los Angeles team is up 2-0 on Houston, crediting LeBron James and an unexpected backcourt of Luke Kennard and Marcus Smart, who combined for 48 points in Game 2 while Kevin Durant finished with nine turnovers and just three second-half points despite being the more heralded star in the matchup. The depth of the analysis on Game 2 between Orlando and Detroit is where this episode really locks in, with Dave identifying the matchup problem Detroit faces against a Magic team that has size, length, and balance in their starting five, while Munaf breaks down the free throw disparity, the paint differential, and the realistic expectation of positive shooting regression from Desmond Bane and Jalen Suggs, who combined to go 4-of-18 from three in Game 1 while Cade Cunningham accounted for nearly 39 percent of the Pistons' entire offensive output on his own. Both hosts land on Orlando plus 8.5 with Munaf adding the money line as a secondary consideration, and neither would be shocked to see the eight seed leave Detroit with a 2-0 series lead. The Oklahoma City Thunder discussion arrives at the same conclusion via a different path, with Dave and Munaf breaking down why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's 25 points on 5-of-18 shooting in a blowout win tells you everything you need to know about the talent gap between the defending champions and a Phoenix Suns team whose three best offensive players combined for seven total assists in Game 1. Dave targets the Suns team total under and the Thunder in the first quarter, while Munaf rides the Thunder team total over 116.5, reasoning that Oklahoma City can hit that number while still pulling their starters in the fourth. The MLB segment covers a full Wednesday card headlined by Shohei Ohtani on the mound for the Dodgers against the Giants, Max Fried facing Ranger Suárez in a Yankees-Red Sox clash at Fenway, Walker Buehler looking to extend his comeback against Colorado, and a Mets team that has now dropped twelve straight games, prompting dark comedy and real sympathy in equal measure. Dave's best bet is the Mets-Twins first five innings under 4.5, built around a young Minnesota arm named Pryor who has elite strikeout numbers in the minors and faces a Mets lineup that has been historically quiet. Munaf's best bet is the Cade Cunningham PRA over 45.5 at minus 108 on DraftKings, banking on guaranteed usage, shot volume, and multi-category production from the Pistons' only reliable offensive weapon in what amounts to a must-not-lose Game 2. Remind yourself to use promo code PICK25 at Pregame.com for 25 percent off anything on the site through May 5th, including football season all-access subscriptions, and lock in before prices climb heading into the NFL Draft. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices