This college-NBA parlay will 'Net' you some dough

Happy February! We know, we know. You can't wait for the Super Bowl. You've got plenty of money on the game and are in a ton of square pools and are anxiously waiting for next Sunday to finally arrive. But with the Super Bowl still 11 days away, you should switch your attention to basketball, and start off the month by betting on this low-risk parlay. 

We've got one college game and one NBA game in our parlay, and if you're concerned about jumping on it because you don't follow college ball or the NBA, don't be. This parlay is super low risk and includes a pair of teams who have been great as underdogs against the spread all season. 

Our most confident leg is the Pittsburgh Panthers (+13.5) against North Carolina. The line is currently set at 8.5, and while we're confident Pitt covers that too, we're going to play it safe and add an additional five points via the alternate spread line. 

Pitt is an outstanding 7-2-1 against the spread as underdogs and has yet to lose a conference game by more than eight points. We know North Carolina has won four straight and six of seven, but they lost to the Panthers back in December, and though we like the Tar Heels to pull off the home win, we just don't see it being by more than 10. 

The Tar Heels have won just two conference games by more than 13 points all season, and considering they were against Notre Dame and Georgia Tech,  who are a combined 3-19 in the ACC, we're not convinced UNC has the firepower to do that against Pitt. And to be completely honest, we wouldn't be entirely shocked if the Panthers win this game either, let alone cover a 13.5-point spread. 

As for our final leg, we like the Brooklyn Nets (+13.5) against the Boston Celtics. Brooklyn is 10-6 against the spread as moneyline underdogs and is starting to play a lot better. Not only have the Nets won back-to-back games, but the Nets are now fourth in the East at 31-19, and 18-7 over their last 25 games. 

To top it off, the Nets haven't lost a game by 13 or more points in over two months, and we don't see them getting blown out to start off February.

Meanwhile, Boston has dropped three of four and might be running into a bit of a wall before the All-Star break. The Celtics have gone to overtime in each of their last two games, and they're slowly but surely starting to look fatigued. It doesn't help that Boston is 2-0 against Brooklyn already this season or that both wins were by 11 points, but remember, that's why we boosted the line to 13.5 via the alternate spread. Thirteen points is a lot of points to win, and with Brooklyn playing good basketball as of late, we just don't see the Nets losing by that much.

The Parlay: Pittsburgh Panthers (+13.5) AND Brooklyn Nets (+13.5) (-105 odds via Caesars Sportsbook)

Bet $105 to win $100

In the news ...

Tom Brady retires, again — Stop us if you've heard this one before. Tom Brady has officially called it quits on his NFL career. This time he says it's "for good." Brady announced his first retirement exactly one year ago, on Feb. 1, 2022. That one lasted just six weeks before he changed his mind and announced he'd be returning for his 23rd season. That decision touched off drama in Brady's personal and professional life. He finalized a divorce from supermodel Gisele Bundchen, and the Tampa Bay Bucs went only 8-9, but still won the NFC South. Time will tell if the GOAT is really finished. Stay tuned.

Broncos, acquire former head coach Payton from Saints in trade — The Denver Broncos agreed to a trade with the New Orleans Saints for former head coach Sean Payton on Tuesday. The Saints will receive the Broncos' 2023 first-round pick and a 2024 second-round pick while the Broncos get Payton and the Saints' 2024 third-round selection, according to sources. Payton, who worked as an NFL analyst for Fox Sports this year, won a Super Bowl with the Saints in 2010 and has a career record of 152-89.

Ryans tabbed as Texans' next head coach — The Houston Texans reportedly agreed to a six-year deal on Tuesday with former San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans to be the team's next head coach. Houston's hiring of Ryans also makes the Texans the first team in NFL history to hire three consecutive Black head coaches. 

LeBron moves into fourth on all-time assist list — LeBron James moved into fourth place on the all-time NBA assist list after recording 11 assists in the Lakers' 128-123 overtime win over the New York Knicks on Tuesday. Tuesday was also James' first triple-double (28 PTS, 10 REB, 11 AST) of the season and puts Los Angeles within four games of .500 (24-28).

Today's Bark Bets is written by Jared Shlensky