TST Best Bets- January 15, 2026

Thursday’s NBA and NHL slates bring another full card of opportunities as teams in the NBA and NHL navigate the grind of the regular season. Tonight's schedule offers bettors a chance to capitalize on trends and head into the weekend on a winning note. Here are tonight’s best bets brought to you by BetOnline.ag. Click here to join. All new players get a 50% welcome bonus and up to $250 in free bets.

First Pick: Hornets +4.5

Rundown: The Los Angeles Lakers (24-14) welcome the Charlotte Hornets (14-26) to Crypto.com Arena in a cross-conference matchup on Thursday night.

Los Angeles enters looking to build momentum after a dominant 25-point victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday, while Charlotte aims to bounce back following an eight-point loss to the Clippers on Monday. The Lakers will look to mirror their success from the first meeting between these teams, a 121-111 win in Charlotte back in November.

While the Hornets have struggled in the standings, they have consistently been competitive against the number. Charlotte owns a 23-17 record against the spread this season and has covered in seven of its last 10 games. As underdogs of 4.5 points or more, the Hornets have been especially reliable, covering in 14 of 23 such matchups. Los Angeles, meanwhile, has been less consistent from a betting perspective, posting a 4-511 ATS mark over its last 10 games and covering just nine of 18 contests at home.

Given Charlotte’s ability to hang around against stronger opponents, expect the Hornets to keep this one close as the final buzzer sounds.

Second Pick: Maple Leafs Moneyline

Rundown: The Vegas Golden Knights (22-11-12) return home to T-Mobile Arena as they host the Toronto Maple Leafs (23-16-7) in a matchup between two teams firmly in the playoff hunt.

Vegas enters the contest riding a five-game winning streak, most recently edging the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 in overtime on Wednesday night. Toronto, meanwhile, looks to continue its strong run of form, having won six of its last eight games. The Maple Leafs most recent win marked its most impressive performance of the season, a 4-3 overtime victory in Colorado against the NHL’s best team. Toronto’s offensive firepower has been a driving force, ranking sixth in the league in goals per game (3.33). 

In the standings, Toronto sits just one point back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, while Vegas holds first place in the Pacific Division, adding extra weight to every point on the line.

Scheduling could be a factor in this one, as Vegas is playing the second night of a back-to-back after Wednesday’s overtime contest. Thursday marks the sixth such scenario for the Golden Knights this season.

With Vegas’ legs potentially taxed and Toronto bringing one of the league’s most productive offenses into the building, expect the Maple Leafs to capitalize on the situational edge and skate away with a road victory.