Ricky Dimon
NBA
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If you are a fan of the YRFI/NRFI prop and can’t wait for Major League Baseball season to begin, you surely also enjoy the first-basket scorer offering in the NBA. Needless to say, you don’t have to wait long to find out the result when it comes to those particular betting markets. The satisfaction (or in some cases disappointment) is immediate.
Before the MLB season gets underway on Thursday, let’s try to nail some first-basket winners on Monday. Another week in the association tips off with an 8-game slate, so the options are plentiful.
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Milwaukee Bucks vs Detroit Pistons first basket best bet: Khris Middleton (+850)
The Bucks can be expected to have the first possession in their road date with the Pistons on Monday night. Milwaukee center Brook Lopez is one of the best in the business when it comes to jump balls. Lopez has won the most jumps in the entire NBA this season (59) and registers at 66.3 percent. He will be going up against James Wiseman of Detroit, who has been decent in the circle during the early stages of his career but the sample size is small.
Obviously the tipoff is the most important factor that should be looked at when deciding on first-basket bets. It goes without saying that players on whichever team gains possession are going to have by far the best opportunities. Assuming the Bucks have the ball first, Middleton could be the one to capitalize. The veteran forward is healthy and has been playing his best basketball of the season over the past 8 games. He has scored at least 20 points 3 times during this stretch (including 31 once) and has forked up at least 13 shots in 7 straight games. Middleton has scored the first basket in 2 of Milwaukee’s last 3 outings, so getting him at +850 represents outstanding value.
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Philadelphia 76ers vs Denver Nuggets first basket best bet: Tobias Harris (+950)
This 76ers-Nuggets game is another case of the tipoff being a key component. Joel Embiid is lining up for Philadelphia and he has won 60.3 percent of his jumps this season (44 won, 29 lost). It will be a battle in the circle between MVP candidates, as Denver is countering with Nikola Jokic. Just about the only thing Jokic doesn’t do incredibly well is win jump balls. He comes in at 46.7 percent for the season (35 out of 75.)
If Philly corrals the ball off the tip, don’t be shocked if Harris is the beneficiary. Harris has attempted at least 11 shots from the field in 7 of the last 9 contests and he has scored at least 20 points in 3 of the last 5. The University of Tennessee product has drained at least 3 triples in 4 of the last 6 games, so he is scoring from everywhere on the floor. He attempted the game’s first shot last Wednesday against Chicago and attempted a shot in the first minute and a half of Saturday’s loss at Phoenix. At long +950 odds, Harris is well worth a sprinkle.
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