We have 9 games ahead of us tonight for the Friday NBA slate. The Toronto Raptors are the only team on a back-to-back this evening and LeBron James celebrates his 38th birthday vs the Atlanta Hawks on the road. Several key players are on the injury report at the time of writing this article with a “Questionable” designation that could likely go either way so we will proceed with caution. Those names include Bradley Beal, Jamal Murray, Rudy Gobert, Aaron Gordon, Fred VanVleet, Lonnie Walker and Jusuf Nurkic. Let’s dive into my favorite player props on the night.
Line available at FanDuel Sportsbook at the time of publishing.
This is right at Clarkson’s average of 20.3 ppg and he gets a great opponent for his skillset. The Kings are 25th in opponent effective 3P% and 20th overall in opp shooting percentage at the rim. Clarkson has hit this line in 5 straight games and has done a great job of getting to the FT in that span. Sacramento is 17th is Opp FTA per game. In 2021-22 Clarkson had his season-high 45 points vs the Kings and I expect him to clear this line easily. 1U.
Line available at DraftKings Sportsbook at the time of publishing.
Killian Hayes is out tonight for the Pistons following his skirmish with Mo Wagner the other night and I’m expecting rookie Jaden Ivey to take the reins in his absence. The Bulls represent a great opportunity for Ivey to show off his skillset in a high-usage environment. The 3-guard sets should make attacking the rim easier for Ivey, who is shooting 31% of his FGA from that range. The Bulls also rank 29th overall in opp effective 3P%, where Ivey shoots 32% of his shot attempts. Hayes 6.6 assists per game since the beginning of December will need to be made up by Ivey tonight and if he can come close to Hayes 11.6 potential assists per game, this line shouldn’t be a problem. It’s a projection because we have not seen Ivey in this spot before as dominant ball-handler and potential first scoring option, but I want to see what he is made of tonight. This could be an explosive game from the rookie with only Bogdanovic to take on the scoring burden. 1U.
Line available at FanDuel Sportsbook at the time of publishing.
The other half of that Killian Hayes incident plays out tonight in Orlando with Mo Wagner and Wendell Carter Jr. suspended. This is a great matchup for Porzingis, who will see Mo Bamba and Bol Bol. After Paolo Banchero’s last 2 games, I find it hard to believe he would risk getting in foul trouble again with Porzingis. This number is 1 point above his season average of 21.9 ppg, but this is a team that Porzingis dropped 35 on just last season. The key to hitting this line will be getting to the charity stripe. When Porzingis gets 7 or more FTA, he hits this line in 10 of 15 games this season. Orlando is middle of the pack in opp FTA per game (23.4) and the absence of Carter Jr. and Mo Wagner could be detrimental in the post. 1U.
$5 pays $2896
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