Game 2 between the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder will take place Thursday evening with the home side holding a 1-0 edge looking to go up 2-0. The Mavericks will try to achieve a crucial split ahead of the series shifting back to Dallas, or at least show some fight after getting blown out in the fourth quarter en route to a Game 1 loss.
Here’s a look at some of our favorite player prop bets to target for Game 2 Thursday, with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander over 1.5 3-pointers (+130)
Oklahoma City’s star point guard canned a couple triples in the opening game, largely doing his damage in the midrange zone while also getting some easy lanes to attack. I think the Mavericks do close off some of those lanes in Game 2 but SGA is too good to be held down completely. Gilgeous-Alexander is hitting 39% of his perimeter shots after his 0-3 showing in the first playoff game against the Pelicans. I think he continues to shoot well from deep and go over this line Thursday.
Kyrie Irving over 23.5 points (-120)
Luka Doncic looked gassed at the end of Game 1 and it showed in his stat line. It’ll be up to Irving to pick up some of the slack and help his backcourt mate out. The veteran point guard went for 20 points in Game 1 on great efficiency, so I see him getting more usage in Game 2. Irving has the favorable matchup with Lu Dort likely to stick on Doncic for this series as the primary defender, so I expect him to be aggressive and look for his shot more in this one. He should go over this line in Game 2.
Luka Doncic over 9.5 assists (-155)
After three straight games with double-digit assists, Doncic only managed nine in the Game 1 loss. I think his usage rate remains high in Game 2 but he looks to set teammates up instead of hunting for his own shots. Doncic does look to be struggling late in games with his knee issue and I do think he’ll be more inclined to defer to others, particularly Irving. He should get back to double-digit assists in this contest.
Jalen Williams over 5.5 rebounds (+136)
Williams only logged five rebounds in Game 1, and Oklahoma City operated more as a gang rebounding team in the series opener. The Thunder forward has gotten at least five rebounds in every playoff game so far, going over this mark three times. Given how random rebounding seems to be with this Thunder team, it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibilities for Williams to see one or two additional missed shots bounce his way. He’s got a consistent floor on this line and there’s good value here, so I like the over.