Sure hope you’ve enjoyed the first few days of 2024 NBA action by watching your favorite players contribute to your Christmas gift fund! It’s an exciting time to get in on player props at DraftKings Sportsbook, what with the introduction of the King of the Court challenge. And you can sure bet Victor Wembanyama is going to be a popular pick for KoTC tomorrow in his season-opener against the Dallas Mavericks.
Before we evaluate any of the prop markets for his second year, let’s run down Wembanyama’s rookie averages in 2023:
- Points per game (PPG): 21.4
- Rebounds per game (RPG): 10.6
- Assists per game (APG): 3.9
- Blocks per game (BPG): 3.6
- Steals per game (SPG): 1.2
- Field goal percentage (FG%): 46.5%
- 3-point percentage (3P%): 32.5%
- Free throw percentage (FT%): 79.6%
- Minutes per game (MPG): 29.7
Many folks are likely going to be slamming Wemby’s points and rebounds on Thursday.
However, there’s one market that I found extremely profitable with Wembanyama props in 2023 that I’m going to be sprinkling on.
Best Victor Wembanyama Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Victor Wembanyama OVER 5.5 Blocks + Steals
Who else was with me for most of 2023 on this market? Does the term “OVER 3.5 Blocks + Steals -140” ring a bell for you? Because that was the standard for this market during Wembanyama’s rookie year, and it cashed a lot. It took a while for this prop market to really catch up to the public’s nonstop hammering of it. If you were one of my fellow bettors who quietly chalked that into your NBA slips all year, consider this my tip of the cap.
Now, -140 odds always felt crummy when it didn’t hit, as poor juice is wont to do. But the market has finally regulated, and we’re left with a pretty tough o/u line, here. The Mavericks only allowed 4.0 blocks allowed per game, despite being disappointing in other defensive areas.
Wembanyama had 24 games in 2023 in which he cleared five blocks, and had 12 games in which he would have gone over this prop if the line were set as it is today.
Here are a few more Wembanyama’s relevant stats for this prop market in 2023, but only against the Mavericks:
- Blocks per game: 3.3
- Steals per game: 1.3
- Minutes per game: 27.5
Everything says under, right? But I’m going over, and the key here is in his minutes per game in 2023 overall, and specifically against the Mavericks.
It might not happen right away, but Wembanyama is going to start seeing the court for closer to 36-38 minutes per game. That’s almost a 25% increase in playing time from last year. If he sees anything close to that number on Thursday, I think he’ll see five blocks at least.
As for steals, Wembanyama had one in 54 of the 71 total games he played in 2023. He had at least two steals in 36 of those games.
At +105, I like this swing to begin the season. The market might be trying to bait you into taking the u5.5 at -135 with a potential King of the Court boost to catapult the odds to plus money. If you want to be conservative and think this line is way too high, be my guest. There’s plenty of value in that, too!
One last thing!
Oh, by the way—I’ve already locked in this bet for myself on the DKNetwork Betting Group, where myself and my colleagues are betting across all sports and markets 24/7. You can tail our bets there, too; I just, last Sunday, had an Anytime TD parlay at 110-1 odds hit with 61 folks backing it in this group. Come tag along for the fun.
You can tail my Wemby bet by clicking this link, and make your way to the DKN Betting Group by clicking this one. Let’s make waves in the Wemby blocks + steals market again in 2024.
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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is daniel_johnson09) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
