Two more teams will punch their tickets to the Emirates NBA Cup semifinals tonight. For it to be them, the Atlanta Hawks will need a masterful performance from point guard Trae Young.
It hasn’t been a great season for Young so far, but the Hawks are holding on in an Eastern Conference playoff picture that is starting to round into shape. Atlanta sits in seventh at 13-12, while Young is averaging 20.9 points on career-low 38.5% shooting from the field and 31.0% from beyond the arc. Despite all of his shooting struggles, he is leading the league with 12.2 assists per game.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, the Hawks are eight-point underdogs and the point total is set to 237.5. Below, I’ve highlighted my favorite prop bets centered around Young.
Best Trae Young Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Trae Young U36.5 Points + Rebounds + Assists (-105)
The Knicks have been winning this season behind the strength of a league-leading offense and a slightly below-average defense. However, in their past 10 games, New York’s defense has improved to 13th. The Knicks’ defensive improvement is a bad sign for Young, who has really struggled in recent weeks while battling Achilles tendinitis.
At six-foot-one and 164 pounds, Young is never a major threat on the boards, but New York is one of the best rebounding teams in the league, especially if shooting guard Josh Hart, who’s officially questionable with an ankle sprain, plays. The Knicks’ rebounding advantage will limit Young’s ability to put together an all-around performance, making it harder for him to hit his PRA total. Young has recorded 37 combined points, rebounds, and assists just once in his past five games, and I’d bank on him going under again tonight.
Trae Young U4.5 Turnovers (-125)
Despite New York’s recent defensive performances, it still struggles at forcing turnovers. Opponents cough up the ball just 13.0 times per game against the Knicks, the fifth-lowest rate in basketball.
Young has had a problem with turnovers this season, partially due to the Hawks’ heliocentric offense that sees him handling the ball for 8.3 minutes per game, the second-highest figure in the league. But he is trending in the right direction, having recorded four or fewer turnovers in each of his past three games. Tonight will be a high-scoring, free-flowing game, and maybe Young will let the handle loose, but against a fundamentally-sound Knicks defense that rarely gambles for steals, I think he’ll protect the ball well again.
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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook, lines and odds subject to change.
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user 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 skills 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.
