Detroit Pistons at Boston Celtics
I wrote up a couple of props earlier in the day that you can find on DKN here, but with news that Jayson Tatum will sit out for the Celtics, I want to add a prop on Jaylen Brown. The Celtics have a nice soft spot in the schedule by not qualifying to compete for the NBA Cup, so by sitting Tatum for this game, he will get over a week off between games.
With Tatum off the floor, Jaylen Brown obviously steps into a larger role. Playing Brown to go over his points prop will be a popular look, but I’m going to go to his assists in this spot. Brown took a lot of criticism early in his career for his ball handling and playmaking abilities, but it’s something the NBA Finals MVP has been working on to elevate his game. We’re seeing it pay off this season, averaging a career-high 4.6 helpers, which is a full assist higher than last season.
With Tatum off the floor, we can expect Brown to be the primary ball handler, which is a key role in Boston’s offense. The Celtics get up a ton of 3-point attempts in the half court and in transition, and Brown likes to push the ball up the floor. With the defense focused on Brown, it’ll be his job to find the shooters on Thursday.
We saw Brown operate in this role in this exact matchup just over a week ago, and he dished out nine assists at home against Detroit. This is probably a play you can look to ladder if you want to get aggressive, but I’ll keep it to a larger play on Brown to reach a modest five assists.
PLAY: Jaylen Brown OVER 4.5 Assists (-125) 1.5-units
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All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests.
The contents contained in this article do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment.
