The NBA’s huge showcase game on Saturday night is a Western Conference battle between the Nuggets and the Lakers in Denver. The Nuggets have won nine straight and have caught the Grizzlies for the No. 2 spot in the Western Conference, while the Lakers shook the entire NBA at the trade deadline by adding Luka Doncic and sending Anthony Davis to Dallas. This will be the first time the new-look Lakers visit the Nuggets, and it will definitely get the spotlight with the national TV broadcast lined up for Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET. In this post, we’ll focus on some of the best player props from Lakers vs. Nuggets.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, the Nuggets are 6.5-point home favorites in this matchup, which has an elevated point total of 244.5 on DraftKings Sportsbook. The two teams appear to be mostly healthy after the All-Star break with Luka Doncic, LeBron James, Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray all listed as probable. The Nuggets will be without Peyton Watson (knee), but the rest of both rotations looks to be on track to play.
Best Prop Bets for Lakers vs. Nuggets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Nikola Jokic over 50.5 points + rebounds + assists (-120)
This over/under for Jokic PRA (points + rebounds + assists) seems very low to me, especially when you look at The Joker’s recent form and the Lakers’ lack of frontcourt depth. He seems like a pretty “safe” option, even though counting on any player to get to 51 PRA is a tall task since the number is just so huge.
Jokic has been on a whole different level lately, regularly putting up well over this number. He has over 51 PRA in three straight games, all at home, and in six of his last eight. He has gone over the total in 30 of his 50 games this season (60%) and is averaging 51.1 PRA per game on the season.
The reason I’m comfortable taking the over in this matchup is that the Lakers don’t have much depth in their frontcourt. They tried to bring in Mark Williams, but since that trade was rescinded they’re left with Jaxson Hayes, Trey Jemison, and maybe Dorian Finney-Smith as a small-ball option in the middle. Jokic should have his way with any combination of those players and put together a huge game in this marquee matchup.
Rui Hachimura over 5.5 rebounds (+114)
With the Lakers left short-handed at center, Rui Hachimura has stepped up his rebounding production. He’s also been getting extra playing time lately, averaging 34.7 minutes over his last eight games after averaging 30.9 minutes over his previous 29 contests.
Hachimura has at least six rebounds in five of his last seven games, averaging 6.9 boards per contest. He had 12 rebounds, including four offensive boards, in his most recent game on Thursday against the Trail Blazers.
With both Luka and LeBron expected to play on Saturday, it will be interesting to see how many minutes Hachimura gets and if he stays in the starting five. If he does, he should be able to go over this number at plus-money based on his expanded rebounding responsibilities.
Luka Doncic under 25.5 points (-115)
At full strength and at his best, every NBA fan knows that Doncic can obliterate this number. However, what we’ve seen from Luka lately has been far from his best. He has played three games for the Lakers, scoring 14, 16, and 14 points. He had his minutes limit lifted last game against the Hornets, but he still only managed 14 points in 33 minutes.
His shot has been particularly off from long range, and he went just 5-for-24 (20.8%) on three-point attempts in his three games with the team. As he ramps back up to a full workload, asking him to play big minutes and score lots of points at elevation in Denver seems like a very tall task.
Luka could have his best game in a Lakers uniform by far and still fall below this total. It’s risky to pick against his talent, but his recent form makes the under my strong pick in this prop for Lakers vs. Nuggets.
Julian Strawther Alt Points + Rebounds + Assists 20+ (+450)
The Nuggets have had several key players in and out of the rotation the last few weeks with Michael Porter Jr., Jamal Murray, Russell Westbrook, Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson all missing time. No matter who has been in or out, Strawther has helped pick up the slack. The second-year wing from Gonzaga has stepped up in multiple roles and has found ways to contribute.
He had 16 points and 22 PRA on Thursday in the team’s first game back after the break and played 22 minutes off the bench, even though all the Nuggets’ main pieces were available. Strawther produced at least 20 PRA in five of his last nine games, which makes this a really strong pick at +450.
Many of those games with more scoring and PRA were due to him filling in, but he showed on Thursday that he has worked himself into a large enough role to hit this number even with the team at full strength (minus Watson).
Strawther has the potential to fill the stat sheet up and hit this number off the bench, and he could also end up playing extra minutes if the game gets lopsided. It’s a long-shot pick, but the potential of it happening is great enough to be worth a flier at this number in Lakers vs. Nuggets.
