The NCAA Tournament continues to power on but the NBA season is winding down in its final stretch. With the heavy college slate in mind, there are just five games of NBA action tonight. The playoff race is in full swing while the lottery odds are being established at the bottom of the standings, so each game continues to carry significant weight.
The Indiana Pacers will play the Brooklyn Nets at 5 p.m. ET to start the action before the Golden State Warriors face the Atlanta Hawks at 7 p.m. ET. An hour later, the New York Knicks will host the Washington Wizards. At 10 p.m. ET, the Milwaukee Bucks will travel to take on the Sacramento Kings before the final matchup of the night, tipping off at 10:30 p.m. ET, takes place between the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers.
Keep a close eye on the injury reports as the grind of the season has taken a toll around the league. With plenty of NBA action ahead, here are my favorite prop bets for Saturday’s slate.
Draymond Green Over 22.5 Points, Rebounds & Assists (-120)
The Golden State Warriors reached a new level with their play following the addition of Jimmy Butler. However, the organization faces turmoil for the first time with this new group as Steph Curry is set to miss some time with a hip injury. Golden State currently holds a one-game lead for the sixth seed in the Western Conference, the final spot above the play-in seeds, and it cannot afford to drop winnable games. It has an opportunity for a victory tonight facing off against the Atlanta Hawks.
While he continues to make headlines for plenty of the wrong reasons as well, Draymond Green has taken his offensive game to a new level as of late. So far this season, the four-time All-Star is averaging 9.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.7 assists. Green is coming off his best offensive performance of the season as he finished with 21 points, seven rebounds, five assists and four steals while knocking down five three-pointers on Thursday against the Raptors. He has recorded over 22.5 combined points, rebounds and assists in 26 games this season.
Without Curry and the 24.2 points he provides, the Warriors will need to get more creative offensively. Green is one of the few trusted to lead the Golden State offense and has shown an increased willingness as a scorer lately. Expect him to take on this challenge without his future Hall-of-Fame teammate and scale up his offensive role again tonight. Atlanta ranks 27th in opponent points allowed, 16th in opponent rebounds allowed and 28th in opponent field-goal percentage. Green has scored 20+ points in two of his past four games, so look for him to build off this momentum with a strong offensive output tonight.
OG Anunoby Over 19.5 Points (-110)
The New York Knicks continue to navigate the murky waters of life without Jalen Brunson. As the All-Star guard remains sidelined with his ankle injury, the rest of the roster has been forced to scale up its offensive responsibilities. OG Anunoby will likely always be regarded as a defensive-minded player but has shown some positive flashes of late.
On the season, Anunoby is averaging 16.7 points per game and has recorded over 19.5 points in 23 of the 63 games he has played. However, he is averaging 19.7 points since Jalen Brunson went down, with Anunoby recording over 19.5 points in four of his last six games. The former Raptors standout is also shooting just 38.1% from the floor during Brunson’s absence, leaving some production on the table.
The Knicks will face the Washington Wizards tonight who hold the worst record in the NBA. Washington ranks 30th in opponent points allowed and 21st in opponent field-goal percentage. This is the fourth matchup between these two teams this season, with Anunoby producing scoring outputs of 16, 18 and six points. These all occurred with Brunson on the floor, with Anunoby being held to 14 or fewer field-goal attempts in each. Expect an expanded offensive role and for Anunoby to have his best scoring output against the Wizards this season by recording over 19.5 points for the fifth time in the past seven games.
Kyle Kuzma Over 22.5 Points & Rebounds (-110)
The Milwaukee Bucks made a midseason splash by trading Khris Middleton in return for Kyle Kuzma. The Utah product adds some needed youth and has averaged 14.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists across his first 20 games in Milwaukee. He will also be benefitting from an expanded role due to injury as Damian Lillard is set to miss tonight’s matchup with the Kings due to a calf issue. Kuzma himself has been playing through a sprained ankle and recently spoke at length about him finally feeling like he has some burst pushing off of the injured leg.
Kuzma’s ability to scale up and take a more significant offensive role was part of the appeal to bringing him in. The early returns have been positive, with Kuzma averaging 19.5 points per 36 minutes when playing next to Giannis Antetokounmpo without Lillard. While this is a limited 192-minute sample size, he has scored 20+ points in the past two games without Lillard, reaching over 22.5 points and rebounds in each.
Sacramento ranks 22nd in opponent points allowed and is 15th in total team rebounds. These rebounding issues will be further maximized with Domantas Sabonis remaining out with an ankle injury, meaning the Kings will miss his NBA-leading 13.9 rebounds per game. Look for Kuzma to impose himself on the boards and welcome the increased offensive responsibility. He has recorded over 22.5 combined points and rebounds in six games with the Bucks and enters this matchup off back-to-back performances reaching this total. Look for him to capitalize against a poor Kings defense and make his impact felt in tonight’s game.
Rui Hachimura Over 1.5 Made Three-Pointers (+145)
In the final matchup of the night’s slate, the Los Angeles Lakers will host the Chicago Bulls. LeBron James has been upgraded to questionable after missing the past six games with his groin issue but his status will be fully decided before tip-off. Whether or not James suits up, it has become clear that Luka Doncic has stepped into the driver’s seat of the offense. Doncic has shaken off the rust of his injury absence and is settling in as the All-NBA caliber player he has proven to be. While the 26.5 points per game he provides cannot be overlooked, Doncic’s ability to create three-point shots for his teammates is near the top of the list of his best qualities.
Look for Rui Hachimura to be one of the biggest beneficiaries of this as he is expected to return to the floor after missing the previous 10 games with a knee injury. Hachimura is a huge part of what the Lakers are trying to do and his absence was noteworthy. Across the 50 games he has played this season, Hachimura is averaging 13.3 points and 5.2 rebounds while shooting 42.0% from beyond the three-point arc. The 6-foot-8 forward is averaging 1.7 made three-pointers per game and has recorded over 1.5 made three-pointers in 26 of the 50 games he has played.
This is an area of weakness for the Bulls as Chicago ranks 28th in opponent three-point attempts allowed. While there is some concern about Hachimura getting his legs under him in his first game back, his skillset was missing greatly in the stretch without him. Expect the Lakers to make use of his skillset. With this being a weakness on the Bulls already, look for Hachimura to capitalize on the open looks created by Doncic and connect on over 1.5 made three-pointers for the 27th time this season.
