Friday night features a massive 12-game NBA slate build around a nice Prime Video doubleheader. The first game of that doubleheader tips off at 7:00 p.m. ET and features the Los Angeles Lakers visiting the Boston Celtics. Both teams are on the second game of a back-to-back after a win on Friday, and have been playing very well lately. With plenty of strong options on both sides of this matchup,, let’s take a look at the current markets and find some strong options from the many player prop bets on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Overall in the game, the Celtics are 6.5-point home favorites, with the game total set at O/U 225.5 points. With the lower point total, it’s important to not be too aggressive with overs, especially with so many unknowns on the potential injury reports for the two teams.
The Lakers won in Toronto on Thursday to improve to 16-5 on the year and 9-2 on the road. The Celtics were also on the road, playing in Washington and winning to improve to 13-9. Boston has gone 8-2 in their last 10 games, while the Lakers are 8-1 in their last nine contests. Both teams won on Thursday without stars as Luka Doncic (personal) and Jaylen Brown (illness) were both absent. There’s no injury report yet for this matchup, but it seems most likely that Brown returns while Luka does not.
In a matchup with plenty of drama and storylines on both sides, let’s dive in and find a few fun player prop bets to play in Friday night’s matchup.
Lakers vs. Celtics Best Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Austin Reaves 48 + Points + Rebounds + Assists (-109)
Reaves has been outstanding in the four games that he has played without Luka this season. He has averaged 37.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 9.1 assists in those four games while logging a 35.5% usage rate. That gives him an average of 51.1 PRA (points, rebounds, and assists) in those four contests.
The first three of those games were also without LeBron James, but even with LeBron on Thursday, Reaves went off for 59 PRA on 44 points, 10 assists, and five rebounds in 41 minutes in Toronto.
If Luka is out again on Friday, Reaves should be able to go over this PRA line, especially since he has been so efficient scoring over the last few weeks. He has made three or more three-pointers in four straight games and is averaging 32.4 points over his last five appearances, not counting a weird off game against the Suns.
He’s been excellent all year for the Lakers but has really taken his game to the next level when called upon to step into a larger role as he’s expected to do tonight.
Jordan Walsh 8+ points (+112)
Walsh has started the last 10 games for the Celtics and has played an average of 24.6 minutes per game. He’s mostly been a source of energy, defense, and rebounding, but he has stepped up his scoring in his last few contests as well and is earning a larger role in the offense.
He has gone over this point total in each of his last three games. He had 14 points in 38 minutes against the Cavs on Sunday and followed that with eight points that came at critical times against the Knicks on Tuesday. On Thursday with Brown out, he went a perfect 8-for-8 from the field against the Wizards and delivered 22 points.
While I don’t expect him to never miss again or continue to hit this production regularly, he has enough momentum that I like his chances to deliver at least eight points in this plus-money prop on Friday. He’s quickly become a fan favorite in Boston, and his hustle and high-flying dunks should light up the Garden again on Friday.
Gabe Vincent under 6.5 points (-117)
Vincent started on Thursday in Luka’s place and played 24 minutes, but he only scored five points while going 2-for-8 from the field. This game is expected to be lower-scoring than that contest overall, and Vincent has come in under this prop line in every single one of his 10 games this season.
Even if he gets another start, he will likely come in under this line again, especially since the Celtics may have to go bigger to matchup up better with Boston’s wings, leaving more minutes for options like Jake LaRavia, Marcus Smart (expected to return from injury) and last night’s hero Rui Hachimura instead of Vincent. On the season, Vincent is shooting just 31.7% from the field and 23.1% in his road games.
Bonus Parlay Pick: Anfernee Simons under 2.5 3PM (-166)
If you’re looking for a fourth leg for your Same Game Parlay or SGPx, Simons to hit under 3PM is a play that makes sense at these odds, although they’re a little shorter than the ones I typically target for individual play.
Simons hit four three-pointers on Tuesday without Brown, but he was under this prop line in four straight before that game and in eight of his previous nine.
If you add in Simons at these odds, the four picks in this post check in at a juicy +950 as an SGP:
