The Knicks managed to steal Game 1 on the road in Boston, making Game 2 even more intriguing. This is a breakdown of the public betting splits and the most popular player prop bets for the highly anticipated matchup.
Oklahoma City is a 10-point favorite over Indiana at DraftKings Sportsbook, with a total of 230 points.
Betting Splits
The Thunder are significant favorites in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Pacers. The Thunder have been the best team in the NBA all season and seem unstoppable at the moment. The Pacers have had an incredible run through the Eastern Conference playoffs, but could be in the “happy to be here” zone. The Thunder have been incredible at home this postseason and are deservedly big favorites against the Pacers.
The Pacers are 10-point underdogs in this game, and the public seems to think that is too many points. 59% of the bets are on Indiana to cover the large spread. However, bigger bettors are coming in on the other side. Despite getting only 41% of the bets, 59% of the handle is on the Thunder to cover the large spread. Bigger bettors are not afraid of the double-digit number, and are backing Oklahoma City to make a statement in Game 1.
With a spread of this size, the moneyline isn’t as popular a bet as it would be if it were a tighter spread. 52% of the bets and 52% of the handle are on the Thunder moneyline. That is a lot of juice to pay, so most Thunder bettors are leaning on the spread, rather than that expensive moneyline. When it comes to the total, bettors are leaning towards the over 230. 60% of bets and 64% of the handle are on the over, meaning the public likes the over, and bigger bettors agree.
Most Popular Player Props
Here are five of the most popular player prop bets at DraftKings Sportsbook for this matchup:
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander First Points Scorer (+390)
- Pascal Siakam First Points Scorer (+650)
- Alex Caruso Points + Rebounds + Assists u14.5 (-135)
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 35+ Points (+115)
- Tyrese Haliburton u17.5 Points (-125)
NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is always popular in the prop market. The most-bet player prop for Game 1 of the NBA Finals is on SGA to score the first points of the game. The MVP would love to set the tone from the jump and get the first bucket of the game. The second most popular player prop bet is on Pascal Siakam to score the first points of the game. Siakam won the Eastern Conference Finals MVP and was the Pacers’ most consistent offensive threat all series against the Knicks.
The public is also going against Alex Caruso in this game. Caruso has been fantastic for the Thunder in these playoffs, but his contributions often don’t end up in the stat sheet. Caruso is an elite defender and can guard all five positions. He has taken on both Anthony Edwards and Nikola Jokic this postseason, and makes all of the little plays that help the Thunder win games. However, the public thinks he will stay under his combined stats prop.
On the other hand, the public is backing Gilgeous-Alexander to have a big game. He has been phenomenal all season and the public thinks he can score 35 or more points in Game 1 of the Finals. For the Pacers’ star, the public has little faith in Tyrese Haliburton. They are betting on Haliburton to have under 17.5 points. Haliburton has been brilliant for the Pacers this postseason, but he has been inconsistent with his scoring. Against the elite Thunder defense, he could struggle to get over 17.5 points.
