Six games between 12 teams are set to tip off on Wednesday. Following last night’s historic Bam Adebayo performance, who knows what kind of numbers we could see this evening. Still, on a limited slate, pinning down a handful of must-bet players can prove difficult.
Which players should you feel comfortable backing tonight? Here are my three favorite NBA prop bet picks on DraftKings Sportsbook for Wednesday’s contests.
Top NBA prop bet picks
Scottie Barnes 7+ rebounds (-132)
Toronto’s surge towards postseason contention has been made possible in large part by Scottie Barnes. The two-way menace has been his usual stat-stuffing self, doing a little bit of everything on the court. Through 62 games, he’s averaging 19.0 points, 7.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game. Still, Barnes’ unselfishness can hurt for basketball betting purposes. On any given night, he’s more than willing to serve as a distributor instead of a scorer. Scottie has notched no more than 15 points on 20 different occasions this season.
Keeping that in mind, the safest way to back Barnes might be on the glass. While not a big man, the power forward often serves as a small-ball five. He may need to do so tonight out of necessity. Jakob Poeltl (illness) is questionable, while Collin Murray-Boyles (thumb) has been ruled out. That leaves Sandro Mamukelashvili and not much else down low for the Raptors. Toronto will face a lackluster Pelicans squad on Wednesday. New Orleans has surrendered the fourth-most rebounds per game to opponents this season (55.5). In comparison, Barnes has snagged at least seven boards in 39 of his 62 appearances this season. Don’t be shocked if he keeps that trend going tonight.
Karl-Anthony Towns 21+ points (-113)
Despite losing to the Clippers, Karl-Anthony Towns was dominant on Sunday. The six-time All-Star dropped 35 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists over 36 minutes vs. LA. For a suddenly slumping Knicks squad, that level of production comes at the perfect time. It’s been an up and down campaign for the talented center so far. Over 62 games, he’s recorded 20.0 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists. In addition, KAT has delivered stellar 49/37/85 shooting splits. Even when the shot isn’t falling, Towns’ rebounding skills often lead to easy buckets.
New York’s sharpshooting big is a threat to go off vs. most teams. That’s never been more true than this evening in Salt Lake City. The Jazz wield an atrocious defense, giving up an NBA-worst 124.9 points per game to opponents this season. To make matters worse, Utah is starting youngsters Ace Bailey and Kyle Filipowski in its front court. Towns has reached at least 21 points in nine of his last 15 matchups. There’s no reason to think he can’t do so once more against such a lackluster defense.
Russell Westbrook under 10.5 assists + rebounds (-125)
Speaking of awful rosters, the Kings are an absolute mess on both ends of the floor. What makes this group so puzzling is their mix of untested youngsters and over the hill veterans. 37-year-old Russell Westbrook falls into the latter group. While still good for the occasional monster performance, the former MVP is well past his prime. Through 61 games this season, Brodie is putting up 15.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 6.5 assists on mediocre 43.1% shooting. Those aren’t terrible numbers, but it’s easy to pad stats from last place.
Westbrook has been on a bit of a heater recently. The guard has recorded at least 12 assists + rebounds in each of his previous three outings. However, all three of those games came against bad defensive units (IND, CHI, NOP). A date with Charlotte represents a clear step up in competition. The Hornets are holding opponents to the 13th-fewest assists (26.4) and fewest rebounds (48.1) per game. In addition, they operate at the NBA’s sixth-slowest pace on offense (97.2). A stingier defense and fewer overall possessions makes it difficult to back the inconsistent Westbrook.
