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As any frequenter of the sports betting sphere can attest to, basketball will always have its ups and downs, but perhaps no sport is better made for player props. Maybe its the ability to compile several stats fluidly and rapidly but every night that has hoops, we as bettors are presented with an influx of individual markets to to use fortuitously. Let’s have a glace at which player props stick out over Friday’s 13-game NBA schedule, with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Joel Embiid first field goal vs. Toronto Raptors (+300)
Embiid has been in the news mostly for his MVP potential lately (where DraftKings has him priced at -125 to win the award ahead of Friday’s game), but we can use him for a quicker, plus-money play tonight. Paying back at 3/1 odds, Embiid “First Field Goal” while hosting the Raptors seems like a fun, straight to the point wager with valuable upside. Given his size, skill and position, you can assume Embiid will get a high percentage look early on. For reference, Embiid has cashed this market 27 times in 2022-23, including twice in the past 10 games.
Kevin Durant over 22.5 points vs. Denver Nuggets (-130)
Now that he has his feet wet playing at home in Phoenix, Durant (29.2 ppg) will look to build off his 16-point performance from two days ago. Staying at Footprint Arena, the Suns will host the top-seeded Nuggets on Friday, with Nikola Jokic (calf) and Jamal Murray (rest) both questionable. This should open up the court a bit, giving Durant even more opportunities to attack the basket. As one of the greatest scorers ever, Durant has myriad tools to utilize; I like tonight as his first major game in front his new home crowd in Arizona, going for 23 points or more.
Jordan Poole over 3.5 rebounds vs. San Antonio Spurs (+140)
I’m going to attempt to get cute and play a low number, plus-money play that is on a “streak.” Poole has hauled in only 2.8 rebounds per game this season, but he has crossed this threshold in the past two games at home. The Warriors will remain at San Francisco’s Chase Center tonight against the Spurs and with Poole’s sporadic rebounding ability, I feel confident about him tracking down more than three boards.