Top NBA First Basket Betting Odds, Picks & Predictions: Saturday (10/29)
We have another loaded Saturday slate of NBA games. Let’s take a look at some plays for First Basket props.
Miami Heat at Sacramento Kings
The Heat continues their west coast trip with a stop in Sacramento on Saturday afternoon. I’m looking to take Bam Adebayo as the first field goal scorer.
Miami is looking to turn things around after a slow 2-4 start on the season. One way to do this will be to get Bam more involved like he was when the Heat was rolling last year. Sacramento is an excellent matchup for Bam to get going as well.
Sacramento’s opponents have all looked to get their bigs involved early due to the lack of rim protection in the Kings’ frontcourt. Miami’s game plan will be no different and should look to Bam early for scoring.
Pick: Bam Adebayo (+360)
Indiana Pacers at Brooklyn Nets
The Pacers aren’t going to win many games this season, but early on, they may be a team to target for First Basket props. They have only scored the first field goal in one of their five games, but the underlying stats say this could just be a product of a small sample size.
Jalen Smith has great athleticism, which benefits the opening tip. In addition to this, the Pacers are scoring their first basket in two attempts on average, one of the best rates in the league.
I’ll take Jalen Smith here to score the first basket because I like Indiana’s chance to score first, and he has a good matchup against the Brooklyn frontcourt.
Pick: Jalen Smith (+850)
Memphis Grizzlies at Utah Jazz
I’m going to target Memphis often for First Basket props as long as Steven Adams is in the lineup. Historically he’s been one of the best jump ball winners in the league. On top of that, Memphis is picking up where they left off last season with their explosive offense led by Ja Morant.
Ja is seemingly taking his game to the next level early in this season with some eye-popping stat lines. I like him to stay attacking early here and get the first field goal against a Utah team that has only recorded the first field goal once in five games early on.
Pick: Ja Morant
Oklahoma City Thunder at Dallas Mavericks
The numbers in this matchup don’t give the Mavericks a huge advantage in scoring the first field goal, but one player in this matchup sticks out like a sore thumb.
Everyone knows Luka Doncic is the straw that stirs the drink in Dallas, but this season he’s taken it to a new level. We’ve already seen some insane Luka performances early on, and the data shows he’s been getting going early.
Luka has scored the first field goal in two of four games for the Mavericks and has recorded the first Dallas field goal in three of four. This is because Luka is putting up half the first three field goal attempts for the Mavericks on average. So long as Luka is putting up this kind of usage, he’s a must-play for First Basket.
Pick: Luka Doncic (+290)
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