Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah! I wish you and your families the best this holiday season and hope everything is merry and bright. After a day off from sports yesterday, we have a solid five-game slate spread out across the day.
It's been a great season, and I hope we continue that trend tonight. As always, monitor injury news and lineup announcements. The best way to stay sharp regarding NBA player props is by staying on top of the news. The second-best way is to shop around at different books. Player props rarely have identical odds across platforms, so make sure you're getting the best value. Let's get to it.
Unless specified otherwise, each bet will be for a single unit.
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Wednesday's Best NBA Player Prop Bets
Last Time: 2-1 | Season: 66-44
Jaylen Brown Over 20.5 Points (-110 on BetMGM)
As the home team sitting around 8.5-point favorites, there's someone I have to back on the Celtics tonight. Considering three starters are listed as questionable, I'm going to ride Jaylen Brown as the staple healthy option. He's averaged right around 20 points over the last two weeks but that number is at 24 this season. He's coming off a 35-point effort against a stingy Orlando defense, so I'm a bit surprised at the number here.
Philadelphia’s defense will get a bit of a boost Tuesday night compared to their seasonal averages, but the third-best offense should still be able to handle them, and I expect higher usage to go through Brown. Even if one of the three currently questionable players ends up out, Brown's line will rise. Currently, he's projected around 24 points, so this one is a great value.
Jeremy Sochan Under 10.5 Rebounds + Assists (-102 on FanDuel Sportsbook)
The New York Knicks have allowed the fewest rebounds a game to opposing power forwards, so getting to the eight rebounds that he averages a night this season is going to be tough for Jeremy Sochan. The main concern for the Spurs forward getting there on this rebound prop is going to be getting enough opportunities.
The Knicks are the third-slowest team and playing at home should control the pace of play. New York's defense receives an uptick at home and currently sits around a double-digit favorite. Sochan has only tallied three assists a game, so if he isn't grabbing boards, I don't imagine he will get there with the assists either. With the odds around even, this is an easy bet.
Jusuf Nurkic Over 18.5 Points + Rebounds (-120 on bet365)
Sometimes I take the projections and run with them. The BettingPros Prop Bet Cheat Sheet has been an excellent tool for me in my betting life for the NBA and beyond. It projects Nurkic for over 22 combined points and rebounds with a 74% chance of hitting.
The Nuggets are a top-10 team in points allowed and middle of the pack with rebounds. Playing at home also gives Nurkic a bump, scoring 10 a night with 11 boards at home compared to seven and seven on the road. Even if he plays to his averages, this will be an easy cover. In a big pace-up spot against a middling defense, I'm fine paying for some juice here.
Ryan Coleman is a featured writer at BettingPros. Follow him on Twitter @ryancoleman_98. For more from Ryan, check out his archive.