Eight NBA games will be played tonight, starting with the Detroit Pistons hosting the Utah Jazz at 7:00 p.m. Four of the eight matchups feature teams above .500. How will Josh Giddey perform against the Los Angeles Clippers? Can Deandre Ayton take advantage of the Washington Wizards' bad defensive play in the paint? And will DeMar DeRozan make a three-pointer for the first time in three games?
Here are the three best NBA PrizePicks plays for Thursday, December 21.
Eight NBA games will be played tonight, starting with the Detroit Pistons hosting the Utah Jazz at 7:00 p.m. Four of the eight matchups feature teams above .500. How will Josh Giddey perform against the Los Angeles Clippers? Can Deandre Ayton take advantage of the Washington Wizards' bad defensive play in the paint? And will DeMar DeRozan make a three-pointer for the first time in three games?
Here are the three best NBA PrizePicks plays for Thursday, December 21.
On Tuesday, Ayton scored 16 points. It was his first time scoring more than 14 in the past six games. He shot just 33.3% from the field in that game, but he put up 18 shots, his most of the season thus far. With a very good matchup against the Wizards tonight, we expect him to put up a lot of shots yet again.
The Wizards are allowing the most points per game in the NBA. They're also allowing the second-most points in the paint per game. Ayton's entire game is inside the arc, as he has yet to attempt a single three-pointer this season. For a player like him, there are very few matchups better than the one he faces tonight. Look for him to potentially score 20 for the first time since November 27th.
It feels like oddsmakers are baiting us into taking this over, but we still think it's the right play. Giddey has scored at least 12 points in three of his last four games. The only time he failed to hit that number was when he played just 15 minutes against the Denver Nuggets.
Though Giddey has scored 10 or fewer points in four of his seven games this month, he has shot the ball at least 11 times in all but one game. That high volume of shooting will continue tonight, even though he's facing a good Clippers defense, because he's been shooting 45.5% or better over his last four games. If this line was at 12.5, we'd stay away, but at 10.5, you have to take the over with how Giddey is currently playing.
DeRozan hasn't made a three-pointer in either of his last two games. During that stretch, he's only attempted two shots from deep. For the season, he's averaging just 0.9 makes and 2.6 attempts from beyond the arc. So, why trust him tonight?
The San Antonio Spurs have the second-worst three-point defense in the NBA. They're allowing opponents to knock down 39.1% of their shots from deep. Additionally, the Spurs are allowing the fourth-most points per game this season, so the Chicago Bulls should put up plenty of points. Since DeRozan is their leading scorer, expect him to end his three-point drought and knock down at least one tonight.
