Alex Hunter shares his three favorite player prop bets on DraftKings Sportsbook for Sunday’s 11-game NBA slate.
Sunday presents an 11-game NBA slate. Let’s take a look at three of my favorite player prop bets for Sunday’s slate on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Top NBA player prop bets
Scottie Barnes U 16.5 Points (-114)
Immanuel Quickley (foot) remains out, but Barnes is dealing with a shoulder injury that has affected his play. Despite Quickley being sidelined, Barnes has only scored five, 10 and 14 points in his last three while shooting 39% from the field, which is worrisome, as the forward is shooting 50% from the field this season.
The Raptors have plenty to play for Sunday vs. the Celtics, as Toronto is only a half game up on the 76ers for the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference, but Boston is a brutal matchup. The Celtics rank dead last in pace and fourth in defensive rating this season. Barnes has scored 18 and 12 points in his two matchups with Boston, but neither came with Jayson Tatum active. The Celtics own an excellent 107.8 defensive rating with the superstar on the floor this season and Barnes should see plenty of Tatum individually, so Barnes should struggle in this spot.
Ace Bailey U 18.5 Points (-109)
With the Jazz very shorthanded, Bailey is leading the team with 18.4 PPG since the All-Star break. However, the rookie has struggled with consistency and he has stayed under 18.5 points in 11 of his 20 starts over this time.
Up next for Bailey is the worst possible matchup in the league, facing the defending champion Thunder on their home floor. Oklahoma City leads the NBA in defensive rating and the club is an eye-popping 24.5-point favorite over the Jazz on DraftKings Sportsbook. This is the largest spread of the season and while Utah would prefer to lose to improve its chances in the lottery, the Thunder are still looking to clinch the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. This game is going to be a full-on blowout and 18.5 points is just too high for Bailey in this situation.
Paolo Banchero U 23.5 Points (-113)
Banchero hasn’t scored more than 19 points in four straight games. In fact, the forward has only finished with 11 and 10 points in his last two, which directly correlates with the return of Franz Wagner (ankle). Banchero, Wagner and Desmond Bane are all healthy right now and in the 20 this trio has played together this season, Banchero is averaging 18.8 PPG.
In these games, Banchero is handling a 25.6% usage rate, which is a 2.0 percentage drop from his season average. Banchero is in a plus spot vs. the Pelicans, who rank 22nd in defensive rating this season, but 23.5 points is an aggressive line for the forward with the Magic’s big three intact.