Germantas Kneita
The NBA Cup semifinals take place tonight with the last 4 teams in action. In the east, the Atlanta Hawks will be taking on the Milwaukee Bucks while in the Western Conference the Houston Rockets take on the Oklahoma City Thunder. It is a win or go home situation, so the stakes are incredibly high tonight. You can see our NBA Cup game previews here, but for now take a look at my favorite player props below.
Isaiah Hartenstein (OKC) over 11.5 rebounds (-130)
The return of Isaiah Hartenstein has gone a long way to helping the Thunder clear up their rebounding issues. The center has managed to record 12 or more rebounds in 6 of his last 7 games, only failing to hit that mark in a blowout win over the Utah Jazz. He should be able to continue this run of form against a Rockets team that is just 27th in the NBA in true shooting percentage over the last 5 games. Hartenstein should be matched up against Alperen Sengun here. The Turkish center has knocked down just 1 of his last 11 3-point attempts and meaning he should struggle to force his opponent to step away from the paint. The last time the sides met Hartenstein used this great positioning to pull down 11 defensive rebounds, finishing with 13 boards overall. I am expecting a similar stat line from him here.
Jabari Smith Jr. (HOU) over 1.5 steals & blocks (+135)
Jabari Smith Jr. was a dominant defensive force the last time these sides faced off, recording 3 blocks in the contest. That game helped him extend his streak of games in which he has recorded at least 2 combined blocks and steals, which now stands at 6 of his last 8 games. The Thunder are a team that look to force the ball inside, ranking 4th in points in the paint over the last 5 games. It should give Smith Jr. plenty of opportunities to impact those plays with his size and length. The Thunder are 18th over that same last game stretch in opponent blocks per game. With Alperen Sengun not offering much rim protection, it will be down to Smith to rack up the blocks. The steals are a nice bonus addition to the line.
