Germantas Kneita
The NBA brings us a 7-game slate on Saturday as the regular season begins to wind down. The race for the play-in positions remains intense in the Western Conference. The Sacramento Kings and the Dallas Mavericks are both in action tonight as they look to open up a gap over the Phoenix Suns, who have now slipped down to 11th. You can find my favorite player prop picks for each of those contests below.
You can find our NBA previews. But for now take a look at my NBA player props for Saturday.
Anthony Davis (DAL) Over 20.5 points (-135)
Since coming back from injury, Anthony Davis has not been able to deliver an explosive scoring performance for the Mavericks just yet. In the first 2 games he managed totals of just 12 and 15. Considering he is averaging over 25 points per game this season, it seems a matter of time until he gets back to that form. His minutes did increase in his last outing and it would not be surprising to see him surpass the 30-minute mark on Saturday.
The Chicago Bulls and Nikola Vucevic should be a good matchup for Davis. Vucevic offers little in terms of rim protection, which has left the Bulls allowing more points in the paint than any other NBA team this season. Davis has the skillset to exploit this matchup. The Mavericks need a low post scoring option and he can provide that. Usage for him not be an issue as a result, evident in his 19-attempt game in his last outing. Look for something similar today, just with more efficiency against a favorable matchup.
DeMar DeRozan (SAC) Over 4.5 assists (-115)
The Sacramento Kings have continued to play without a natural point guard in their lineup and DeMar DeRozan has stepped up to fill the playmaking void. He has done an admirable job, too, managing at least 5 assists in 4 of his last 5 games. That includes 2 outings in which he recorded 10 assists. That sort of run has helped him average 6.1 assists per game so far this month.
His opponents tonight tend to pack the paint with players. Over the last 10 games the Orlando Magic are tied for third for fewest paint points allowed. It should encourage the Kings’ star to kick the ball out to the perimeter instead of forcing his way to the rim. With 5 separate players available to the Kings who are making more than 40% of their 3-point attempts this season, DDR’s teammates look more than ready to convert the looks he creates tonight.
Bismack Biyombo (SAS) Under 4.5 points (-125)
The San Antonio Spurs have not been using Bismack Biyombo often. He is managing just over 18 minutes per game this month and is far from a feature on the offense, managing 3.4 attempts per game during that time. It has meant that over the last 9 games he has hit the over on this line just twice.
The Boston Celtics are not a favorable matchup for him. With a floor spacing center like Kristaps Porzingis, the Spurs could turn to more mobile players tonight. Biyombo managed just 10 minutes of playing time against another floor spacing big earlier this month in Karl-Anthony Towns, and we could see a reduced role for him in this one. Porzingis is a great shot blocker, too, so he will be well positioned to impact any looks the Spurs’ center gets. I’m backing the under as a result.
