Best NBA prop bets today: Tyrese Haliburton, Mikal Bridges, Evan Mobley highlight top over/under picks for Thursday

The Sporting News
 
Best NBA prop bets today: Tyrese Haliburton, Mikal Bridges, Evan Mobley highlight top over/under picks for Thursday

With a nine-game slate scheduled for Thursday, it should be another strong night of hoops in the NBA. We get to watch Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers take on Jimmy Butler and the Eastern Conference-champion Heat at 7:30 p.m. ET, the 8:00 p.m. window features Wemby, Chet, LeBron, AD, Giannis, and Dame, and the 10:30 nightcap features the Clippers' superteam against Steph Curry and the Warriors. There's something for every NBA fan, and plenty of opportunity for us to once again build a winning SuperDraft player prop parlay. 

If you've been following our over/under player prop parlays on SuperDraft over the past month, you know SN Bets has been enjoying a strong stretch of success. Four of our four-prop parlays have hit over the last month, and we've hit on 3-of-4 picks three times in that span.  Like the artist formerly known as Puff Daddy once said "Can't stop, won't stop" (shout out to all the Dave Chappelle fans out there). 

Let's get to our picks and break down four of our favorite player props on SuperDraft for Thursday night's nine-game NBA slate. Remember: you don't necessarily have to combine all four picks together. You could make separate two-leg or three-leg parlays to increase your win probability, or you could attempt to hit it big if all four picks come through. Good luck, have fun, and enjoy what should be another great night of NBA hoops!

Best NBA prop bets today: Top player prop picks for Thursday

1. Tyrese Haliburton, PG, Pacers at Heat — OVER 11 assists

Tyrese Haliburton has become a cheat code. The fourth-year point guard isn't just a candidate to make All-NBA this season — he's starting to look like a dark-horse MVP candidate for the 9-7 Pacers. His passing vision and accuracy have been utter sorcery, and he could very well be the best point guard in the NBA right now.

Hali has managed just 19 combined assists over his past two games, which has somehow become a disappointment for the Lord of the Dimes. He averages 11.9 helpers per game on the season, and he has reached a dozen or more a whopping nine times in 15 games.

Most importantly for us, Monday marked the first time all season that Haliburton went two games in a row with fewer than 12 assists. Considering Indiana has enjoyed some extra rest with the friendly Monday/Thursday scheduling, we like Hali to go off in a major way against the Heat tonight. Kyle Lowry and Caleb Martin can't stop this dime-dropping locomotive. 

2. Mikal Bridges, G/F, Nets vs. Hornets — OVER 23.5 points

Bridges has been on a mini-heater over Brooklyn's past five games, averaging 24.8 points while shooting 53.4 percent from the floor. He's knocked down two-plus triples in seven of the Nets' past eight games, and he has also demonstrated some aggressiveness by getting to the line a lot (he's 20-of-22 from the stripe over Brooklyn's past four games).

Meanwhile, Charlotte has allowed the fourth-most points per game (121.8) in the NBA this season. Even worse, they maintain the second-worst defensive rating (120.3). And with LaMelo Ball sidelined with yet another ankle injury, the Hornets have looked even more lost than usual as of late (they lost by 13 to the Magic on Sunday and 24 to the Knicks on Tuesday). 

This seems like a prime opportunity for Jacque Vaughn's 9-8 Nets to carry over momentum and seal their fourth consecutive win. Brooklyn won those three games by 15, 9, and 12, yet Bridges logged minute totals of 33, 36, and 38 in those games. Don't expect the Nets to take their foot off the gas in this one, with Bridges keeping a firm grasp of the wheel as their top offensive catalyst. Smash the OVER like Brooklyn will smash Charlotte this evening. 

3. Evan Mobley, F/C, Cavaliers vs. Trail Blazers — OVER 10.5 rebounds

Mobley has been beasting on the boards lately, grabbing a whopping 19 rebounds against the Hawks on Tuesday and 14 against the Raptors on Sunday. He also seems to play the same amount of minutes game in and game out regardless of outcome, so we're not particularly worried that Cleveland will race out to a big lead and rest its starters. With Jarrett Allen likely tasked with tussling against Blazers big DeAndre Ayton all night, Mobley's rebounding OVER seems like a sneaky good play here.

Portland continues to miss the second half of its respective twin towers, Robert Williams III, who recently had season-ending surgery for a torn ligament in his pesky right knee. If Chauncey Billups sends out Jerami Grant and other undersized fours to box out Mobley, the stud big man should have his 10th game of the season with 11-plus boards.

4. Khris Middleton, F, Bucks at Bulls — OVER 13.5 points

We might just roll with a three-leg parlay and exclude this one from our big-money wager, but this one intrigued us enough to consider rolling out a second two-legger. Middleton has started to kick the rust off his proverbial wheels over the past week, finally looking like himself after a dreadful opening month of the season.

The 32-year-old swingman shot 7-of-13 for 17 points against the Heat on Tuesday, and he now faces a 5-14 Bulls squad that ranks just 22nd in defensive rating and dead-last in pace. This seems like a great opportunity for Middleton to build off that strong game against Miami and really pour it on scoring-wise. And if DeMar DeRozan (ankle) can't suit up for Chicago, less will be asked of two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo on the offensive side of the floor. We're taking Middleton to score 14-plus for the third time in five games.