NBA Player Props & Best Bets Today: Schedule, Picks for Saturday

sportsbookreview.com

14 April 2023

Three player props and a high-scoringWestern Conference showdown headline Saturday’s top NBA picks. Check out our top NBAplayer props and best bets for Saturday based on the best NBA odds.

Saturday’sfour-game playoff slate offers some juicy player props, so we’re focusing mostof our attention there.

Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics get an attractivematchup with the Atlanta Hawks, and the star forward will look to keepfacilitating at a high level.

Meanwhile, budding Brooklyn Nets star Mikal Bridges will geta chance to show off his scoring against the Philadelphia 76ers, and DonovanMitchell is in a prime position to heat up from beyond the arc when the ClevelandCavaliers host the New York Knicks.

We end the night with what figures to be ashootout between the Sacramento Kings and the visiting Golden State Warriors.

Hereare our top NBA player props and best bets for Saturday (odds via FanDuel and PointsBet; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Checkout our NBA picks and our best NBA betting sites.

Saturday’s NBA schedule and odds

(odds via DraftKings)

Brooklyn Nets (+8.5) vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Atlanta Hawks (+9) vs. Boston Celtics
New York Knicks (+5.5) vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
Golden State Warriors (-1) vs. Sacramento Kings

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Saturday’s NBA playerprop picks

Prop: Mikal Bridges Over 26.5 points vs. 76ers (-115 via PointsBet) ⭐⭐⭐

Perhapsno player's stock has risen more over the last two months than MikalBridges'. After his trade to the Nets, Bridges became the team’s primary optionon offense, stepping out from the shadows he lived in with Phoenix whileplaying alongside Devin Booker and Chris Paul.

He’saveraged 26.1 points per game in 27 appearances with the Nets and scored atleast 27 points in 13 of them, including six on the road. He scored 23 in histeam debut, which happened to be against the 76ers.

Over the final nine gamesof the season (not counting his ceremonious four seconds in the season finaleto keep his games-played streak alive), Bridges averaged 30.4 points per gamewhile scoring at least 20 points in all of them.

Philly’s defense allowed thethird-fewest points per game this season (110.9), but it fell to 14th overthe final two weeks of the season, allowing 115.5. As discussed in our Nets vs. 76ers predictions, the Nets are big road 'dogs,and they’ll need Bridges’ offensive prowess to keep this one close.

Prop: Donovan Mitchell Over 4.5 3-pointers vs. Knicks (+165 via FanDuel)⭐⭐⭐

Donovan Mitchell cooked in his first season with the Cavs, leading the team to over 50 winswhile producing career highs in points (28.3) and 3-pointers (3.6). Mitchellaveraged slightly more triples at home (3.7) while shooting 40.8% from beyondthe arc. He drained at least five of them in 22 contests this season.

Mitchellis in a favorable position Saturday. In four games against New York thisseason, he averaged 5.5 triples, including 7.0 per game in two homematchups. Over his last six games against New York overall (this season andlast), he averaged 5.1 3-pointers.

New York allows the fourth-most triplesper game overall (13.0) and the fourth-most on the road (13.6). Mitchell’s3-pointer prop is set at 3.5 for odds of -140 or shorter, but we needto bank on only one additional trey to get those odds at plus money.

Prop: Jayson Tatum Over 4.5 assists (-102 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tatumbecame the first player in Celtics history to average at least 30 points pergame for an entire season (30.1), but he also got teammates involved, dishing acareer-best 4.6 assists per game in 2022-23. Tatum’s facilitating took a smallstep forward after the All-Star break, as he handed out 4.8 dimes over thefinal 19 games of the season. That included 11 contests with at least five.

Tatumhanded out at least five assists in 37 of 74 games this season, and he totaled14 of them across two matchups with Atlanta. The Hawks allow the eighth-mostassists per game overall (26) and the eighth-most on the road (26.6). MarcusSmart’s assist numbers plummeted from 7.1 pre-All-Star break to 4.3 post-break,due in part to nagging injuries and also to Tatum’s continued excellence asa passer.

This prop is offered at odds of -110 or even -120 at other books, sogetting it at -102 at FanDuel is a huge value.

NBA game picks

Total: Warriors-Kings Over 238 (-110 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐⭐

Whatdo you do when the two highest-scoring teams meet in the first round of theplayoffs? You bet the Over, of course. On the season, Sacramento averaged themost points per game (120.7), and Golden State was next at 118.9. Sacramentoput up the most points per game at home (123.4), and Golden State put up themost on the road (118.2). We’ve got a pair of potent point-scoring teams, butwhat about the defenses?

Bothteams are among the 10 most generous to opponents in points per game allowed.Golden State allows the second-most points per game on the road (122.5), andSacramento is tied for most points per game allowed at home (120.1).

If thosenumbers don’t get your blood pumping, consider Golden State (16.6) ranks firstin threes made per game, while Sacramento allows the third-highest 3-pointpercentage at home (37.5). Sacramento ranks fifth in made threes (13.8), andGolden State allows the second-highest percentage on the road (39.7).

TheWarriors will surely be fired up after clawing their way to the No. 6 seed, andSacramento should be amped up for its first playoff game since 2006 when thestarting backcourt was Mike Bibby and Bonzi Wells. We’re expecting a lot ofpoints here.

NBA best bets made 04/14/2023 at11:45 a.m. ET.