NBA Player Prop Bets: Lauri Markkanen Will Finnish The Grizzlies

Jan 08, 2023

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With the NFL regular season winding down this weekend, we’re seeing some larger NBA slates, including today's slate. The NBA action tips off in the early afternoon and stretches through the night, giving us a day full of prop betting to dive into. My three favorite player props are outlined below.

Regarding the process behind the plays, the suite of tools that 4for4 offers are second-to-none. I use the NBA Splits Tool to break down injury impacts and lineup changes and the NBA Prop Stat Explorer to look at historical data for how the player performs relative to their prop and compare it to our in-house projection. Using these alongside the Player Prop Finder to shop for the best line, 4for4 truly makes betting on NBA player props a stress-free and fun process. With the shameless plug (that I am not specifically paid for!), let’s get into the props for today.

Today’s NBA Player Prop Bets (January 8, 2023)

LaMelo Ball Over 8.5 Assists (+105 at BetRivers)

The Hornets are relishing a massive upset over the Milwaukee Bucks and get another matchup with a Central Division opponent on Sunday, the Indiana Pacers. While the Pacers have been performing above expectations this season, the matchup is still one we like to exploit, as they play at the seventh-fastest pace and have the 21st-ranked defensive rating (113.5).

This caters to LaMelo Ball’s strength’s as a transition-friendly player, and it helps that his assist rates have spiked recently, too. Over his last five games, Ball has averaged 15.6 potential assists per game, converting them to an average of 10.0 assists per game. He’s played over 36 minutes per game over that span, commanding 92.0 touches per game, the sixth-highest mark in the entire league over that span. In a pace-up spot against a generous defense, the Hornets as a team should have opportunities throughout the entire game, giving Ball an astronomical ceiling from a facilitating standpoint.

Risk: 1 unit on BetRivers to win 1.05 units.