NBA First Basket Scorer Odds & Picks: Friday (1/10)
Friday's NBA action is a jam-packed slate with plenty of games on the schedule. This means there is a lot of opportunity to find plays for any NBA fan or bettor. If you're looking to get in on the action early on Friday, here are a few value first-basket plays.
Go premium to view top prop bets based on Cover Probability, Expected Value & Star Rating >>
Friday’s Best NBA First Basket Scorer Prop Bets
(Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook)
Who will score the first basket in today’s NBA games? We compare historical first basket stats to prop bet odds to help identify today’s best bets. View first-basket odds across sportsbooks here.
Oklahoma City Thunder at New York Knicks
Two of the hottest teams in the league take center stage as the Thunder travel to Madison Square Garden. Both of these teams have been pretty average when it comes to first scores, hovering around 50%. When you look at the matchups, there is a bit of an edge for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He has cashed in on five first baskets in the early part of the season and has led the team in first-team scores.
Gilgeous-Alexander is having a phenomenal season and has advantages over most teams. However, New York is a particularly good matchup as they give up almost half of their first scores to opposing centers. I'll take the strong matchup and back Gilgeous-Alexander to get off to a hot start.
Pick: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (+460)
Washington Wizards at Chicago Bulls
There are very few situations this season where the Wizards are going to have an advantage in the first-basket department. Chicago has been awful by scoring first in only about one-quarter of their games. Washington, although sitting under 40%, is still clearly the better first-basket team.
One player for Washington I'm looking at is Alex Sarr. Chicago has been bad against centers when it comes to first baskets. In 31 starts this year, Sarr has three first baskets. He missed Wednesday's game but Jonas Valanciunas cashed the first basket in his place. With Sarr expected back on Friday, he's the best play.
Brooklyn Nets at Denver Nuggets
The Brooklyn Nets travel to Denver to take on the Nuggets on Friday. Both teams look to get off to a hot start, but I like Denver to score first as they have been having success doing that all season. No Nuggets player has had more success with first baskets than Jamal Murray. I'll back him here.
Murray leads the Nuggets with seven first baskets. His seventh came on the first possession of Wednesday's game. Normally, I try and focus on matchups against an opponent, but Brooklyn has been pretty average against guards when it comes to first baskets. I like Murray because he's had a ton of success and he provides value at this price.
Pick: Jamal Murray (+600)