Every team is in action on Friday night as the final weekend of the regular season kicks off. There is no better chance to find edges than when the NBA slate is full of games. Let's take a deeper look at the matchups and find some NBA first-basket plays.
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Friday’s Best NBA First Basket 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.
Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks
The Cavaliers have clinched the No. 1 seed in the East and thus are giving their starters some rest this last weekend. But we'll likely see the starters get some run against New York. The Knicks will be on the second night of a back-to-back after having their starters play on Thursday.
If Jarrett Allen is starting again, the Cavaliers should have a massive tip-off advantage. I'd look to play Donovan Mitchell to score the first basket. He's been the Cavaliers’ go-to guy for first baskets all year. I'll take the chance on him scoring a first basket against a team that allows a high number of them to shooting guards.
Pick: Donovan Mitchell (+600)
Memphis Grizzlies at Denver Nuggets
The battle to stay out of the NBA Play-In Tournament in the West will come down to the last few games. Both Memphis and Denver are right on that cusp. Memphis will be on the second night of a back-to-back, but we should see most of the starters play. This is good news for Memphis because they're one of the best tip-off teams in the league.
Denver is in a hot mess after shaking up the front office and coaching staff just days before the end of the season, which can only add another element of advantage for Memphis. I'll be taking Jaren Jackson Jr. to score first. Not only has he been great all year scoring first for Memphis, but bigs score nearly half of the first points against Denver. He's the right numbers play.
Pick: Jaren Jackson Jr. (+550)
Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers are still fighting to retain their No. 3 seed status in the West. A win over Houston would go a long way towards cementing that. We should expect most, if not all, Lakers starters to suit up in this one. For Houston, this game has less meaning as they've already wrapped up the No. 2 seed.
I'll be taking Jaxson Hayes in the first-basket mark. He's been very successful in this prop since joining the starting lineup - eight first baskets in only 34 starts. Houston has given up a stunning 30% of their first scores to opposing centers. It's the smart play to round out the first-basket betting card with Hayes.
Pick: Jaxson Hayes (+550)
