Saturday's NBA action is a jam-packed slate with many teams in action. 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, here are a few value first-basket plays.
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Saturday’s Best NBA First Basket Scorer Prop Bets
(Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook)
Brooklyn Nets at Detroit Pistons
Both of these teams will be on the second night of a back-to-back. There is a good chance we will still see most of the starters back out on the floor on Saturday night. Considering this, Detroit has a pretty sizable advantage in scoring the first basket. Brooklyn has shown all season that it gives up a lot of first scores to shooting guards, so that's where my focus is here.
Tim Hardaway Jr. only has six first baskets this season, but he is near the team lead in Detroit, and his 14 first-team attempts are the most on the team. Detroit has relied a lot on their shooters in their current run of hot play. Against a team that likes to give up those shots, I like Hardaway to get those first points on Saturday.
Pick: Tim Hardaway Jr. (+800)
San Antonio Spurs at Memphis Grizzlies
The wheels have fallen off for San Antonio on the season with the season-ending injury to budding superstar Victor Wembanyama. While they’ve been performing well in first baskets recently, they still are below 50% on the season. Memphis, on the other hand, continues their incredible run. They scored first again on Friday night and remain the best in the league when it comes to this prop.
For this game, it's about the guards. Memphis shooting guard Desmond Bane led the NBA in first baskets headed into the All-Star break. He hasn't managed to add to his total since, but this might be the perfect matchup. The Spurs give up nearly a quarter of their first scores to shooting guards. I'll back Bane to get back into the first basket column.
Pick: Desmond Bane (+500)
Make sure to check out our other best bets for Saturday:
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