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Get Keith Eyster's top NBA player props and expert picks for Thursday 4/2/26. Uncover today's best value bets, model projections, and live odds to beat the books.
Welcome back to yet another edition of RotoBaller's NBA Props and best bets! There are six games on the schedule this evening, including a featured matchup between Western Conference contenders in the Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder.
The only two teams playing on the second leg of a back-to-back are the Warriors and Spurs, but there is still plenty of injury news to monitor. Anthony Edwards and Trey Murphy III are currently the most impactful questionable tags on the injury report.
In this article, I will provide my favorite NBA player props picks for Thursday, April 2nd. Prop picks can range from individual stats, such as points, assists, rebounds, three-pointers made, and defensive statistics, to combination props (Points + Rebounds + Assists = PRA). All odds and sportsbooks used are listed, but it's always a good idea to shop around, as odds change throughout the day as bets are placed. Alright, enough already, let's get to the prop picks!
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Today’s Best NBA Picks for Player Props
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander over 30.5 Points (-115 Fanatics), (-130 NOVIG)
The Oklahoma City Thunder have held the number one seed in the Western Conference all season, while the Los Angeles Lakers have had a second-half surge that has vaulted them to the three seed. Each side has a legitimate MVP candidate, with OKC's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander currently sitting ahead of Luka Doncic as the odds-on favorite and looking to take home the award for the second consecutive season.
He's coming off a massive performance in his last game, where he dropped 47 points on Detroit in an overtime victory. His scoring average now sits at 31.6 points per game for the season, which marks the fourth straight season above 30 points.
SGA was CLUTCH in OKC's win! 🤩
47 PTS
12/19 FG
21/25 FT
41 MIN pic.twitter.com/f1FdidYFFH— NBA on NBC and Peacock (@NBAonNBC) March 31, 2026
The matchup is much better for Gilgeous-Alexander than it is for Doncic in this spot, with the Lakers ranking 20th in defensive efficiency this season. Oklahoma City also has the home-court advantage and a higher implied team total as 9.5-point favorites.
Jarrett Allen over 13.5 Points (+100 NOVIG)
Cleveland big man Jarrett Allen has played two games since returning from a knee injury, and he's played less than 20 minutes in both of them. Despite that limited playing time, he has also scored 18 points in each game.
Allen has been a huge beneficiary of James Harden's playmaking and has seen a huge uptick in production playing alongside him. The big man is averaging 19.2 points per game in 10 games playing with Harden, compared to 14.4 points in games without Harden this season.
#Cavs Jarrett Allen made his return tonight after missing 10 games with a knee injury.
Kenny Atkinson said he almost forgot he was on the team during pregame and had to give him a big hug instead of his fist bump.
But Allen came back with 18 pts and 10 reb—like he never left. pic.twitter.com/yBJfTZmBCV
— Camryn Justice (@camijustice) March 28, 2026
Golden State is playing on the second leg of a back-to-back and could be less than full strength if the team decides to rest players. Even if the Warriors don't rest anyone, they rank 22nd in defensive efficiency over the second half of the season, and they are below average at preventing points in the paint. Allen is likely on a minutes restriction again, but the line is discounted enough to make this a strong play.
