RADIO
The Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday brings a full basketball schedule on this Monday, starting in the afternoon, so get busy because there are lots of props to play on Monkey Knife Fight.
The Detroit Pistons and Washington Wizards tip off in the first game of the day at 2:10 ET but that’s hardly an appealing matchup. The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics are likely the marquee game of the day at 7:40 ET. The Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets play at 5:10 ET and the last game of the night, the Indiana Pacers at the Utah Jazz at 9:40 ET, is a pretty compelling matchup too.
Nevertheless, it’s a 14-game schedule which means tons of action, lots of props and ways to win.
Here are some Star Shootout angles to consider for Monday’s NBA schedule on Monkey Knife Fight.
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STAR SHOOTOUT
MORE OR LESS
James Harden LESS THAN 34.5 POINTS – Since mid-December, The Beard has scored 35 or more points in six of 14 games and, more recently, has been held to 34 points or fewer in four of the past five. He scores a little more on the road (38.0 ppg vs 35.4 ppg) and is facing an Oklahoma City Thunder team that is a little better than average defensively, allowing 108.0 points per game. All of this steers towards something perhaps in the lower thirties.
Giannis Antetokounmpo MORE THAN 30.5 POINTS – Averaging 30.8 points per game at home and facing a Bulls team that allows 107.8 points per game (tied for 10th-lowest in the league) makes this is pretty fair number so we’re going to lean towards the over because Giannis has scored at least 31 in six of his past nine games including each of his past four home games.
Damian Lillard MORE THAN 30.5 POINTS – The Trail Blazers star has averaged 29.6 points per game at home this season and is facing a Warriors team that is subpar defensively – they’re not much offensively, either, but for the purposes of this prop, their defensive shortcomings are most relevant. He is coming off back-to-back 34-point games and has scored 31 or more in seven of his past 12 games. In two games against the Warriors this season, Lillard has put up 39 and 31 points, so a very slight edge towards the over.
Zach LaVine LESS THAN 28.5 POINTS – The Bulls gunner is averaging 26.5 points per game on the road and is in Milwaukee to face the Bucks, a team with a better-than-average defensive record. He’s on a good run recently, with more than 28 points in five of his last seven games but the opposition could be a problem for LaVine.
Devin Booker MORE THAN 28.5 POINTS – On one hand, Booker is averaging just 24.4 points per game at home (he’s been more prolific on the road) and the Spurs are below average defensively, allowing 114.6 points per game. On the other hand, Booker has put up 29 or more points in 10 of the past 12 games including each of the past three.
LeBron James LESS THAN 27.5 POINTS – Not only is Boston strong defensively, allowing 105.6 points per game, and LeBron is averaging 26.6 points per game on the road, the big reason for liking the under in this one is that Anthony Davis is slated to return to the Lakers lineup and that takes some of the scoring load off of LeBron’s shoulders.
Brandon Ingram LESS THAN 27.5 POINTS – As entertaining as Memphis has been, they are also allowing 115.8 points per game, the fourth-highest rate in the league. Ingram is averaging 25.1 points per game on the road and has shown the ability to erupt for a big total, like the 49 he hung on Utah last week, but 28 on the road is not an easy task and it’s something that Ingram has accomplished in just eight of 20 road games.
Trae Young MORE THAN 26.5 POINTS – Baskets don’t come easily against Toronto, with the Raptors ranking sixth in the league with 105.9 points per game allowed, but Young is putting up 28.7 per game at home and has scored 27 or more in 11 of the past 14 games.
RAPID FIRE
LeBron James -1.5 assists vs. Ricky Rubio – LeBron is averaging 10.8 assists per game on the road and Rubio is putting up 9.6 assists per game at home but, as noted above, Anthony Davis is expected to play for the Lakers which ought to improve LeBron’s assist totals.
Hassan Whiteside +2.5 rebounds vs. Andre Drummond – Drummond is a beast on the boards, grabbing 16.7 per game on the road this season but Whiteside is grabbing 15.5 per game at home so it’s closer than the line might suggest.
