NBA Player Props Today: Best Bets & Predictions for Thursday (12/21)
What kind of performances can we expect on Thursday from Cade Cunningham, Keldon Johnson, and Jerami Grant? Follow along as our NBA betting expert, Nick Galaida, breaks down three of his favorite NBA prop bets for today — Thursday, December 21, 2023. Get all of Nick’s picks, including more NBA player props, at ScoresandOdds.
Thursday’s NBA slate features 8 games, beginning with the Utah Jazz taking on the Detroit Pistons at 7:00 PM ET. Other games feature more notable players, such as Donovan Mitchell, Victor Wembanyama, Ja Morant, Giannis Antetokounmpo, LeBron James, and Anthony Edwards, giving the betting community plenty of high-quality options to evaluate on the player prop market!
Below, we take a look at three player prop leans worth considering for December 21, 2023!
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NBA Player Props Today – Thursday, December 21, 2023
- Cade Cunningham Over/Under 7.5 Assists
- Keldon Johnson Over/Under 18.5 Points
- Jerami Grant Over/Under 2.5 Assists
Cade Cunningham Over/Under 7.5 Assists
Cade Cunningham is averaging only 7 assists per game this season, but he has been much better on his home floor, averaging 7.7 assists in 13 games in the Motor City. In 4 home games during December, Cunningham has been even better, averaging 8.8 assists and 14 potential assists.
Tonight, he gets an extremely favorable matchup against a Jazz team that ranks 21st in defensive efficiency and 26th in opponent assists per game during the last 30 days. In that stretch, Spencer Dinwiddie, James Harden, Luka Doncic, Jalen Brunson, Julius Randle, and Scoot Henderson have each had 15 potential assists or more against Utah.
This is a great spot to back Cunningham at plus money.
- PICK: Cunningham OVER 7.5 Assists (+105), BetMGM
Keldon Johnson Over/Under 18.5 Points
Since entering the league as a rookie, Keldon Johnson has consistently performed worse on the road than he has at home. In his career, he is shooting 2% worse from the field and 4.7% worse from beyond the arc in road games than he is in front of his home fans.
This season has been no different, with Johnson averaging 19.2 points per game on 48.6% shooting from the floor and 41.6% shooting from deep at home, compared to 15.3 points per game on 45.4% shooting from the floor and 25% shooting from deep on the road. The Bulls do not have a top-tier defense, but they have made life tough on opposing forwards of late, holding Tobias Harris to 3 points and Kelly Oubre to 6 points. Johnson is more likely to go under than over his points prop on Thursday night.
- PICK: Johnson UNDER 18.5 Points (-110), BetMGM
Jerami Grant Over/Under 2.5 Assists
In 10 home games this season, Jerami Grant has eclipsed this market number 7 times, including each of his last 2 home games. During the month of December, Grant is averaging 3.7 assists and 5.3 potential assists per game at home while playing 38.3 minutes per game.
On Thursday, he gets an extremely favorable matchup against a Wizards team that ranks 28th in defensive efficiency and 30th in opponent assists per game across the last month. This month alone, they have allowed 10 potential assists or more to six forwards.
Grant should have every chance to get the job done for us in this spot.
- PICK: Grant OVER 2.5 Assists (-135), DraftKings
Check out more DFS sites with Fantasy basketball pick’em like Betr Picks.
NBA 2023-2024 Results – Wager Type
Points: 38-24-2
Rebounds: 13-18
Assists: 7-11-1
Points + Rebounds + Assists: 7-12
Points + Rebounds: 4-0
Rebounds + Assists: 3-2
Three-Pointers Made: 11-4
Field Goals Attempted: 1-0
3-Point Field Goals Attempted: 0-0-1
Turnovers: 1-0
Steals: 0-1
Blocks + Steals: 0-1
Combined Record: 85-71-5 (54.5%)
Image Credit: Getty Images