Best PrizePicks NBA Player Picks Today: Value on Harden, Giddey, and Jackson
On the heels of a few tiny slates, the NBA is back in a big way with a whopper of an 11-gamer on Wednesday night. As usual, there are plenty of moving parts on the injury front, while we’ve also got a few PrizePicks picks worthy of your attention.
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NBA PrizePicks Predictions Today
James Harden More Than 6.5 Assists
The James Harden era in LA is off to a rocky start, but the team has shown signs of life lately. The Clippers are actually 1-point home favorites over the defending champions tonight, even though a shorthanded Denver squad missing Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Aaron Gordon just beat them in LA a little over a week ago. The Clippers have won 6 of their last 9 overall.
Harden’s usage so far with the Clippers has predictably taken a hit. Paul George and Kawhi Leonard are still the primary offensive options, while Harden has served in more of a playmaking role. Harden’s 18.9% usage with LA is his lowest since his rookie season in OKC, though he is slightly behind Russell Westbrook for the team lead in assist rate (28%). The Beard is also playing 35-39 minutes in competitive games now that he’s played his way back into game shape.
The 1-point spread here indicates the game should be a close one. Harden is averaging right at 6.4 assists per game on the year, though he’s finished with more than 6 dimes in 7 of his last 9 games. The 6.5 number on PrizePicks for Harden’s assists looks a little light.
- Play: Harden – More Than 6.5 Assists
Josh Giddey Less Than 10.5 Rebounds + Assists
To say the season has been a strange one for Josh Giddey would be an understatement in a few different respects. In terms of basketball, however, we’ve seen a downturn in production now that Chet Holmgren is in the mix. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dominates the ball for this team, and rightfully so. Giddey has still done a little bit of everything while he’s on the floor, as evidenced by his 25% usage, 22% assist, and 12% rebound rates.
The problem? He’s out there less and less. Giddey’s averaging a career-low 26.3 minutes per game after topping 31 in each of his first two NBA seasons. We know Mark Daigneault likes to run an annoyingly deep rotation, and Giddey’s playing time has suffered. He logged just 17 minutes in the last game against Dallas after playing 21 in the game before that.
It’s hard to know whether that downward trend will continue, but the Thunder aren’t in a great spot tonight, either. They’ll play in Houston against a Rockets team that ranks 27th in the league in pace and 4th in defensive efficiency.
- Play: Giddey – Less Than 10.5 Rebounds + Assists
Jaren Jackson More Than 20.5 Points
The 2023-24 campaign has not gone as planned for the Grizzlies thus far, but it’s still early enough for them to turn things around. They can start tonight when they head to Detroit to face a woeful Pistons team riding a 17-game losing streak. The 5-14 Grizz aren’t great, but they’re better than the Pistons.
For whatever reason, Jaren Jackson has struggled mightily on offense in the early going. His average of 19.6 points per game is a career-best, but we can attribute that to a career-high 28.5% usage rate thus far with Ja Morant suspended. Jackson is shooting just 42% from the field and 28% from 3-point range. That’s quite a drop, considering he converted more than half of his field goal attempts last season while connecting on better than a third of his triples.
You can’t really find a better get-right spot than this one. And JJJ is coming off of what may have been his best game of the season. He poured in 37 points on blistering 13-for-21 shooting in Memphis’ loss to Phoenix over the weekend.
- Play: Jackson – More Than 20.5 Points