PrizePicks NBA Player Picks Today: Value on Turner, Mathurin, and Brogdon
The NBA is back in a big way tonight with a behemoth of a 14-game slate. With 28 teams in action, we’ve got no shortage of PrizePicks value to unearth, as well.
If you’re new to the site, be sure to take advantage of our special PrizePicks promo code. With the code “GRINDERS,” you can claim a 100% match bonus on your first deposit of up to $100.
Remember, you can also keep tabs on the best PrizePicks picks of the day with our Fantasy Pick’em Tool. We’re constantly updating this throughout the day in order to account for the latest news, but there’s still value to be found earlier in the afternoon as well.
NBA PrizePicks Predictions Today
Myles Turner More Than 1.5 Blocks
Hornets-Wizards figures to be the game that garners the most attention from a DFS standpoint today, but we shouldn’t overlook Jazz-Pacers. Indiana is running at the league’s second-fastest pace, while they’re just 27th in defensive efficiency. Utah, meanwhile, is 29th defensively and 13th in pace factor. As of this writing, the Pacers are 6.5-point favorites at home in a game with a 241 total.
There will be plenty of shots to go around for both teams. It’s safe to assume some of those shots will be swatted away by Myles Turner. Indiana’s franchise center is only averaging 1.6 blocks per game in the early going, but that average should rise. Turner has blocked at least 2 shots per game in every season since 2018-19, including a 2.3 average a season ago.
Meanwhile, the Jazz have seen their fair share of shot attempts get gummed up so far this season. Utah is allowing 7.4 blocks per game, which is the second-highest total in basketball. Only the Blazers (7.7) have been left feeling rejected more often.
- Play: Turner – More Than 1.5 Blocks
Bennedict Mathurin More Than 21.5 Fantasy Points
Let’s stay in that same game, shall we? There should be plenty of fantasy goodness to go around, which is probably one of the reasons our aforementioned PrizePicks Pick’em Tool likes the spot for Turner’s teammate, Bennedict Mathurin. The second-year Pacer still ranks among the team’s usage leaders (23%), though that number is down a bit this season now that he’s playing a starting role.
His per-minute production (0.89) is still solid, even in spite of some rough early-season shooting. Mathurin’s scoring average has dipped by about 5 points per game, and he’s only shooting 40% from the field and about 23% from 3-point range. He was around 43% from the floor and 33% from downtown last season, for reference.
The Jazz aren’t stopping anyone, so this is a nice bounce-back spot for Mathurin. It’s admittedly not the most comfortable play given how poorly he’s played to this point, but he’s due for some regression (the good kind) in the shooting department.
- Play: Mathurin – More Than 21.5 Fantasy Points
Malcolm Brogdon More Than 39 Fantasy Points
The Blazers overhauled their roster over the summer, so Chauncy Billups has had to incorporate quite a few new faces early this season. The injury bug has taken a bite out of this rotation, however, which means Malcolm Brogdon has been thrust into an unexpectedly huge role just a few weeks into his Blazers career.
With Scoot Henderson and Anfernee Simons on the shelf, Billups really has no choice but to hand Brogdon all the minutes he can handle. Brogdon has played 39 regulation minutes in consecutive games since entering the starting lineup. In both games, he came to within 3 rebounds of a triple-double.
So, Brogdon still has plenty left in the tank despite some physical wear and tear. With Simons and Scoot off the floor, Brogdon is sporting a healthy 28.2% usage rate next to a 1.19 FP/min average. Tonight, the Blazers will hit the road for a matchup against the Kings in Sacramento. The Kings are still without De’Aaron Fox, and we just saw them get blasted in consecutive games by the Rockets without their All-Star point guard. Portland is not a good basketball team these days, but Fox’s absence may help them keep this one close.
Taking Brogdon to top 39 fantasy points feels like excellent value given his monster role.
- Play: Brogdon More Than 39 Fantasy Points