NBA Player Prop Pick
Below you'll find Prop Bomb's top NBA player prop pick from Pacers vs. Bucks on Thursday, December 7 targeting Bucks guard Malik Beasley.
Prop | Malik Beasley Under 3.5 3PM (-125) |
Matchup | Pacers vs. Bucks |
Time | 5 p.m. ET |
Best Book | ESPN BET |
Were you aware that Malik Beasley is currently enjoying one of his best shooting streaks of his career? Over his last six games, he has maintained an average of 4.6 3-pointers made, shooting an exceptional 45.1%, going over his prop in six straight games.
While he has been performing well in his role alongside Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo as a role player, this efficiency is not sustainable, and it is time to sell high because he is likely to regress from beyond the arc.
I closely examined the last three games and noticed that all matchups were against teams (ATL, CHI, NY) with a top-10 catch-and-shoot 3-point frequency defense in the league. However, his current matchup tonight is against a team that permits the lowest catch-and-shoot 3-point frequency in the league.
Beasley will now meet a Pacers squad that defensively funnels shots to the rim at the highest rate in the league. According to nbastats.com, the Pacers allow the most points in the paint while permitting the fewest 3-pointer frequency in the league – which should help Antetokounmpo more than anyone.
From a zone perspective, it will also be difficult for Beasley to see enough volume to outweigh his shooting efficiency. Over his last three games and while seeing extended minutes, all 15 of his 3-pointers are coming from either above the break or from the corners. The Pacers allow the fewest made 3s above the break (8.0) and the third-fewest from the corner (2.1).
I have Beasley projected for six to seven 3-point shots tonight, and I find it likelier than not that he will not have enough efficiency to outweigh his shooting frequency to continue his hot streak tonight.