Luka Doncic and Trae Young will be forever be linked as members of the 2018 NBA Draft class. The Hawks traded out of the third spot for the Mavericks' fifth overall pick and additional assets. The Mavericks selected Doncic, and the Hawks selected Young. The winner of the trade can be debated, but I'll take Doncic, and I'll take him tonight in a good spot against Young's Hawks.
Doncic's former teammate Jalen Brunson has been tearing it up for the New York Knicks. Tonight, he gets the Washington Wizards, and he will look to stay hot against them.
Speaking of New York, Oklahoma City guard Josh Giddey is coming off a big night in Brooklyn. He could be in store for a repeat performance back home against Indiana. Here's a look Wednesday's NBA player props and picks.
NBA Player Props & Picks
Luka Doncic Over 18.5 REB + AST (-110)
| Spread | Mavericks -3.5 |
| Time | TV | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN |
| Best Line | DraftKings |
Luka Doncic missed the second end of the Mavericks' back-to-back in Portland with an ankle injury. He is listed as probable for tonight's game, which is both great news for the Mavs and NBA bettors.
With a player such as Doncic, there are many ways to profit off him with how multifaceted his game is. He's averaging 33.8 points, 9.0 rebounds and 8.8 assists. Tonight, I am going to focus on his rebounds + assists.
Doncic is second in the NBA with 10 triple-doubles, and he can flirt with one on a nightly basis. This season, he is averaging 17.8 rebounds and assists. He has had 15 games this season with 10 rebounds and 18 games with 10 assists.
Doncic is averaging 20.2 rebounds and assists over his last 10 games. He has recorded 19 in five games during that stretch. Of the games in which he went under in that stretch, he was hooked with 18 twice and he sat the fourth quarter because of a blowout in two other games.
Tonight, Doncic gets the Atlanta Hawks, who are very generous on the glass. They are 29th in rebounds allowed, and we just cashed Bam Adebayo's rebounding prop against the Hawks on Monday. Unlike Adebayo, Doncic will not have to spend as much time battling Clint Capela for rebounds. The Hawks allow the fourth most rebounds to point guards.
The Hawks are 17th in assists allowed and 20th in points allowed at 115.8 per game. The Mavs will be without Tim Hardaway Jr. tonight, but they will get back Dorian Finney Smith. He is another knockdown shooter whom Doncic can kick it out to for assists.
This is the kind of matchup where Doncic could record another triple-double, which is +290 on FanDuel. This game will be nationally televised on ESPN, and Doncic recorded a triple-double last Thursday in another primetime spot against the Lakers.
Jalen Brunson Over 25.5 Points (-113)
| Spread | Knicks -6 |
| Time | TV | 7:30 p.m. ET | NBA League Pass |
| Best Line | FanDuel |
In his first season with the Knicks, Jalen Brunson is averaging 22.4 points per game. He is making a strong case to be a first-time all-star. However, since the start of the new year, he has taken his game up a notch. In eight games this month, he is averaging 31.6 points per game. He scored 26 points in seven of those games.
Tonight, Brunson gets the Washington Wizards, who on paper present roughly a neutral matchup. According to props.cash, the Wizards are 16th in defending point guards and 16th in points allowed. However, they are a team I like to target for guard props. Recently, Washington has given up 33 points to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, 34 to CJ McCollum, 38 to Zach LaVine, 41 to Stephen Curry, and 32 to Jordan Poole.
Brunson is another guard who has torched the Wizards recently, scoring 34 against them last Friday. He shot 12-for-24 from the field in that game and went 7-for-7 from the free throw line. This month, Brunson is shooting 50% from the field on 23 attempts per game and 79.4% on 7.4 free throw attempts.
His volume has gone up as his minutes have increased. Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau has been known for giving his players a heavy workload. This month, Brunson is averaging 40.5 minutes per game and played 40 in five of eight games. Brunson should have plenty of opportunity to have another big game against the Wizards.
Josh Giddey Over 33.5 PTS + REB + AST (-125)
| Spread | Thunder -4 |
| Time | TV | 8 p.m. ET | NBA League Pass |
| Best Line | DraftKings |
Oklahoma City guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been the breakout star in the NBA this season. He is on the verge of earning his first appearance in the NBA All-Star Game. However, his backcourt partner, Josh Giddey, quietly has been turning a lot of heads as well.
Giddey is averaging 16 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 5.7 assists this season. That adds up to only 29.7 points, rebounds and assists. However, he is averaging 34.2 points, rebounds and assists over his last 10 games, and he recorded 34 in six of those games. Giddey has picked it up even more of late, going over 40 points, rebounds and assists in three of his last four games.
Last Tuesday, Giddey recorded a triple-double against the Heat when he went for 18 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists. He nearly recorded another one when he had 28 points, nine rebounds and nine assists against Brooklyn on Sunday. Giddey has two triple-doubles this season, and it would not be out of the question for him to get another one against the Pacers.
The Pacers are 22nd in points allowed, 27th in rebounds allowed, and 18th in assists allowed. They are also 28th in defending shooting guards, according to props.cash. The Pacers have allowed 130 points in each of their last two games and at least 110 in each of their last five.
Giddey should have the opportunity to record a lot of stats in what should be a fast-paced game. Indiana ranks sixth in pace, and Oklahoma City is third. If both teams are running and gunning, Giddey will have more chances to grab rebounds, lead the break, and pick up assists on easy baskets in transition. That could pave for Giddey to record 34 points, rebounds and assists and cash this over.
DraftKings has the best line as Giddey's PRA line is 35.5 on FanDuel.
