The NBA is back with an excellent slate this Thursday, featuring a total of 8 matchups on the slate for tonight.
Below, we've compiled a few plays to use on PrizePicks and Underdog for Thursday's NBA games from RotoGrinders — coming from both the NBA pick'em analysis page and the projections page. You can get all the plays with a RotoGrinders subscription.
NBA PrizePicks & Underdog Plays for Thursday, January 9
- Deni Avdija More Than 15.5 Points
- Clint Capela More Than 9.5 Points
- Paolo Banchero Less Than 16.5 Points
Deni Avdija More Than 15.5 Points
Trail Blazers vs. Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. ET
By Jim Turvey
Deni Avdija has now been in the starting lineup for the Blazers' last six games, and he is averaging 19.3 points per game during that stretch.
His usage has increased a bit, and his minutes have gone from 26.5 per game to 33.2.
The Blazers have looked halfway decent during that stretch as well, going 3-3, so there's no reason for head coach Chauncey Billups to change things up.
Tonight, he draws a matchup up against the Mavericks, who are very banged-up at the moment, and haven't been playing any sort of elite defense with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving off the court.
RotoGrinders projects Avdija for 17.1 points against Dallas tonight.
Pick: Deni Avdija More Than 15.5 Points
Clint Capela More Than 9.5 Points
Hawks vs. Suns, 9 p.m. ET
Clint Capela has been hit or miss for the Hawks this season, but he gets a great spot today against Phoenix.
The Suns have been bad at defending bigs all season long, and now with Plumlee in the starting lineup, they are even worse.
Capela will likely get his normal mid to low 20s minutes here, and that should be more than enough for him to clear this projection.
Pick: Clint Capela More Than 9.5 Points
Paolo Banchero Less Than 16.5 Points
Timberwolves vs. Magic, 7:00 p.m. ET
Paolo Banchero is expected to return the Magic lineup either tonight or tomorrow. He's been sidelined since October with a torn oblique. If he comes back tonight, he'll face a tough task against an imposing Minnesota defense.
The Timberwolves rank 7th in defensive rating and 4th in points allowed per game. They've allowed the 2nd-fewest points per game to power forwards.
The Wolves have had some hiccups lately, but they should have no problem limiting this Magic offense.
The Magic are 29th in offensive rating and dead last in scoring since Franz Wagner went down. These two teams are also bottom-5 in pace.
Banchero should see major usage with Wagner and Jalen Suggs out, but he'll also get the full attention of the defense. He's missed more than 2 months with a core muscle injury, so it'd be surprising to see him play more than 30 minutes.
Given the matchup, the long layoff, and potential workload restrictions, there's a lot working against Banchero here.
