There's no better way to kick off the weekend than an action packed 10-game NBA slate this Friday. Many of today's matchups show clear advantages and sharp sides developing, so we are looking to find correlated props and game angles taking serious action right now.
Continue below for our NBA player props for Friday, October 25.
NBA Player Props for Friday, October 25
- Paolo Banchero Over 24.5 Points (-115, FanDuel)
- Mikal Bridges Over 15.5 Points (-106, FanDuel)
- Jalen Brunson Over 28.5 Points (-120, FanDuel)
- Zach LaVine Over 20.5 Points (-115, Caesars)
- Santi Aldama Over 9.5 Points (-115, bet365)
- Jusuf Nurkic Under 9.5 Rebounds (-110, DraftKings)
Nets vs Magic Player Props: Paolo Banchero Ready to Take Another Leap
by Alex Hinton
Last season, Paolo Banchero averaged 22.6 points per game. Then, he got his first taste of the playoffs, where he averaged 27 points per game in Orlando's seven-game series against Cleveland. If opening night is any indication, Banchero looks ready to take another leap.
Against a typically stingy Miami defense, Banchero had 33 points on Wednesday night. He did not begin shooting all that efficiently from the field, but finished an even 12-for-24 from the field. That kind of volume moving forward will increase Banchero's scoring numbers, particularly tonight against Brooklyn.
Now, Banchero's career-high against Brooklyn is only 24 points. However, the Nets will be among the worst teams in the NBA this season and they allowed 120 points to the Hawks on Wednesday. In that game, Onyeka Okongwu had 28 points on 11-for-12 from the field and he does not have nearly the arsenal in his game that Banchero does. Expect Banchero's versatility to lead to at least 25 points tonight.
Pacers vs Knicks Player Props: Don't Worry About Mikal Bridges
If you are in the camp of Bridges is broken, then skip this one.
Until I hear about an injury, I will continue to think it's an overrated early season narrative. His usage rate is fantastic, as he just played 35 minutes in a blowout and still scored 16 points despite missing some 3-pointers badly.
This game is going to be another transition contest, the total is six points higher than the closing line for Celtics–Knicks, so we should expect even more scoring in this one, and that includes Bridges too.
Pacers vs Knicks Player Props: Revenge Spot for Jalen Brunson
by Alex Hinton
The Knicks had a rough start to the season after they were bombarded by a barrage of 3-pointers in TD Garden by the defending champions. Jalen Brunson finished with 22 points, but did not play the fourth quarter because of the blowout.
In a close game, you have to think he gets seven points as often as he has the ball in his hands in the fourth quarter. Tonight, the Knicks will face the other Eastern Conference Final finalist and the team that knocked them out in the Indiana Pacers.
Brunson likely will be highly motivated for this game and it will come with a great matchup as well. In that Eastern Conference semifinal series, Brunson had his way with the Pacers as he scored 29 points in four of the seven games, including two 40-point games.
While the playoffs are played with higher intensity, in this instance, it was a continuation of what Brunson did against Indiana in the regular season. He has scored 30 points in four of his last five regular season games against the Pacers and finished with 28 points in the other.
In the playoff series, Brunson's line got up to as high as 36.5 points. Tonight, we will only need 29 points, but there will be value if he gets to 36 again. On FanDuel, you can back Brunson at +230 to score 35 points and +500 for 40 points.
Bulls vs Bucks Player Props: Expect a Fast-Paced Game
The Bulls head to Milwaukee for the second game of their season, and face an incredibly weak perimeter defense. LaVine can attack, shoot, and finish creatively at the rim around Giannis and Lopez.
We also saw how fast the pace was for the Bucks in Game 1. They are going to make the Bulls play their style.
I really like the Over and Bulls ML as an outright long shot, and a very reasonable prop that should be a full point higher is a strong first play to add to my card.
Grizzlies vs Rockets Player Props: Santi Aldama's Scoring Line is Too Low
by Alex Hinton
Jaren Jackson Jr. remains out for the Grizzlies and that means Santi Aldama will get another start in his place. On Wednesday, it was actually Aldama who lead the Grizzles in minutes and points, and finished second in field goal attempts. He finished with 27 points on 10-for-16 from the field and 5-for-10 from behind the arc.
Tonight, Memphis will play a Rockets team that should provide more resistance defensively than Utah. However, for Aldama to score exactly 10 points, he would be covering less than 40% of his performance from Wednesday. He should see more open looks from the defense keying in on Ja Morant, who had 10 assists in his return to the lineup.
I'm not expecting another 27-point outburst from Aldama, but he is still +260 on FanDuel for 15 points tonight. There is also a ton of value on his 3-pointers line, as he is +260 to make three 3s and +550 for four 3s on FanDuel.
Suns vs Lakers Player Props: Fade Jusuf Nurkic
The Lakers/Suns total has dipped from 229 to 225.5 in the last few hours. It was happening fast! I think this shows a large reduction of pace on the horizon for this game.
I also think Nurkic is primed for foul trouble against both Anthony Davis and LeBron James. I looked at a few different lines such as points, PRA, or just rebounds to back Nurkic's under, and the rebound angle provided the highest single number (scoring was 8.5 points), with also the least amount of juice, leading me to a market-read and numbers approach that land on rebounds as the prop to play.
