It is night two of the In-Season Tournament and we have got you covered with three NBA props. In Detroit, the Sixers will be taking on the Pistons, who will be looking to snap a six-game losing streak. Tyrese Maxey will look to extend that streak to seven.
In Memphis, the Grizzlies will be hosting the Jazz. Jaren Jackson Jr. has taken on additional scoring responsibilities without Ja Morant. However, his line may be a bit inflated.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is coming off a 43-point night as his Thunder knocked off the Cavaliers on Wednesday night. However, he also filled up the stat sheet across the board. He will look to do so once again as the Thunder head to Sacramento to battle the Kings.
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Through his first seven games this season, Maxey is scoring 25.4 points per game. He has scored 20 points six times already, hitting this line in four of them. He has also scored 22 points exactly in two other games.
Now, the one time that Maxey did not crack 20 points this season was when we backed him last Thursday against the Raptors. He scored 18 points, but it is also the only game that he did not knock down any 3-pointers. He has made at least two 3s in every other game this season. Tonight, Maxey gets another great matchup against the Pistons.
Through nine games this season, the Pistons have already allowed eight guards t0 score 20 points or more. Gilgeous-Alexander, CJ McCollum, Stephen Curry and Damian Lillard each scored at least 30 points while Zach LaVine went off for 51 points. In a 76ers game, if anyone is going off for 50 points, it will likely be Joel Embiid. However, he will not score all of their points.
Maxey has already scored 30 points twice this season. He is averaging 38.7 minutes per game this season, so he will have opportunities, including staggered minutes without Embiid on the floor.
Jackson Jr. has already scored 27 points four times this season and that has come in four of his past five games. However, he has cracked 20 points only one time this season. He is averaging 22.4 points per game this season and typically I would expect his line to be around 22.5 points without Morant.
On the surface, Jackson Jr. has an excellent matchup tonight. Utah is allowing 121.7 points per game, the fourth-most in the league. However, Jackson Jr. scored just 19 points in the last meeting last Wednesday, the only game that he has went under this line in that span. Now, that does not mean that Jackson Jr. will go under again just because of the last game, but when playing his props, you have to begin with his fouls.
In addition to his scoring, Jackson Jr. is also a remarkable defender and the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. However, that also puts him in line for fouls. He is averaging 3.4 fouls per game this year and he has had four fouls or more in four games. He has scored 27 points in just one of those games.
Against Utah, Jackson Jr. has to defend Lauri Markkanen. He has done a good job on Markannen as he has scored 30 points in just one of the last five meetings against Memphis. However, Jackson Jr. is averaging 4.3 fouls in his last three games against Utah, fouling out in one of them. Fouls might be the reason Jackson Jr.'s hot streak ends tonight.
For the last few years, Thunder GM Sam Presti has been sitting on a war chest of draft picks. He acquired a few of them from the Los Angeles Clippers in a deal that brought Gilgeous-Alexander to Oklahoma City. He is now the face of the franchise, however the Thunder have made the playoffs just once in the last four years.
As more of Presti's picks begin to bear fruit, Oklahoma City is adding more talent to its roster. As a result, Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging a career-high 6.4 assists per game. Gilgeous-Alexander has hit six assists in five of his first seven games this season and he had seven assists in his lone meeting against the Kings last season. Gilgeous-Alexander's assists line is at 5.5 tonight, but I am taking on the rebounds because he is averaging seven rebounds per game as well. Combined, he is averaging 13.4 rebounds and assists per game this season when we only need 12 from him here.
On Wednesday, we backed Malcolm Brogdon's points + rebounds + assists against the Kings and he left the game with a hamstring injury. Five minutes is not enough time to determine how a bet will go, but Brogdon was tracking with seven. His replacement, Skylar Mays, would go on to have 18 points and 11 assists.
The Kings are allowing the fifth-most assists per game this season, which bodes well for Gilgeous-Alexander. He should also be able to get five to six rebounds in a fast-paced game that will feature a lot of 3-point attempts. He has hit this line in six of his first seven games this season and I expect that trend to continue tonight.
