The NBA season tipped off earlier this week, and tonight, we have 12 games to target for our first basket bets.
The slate kicks off with the Toronto Raptors hosting the Milwaukee Bucks and ends with the Los Angeles Clippers hosting the Phoenix Suns.
Below, I’ll make my top four predictions for NBA first basket bets across the entire league.
Let’s check them out.
NBA First Basket Bets for Friday, October 24
All NBA odds used for these best bets are current as of Friday, Oct. 24, and courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Celtics vs. Knicks First Basket: Jalen Brunson (+391)
To lead off my NBA first basket props, I’ll take the player with the best odds: Jalen Brunson.
In the first game of the season against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Brunson logged 34 minutes and scored 23 points. However, he could’ve had a lot more as he shot just 5 of 18 from the field and 1 of 9 from 3-point range.
Brunson is the top star on the Knicks, and getting the ball in his hands first for the first basket wouldn’t be a surprise. While he didn’t make the first shot of the game against the Cavaliers, he made the Knicks’ first shot of the season with his lone 3-pointer of the evening.
Wizards vs. Mavericks First Basket: Khris Middleton (+780)
Next up, I’m targeting the 10.5-point underdog Washington Wizards. In this game, they’re on the road against the Dallas Mavericks, a team that’s 0-1 and allowed the San Antonio Spurs to shoot 57.5% from the floor in its season opener.
With that in mind, I’ll look at Middleton for this first basket prop. He led the Wizards in scoring in their loss to the Milwaukee Bucks and also attempted the first shot of that game. Unfortunately, he missed a 13-foot jump shot.
Of all the NBA first basket bets tonight, Middleton at +780 could yield some sleeper value.
Warriors vs. Trail Blazers First Basket: Stephen Curry (+670)
The Trail Blazers are dealing with a lot right now, with head coach Chauncey Billups getting arrested on Thursday. Now, they have to host the Warriors with the greatest 3-point shooter of all time.
Stephen Curry enters this matchup against a Trail Blazers team that allowed the Minnesota Timberwolves to shoot 50% from beyond the arc on Wednesday.
In addition to this first basket bet, Curry could be a popular target across other NBA player prop bets tonight.
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Cavaliers vs. Nets First Basket: Evan Mobley (+519)
Sometimes, when making NBA first basket prop bets, there are some players that simply make sense. In this case, that’s Mobley.
In the Cavaliers’ first game of the season against the Knicks, Mobley made the first shot of the season for Cleveland. Now, he’ll take on a Nets team that I’m not convinced is even trying to win games this year.
Mobley will face off against Nets center Nic Claxton, who is considered a good defender, but he didn’t have a block in their first game and finished with 1.4 per game last year, which was down from 2.1 the year before.
I’ll take another chance on Mobley and try to catch Claxton loosening up on defense at the rim.
