The NBA schedule includes eight games on Wednesday, and we’re serving up three fades.
The pregame narrative: The Cleveland Cavaliers’ top-ranked defense will try to bottle up Buddy Hield tonight — and we think they’re up to the task. Elsewhere, we like Luka Doncic to thrive against a team he hung 50 on last week, while PJ Washington draws a great matchup on the glass.
Find all our best NBA props picks for December 29 below.
Odds as of 12:10 pm ET on 12/29/2022.
NBA prop picks
Best Bet : Hield under 17.5 points (-122)
A talented outside shooter like Hield can get hot on any given night, but he should face more resistance than usual against Cleveland’s top-ranked defense.
The Cavaliers have the NBA’s best defensive rating (107.8) and they allow the fewest points per game (105.5).
They also happen to allow the fewest cumulative points to opposing teams’ shooting guards (19.2), per FantasyPros.
Hield is coming off a 28-point night — including a ridiculous 6-of-7 shooting clip from 3-point range — so there’s certainly a risk that his outside shooting puts him over the top.
We’ll take our chances, though, since Hield hasn’t cleared in his past three games against the Cavs (since February 2022) and their defense is in peak form right now.
Key stat: Hield has fallen below this point line in 14 of his past 22 games (63.6%).
Quick picks
Doncic over 33.5 points (-117): After Doncic’s dazzling 60-point performance on Tuesday, we believe that he’s had his recovery beer and is ready to get back on the court.
Doncic, who averages 33.6 points per game, has scored 142 points in his past three matchups. Tonight, he’s in a truly tantalizing defensive matchup at home against Houston.
The Rockets allow the most points per game to opposing point guards — including Doncic’s 50-burger last week — and they rank 28th in defensive rating (115.4).
Washington over 5.5 rebounds (-113): We’re not always springing for PJ Washington props, but this is a good line for a starting power forward facing the Oklahoma City Thunder.
OKC allows 11.5 rebounds per game to opposing power forwards, which is the highest rate in the league.
Although Washington only averages 4.9 boards per game, he’s cleared this line in three of his past six matchups and should do so again.
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