The Saturday NBA schedule features just five games and tips at 5 p.m. ET with Nets vs. Pacers. Indiana is a 9.5-point favorite in the latest NBA odds at FanDuel Sportsbook. One of the most popular NBA prop bets is first basket scorer, and in a matchup like Nets vs. Pacers where there’s not one dominant scorer, there are plenty of viable options. Keon Johnson (+600) is the favorite, but eight other players have odds between +650 and +950. Jimmy Butler (+500) in Warriors vs. Hawks and Giannis Antetokounmpo (+410) in Bucks vs. Kings are two of the big names favored to score the first basket in their respective games.
SportsLine expert handicapper Jimmie Kaylor has broken down the NBA odds for every game on Saturday and locked in three first basket scorer prop bets. Kaylor is a handicapper and DFS pro for SportsLine who won a DraftKings Millionaire contest in 2022 and also has multiple five-figure tournament wins on his DFS resume. Here are Kaylor’s top three first basket scorer bets for Saturday.
Mikal Bridges (+550 at FanDuel) in Knicks vs. Wizards
The Knicks have scored 31 first baskets this season, and Bridges has contributed 10 of those. New York is winning 43.5% of opening tips, but will be facing a Washington team that has seen a similar success rate (44.9%). Bridges is averaging 17.6 points, 3.6 assists and 3.2 rebounds in his first season with the Knicks. Karl-Anthony Towns is the slight favorite to score first in the game at +470, but Kaylor loves the value on Bridges on the slightly higher price of +550 at FanDuel Sportsbook.
LeBron James (+700 at FanDuel) in Lakers vs. Bulls
James is officially listed as questionable (groin), but the NBA’s all-time leading scorer is widely expected to be in action when the Lakers take on the Bulls at Crypto.com Arena. Los Angeles is currently winning 62.3% of opening tips, and the Lakers have scored the first basket in 41 games this season. James has scored six of those first baskets, and is averaging 25.0, 8.5 assists, and 8.2 rebounds per game this season.
Jimmy Butler (+490 at FanDuel) in Warriors vs. Hawks
Butler has attempted the first shot in five of his 18 games as a member of the Golden State Warriors. With Stephen Curry (pelvic contusion) sidelined, the likelihood of Butler attempting the Warriors first shot on Saturday increases drastically. Butler is averaging 17.2 points, 6.4 assists, and 6.2 rebounds per game since joining Golden State.
Want more NBA picks for Saturday?
SportsLine’s model is on a 151-111 roll on all top-rated NBA picks dating back to last season. Visit SportsLine to get all of its NBA picks for Saturday right here.
