Don’t Miss Out! Siakam, Turner, Porter Jr. Top Players to Bet Tonight

Best Player Props Today

1. Pacers PF Pascal Siakam Over 20½ Points

If you’ve followed along with my NBA bets this postseason, you would know we are 2-0 betting on Pascal Siakam. I faded him in the first two games on the road, but tonight, I expect him to have a bounce-back performance. Siakam was tremendous for the Pacers in Games 1 and 2 against the Milwaukee Bucks, scoring 36 and 37 points, but he disappeared for the remainder of the series. Siakam scored 17, 13, 12, and 19 points in the next four games. Against the Knicks, he finished with 19 points in Game 1 and 14 in Game 2, both games going under his prop.

I highlighted the storyline of former teammates in this series. The Pacers acquired the former All-Star Siakam in a surprising move from the Toronto Raptors in January. The Knicks also made a shocking trade with the Raptors in January when they acquired OG Anunoby for RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley. Both have performed exceptionally well for their new teams and are fierce competitors. Anunoby is one of the premier defenders in the NBA. A glaring issue currently for the Knicks is their lack of depth. New York is losing the battle of attrition, and Anunoby is the latest Knick to go down with an injury. OG has been ruled out with a hamstring injury for Game 3.

Siakam has been held under this line in five consecutive matchups with the Knicks, but I expect him to have a big night without Anunoby on the floor to defend him.

Woj: “I’m told it’s unlikely OG Anunoby plays in Game 4 [either] but he has yet to be ruled out. He was evaluated before the team left for Indiana today & that assessment continues this evening…Expectation is unlikely to be available Game 4…& already ruled out of Game 3” pic.twitter.com/AshWrPH6QS

— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) May 9, 2024

2. Pacers C Myles Turner Over 16½ Points

With our next player prop, I will roll with the Indiana Pacers’ big man. Myles Turner led Indiana in scoring in Game 1, finishing with 23 points and shot 50% from the field. Turner has scored 23 points in back-to-back games on the road against the Knicks and three of four matchups this season. In Game 2, he had an awful shooting night, finishing with just six points. However, Turner’s overall performance this season has been impressive, with him averaging 18 points per game in the postseason. This, coupled with the Knicks’ recent injury woes, could lead to a strong performance from Turner tonight.

Above, I touched on the devastating injury news New York continues to receive this season. First, Julius Randle was out for the remainder of the year. In the playoffs, they have lost OG Anunoby, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Mitchell Robinson! It’s becoming a battle of attrition against themselves for the Knicks.

Robinson is an elite defender and will be missed at that end of the floor. Without his services, Turner will be looking to score against Isaiah Hartenstein the majority of the time. Hartenstein has been a revelation for the Knicks this season, but Turner is skilled enough to post another 20-point game against him. I expect Precious Achiuwa to be inserted into the starting lineup. He is a solid defender but can’t replicate what Anunoby brings to the floor.

Turner is long and athletic for a big man who can shoot from the perimeter. He has knocked down at least two shots from beyond the arc in four of his last six matchups with the Knicks. This is key because the Knicks allowed the third-most threes per game to opposing centers. Turner has scored 20 points in four of eight playoff games. Turner has played 35 and 31 minutes in this series. When Turner plays at least 30 minutes at home, including the playoffs, he has exceeded this line in 11 of 15 games (73.3%), with three of the unders coming against the Celtics.

Myles Turner punishes the rim 🔨 pic.twitter.com/nKUsq9BUxY

— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) May 9, 2024

3. Nuggets SF Michael Porter Jr. Over 16½ Points

We’re heading to Minnesota tonight with our third and final NBA bet. The sportsbook has juiced Michael Porter Jr’s lines in the playoffs, but this is a solid buy-low spot on the road down 0-2. We were all over MPJ in the series with the Lakers, and he came through for us on multiple occasions! MPJ was the third point of attack for the defending champs all season, and with the Timberwolves defense tormenting Jamal Murray, he will likely be their second-best scoring option behind Jokic in this series. He shot 4-for-7 from beyond the arc in the Game 1 loss and finished with 20 points. The entire Nuggets team was awful in the Game 2 blowout loss. We should expect him to let it fly tonight, with the Nuggets desperate to avoid going down 0-3.

MPJ has exceeded this line in four of his last five matchups on the road with the Timberwolves and two of three overall meetings during the regular season when he played at least 30 minutes. The defense will be focused on slowing down Jokic, leaving MPJ with enough open looks to climb above this number. Count on him to contribute for Denver tonight despite Minnesota’s unflappable defense.

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