The holidays season has arrived, friends! We’ve got an 11-game slate of NBA action before players (and some of us) get a day off for Thanksgiving, so what better way to go out than with a parlay? We’re honing in on another small-market game for this one.
Here is my top NBA parlay for Wednesday’s action.
Join the BettingPros Discord Chat for Live Betting Advice >>
Parlay YTD: 0-1 (-0.25u)
Straight Bets YTD: 3-0 (+1.13u)
Leg #1. Wendell Carter Jr. o12.5 Points
Related Straight Bet: Wendell Carter Jr. o12.5 Points (-110 at FD Sportsbook)
Straight Bet Size: .5u
The books messed up with this number, so we’re going to take advantage of them here. Carter recorded 20 points against the Hornets back in October, and he went 53.3% from the field in the process. He also nailed a pair of triples. Carter averages 12.2 points per game, but that number fell off through Orlando’s five-game road trip, during which they faced Atlanta, New York, Brooklyn, and Milwaukee. Before the Magic left home for those matchups, Carter had been averaging 13.6 points per game.
The Magic return to Orlando for their first home game in over a week tonight, and it’s a great get-right spot for their young lineup. Carter could probably not have a better matchup, either, as the Hornets have surrendered the fourth-most points in the paint per game (48.4). Carter shares the team lead in paint touches per game with Mo Bamba, so I expect both players to have a solid performance here. That said, they both have the same posted total, and I prefer Carter at this number.
Leg #2. Mo Bamba 10+ Points
Related Straight Bet: Mo Bamba o12.5 Points (+102 at FD Sportsbook)
Straight Bet Size: .25u
Bamba should get at least 10 points tonight. I don’t trust him as much as I do Carter because of their differences in shooting percentage (Carter’s eFG% sits at 58.1%, Bamba’s sits at 52.4%), but I do trust him enough to get 10 against this defense. The Hornets have also allowed the fourth-most points per game to centers this year (24.4), and they have been worse (25.8) over their last seven games. The Magic tend to feature Bamba exclusively at the five while rotating Carter between the four and five, so both players get a boost because of the defensive matchup.
Leg #3. Wendell Carter Jr. 10+ Rebounds
Related Straight Bet: Wendell Carter Jr. o10.5 Rebounds (+108 at FD Sportsbook)
Straight Bet Size: .25u
We’re coming back to Carter to play his rebounds line. I’ve already talked about how the Hornets can’t keep opposing bigs from scoring, but they’re also awful at stopping those players from cleaning the glass. Charlotte allows opposing fours to nab the second-most rebounds per game (12.3). The same is true with opposing fives (19.7). Through their last seven games, they have improved slightly against fives (19.6) but have gotten worse against fours (12.8).
Those aren’t meaningful differences, so I’m rolling with Carter over Bamba here because of another stat — Carter’s rebound rate (17.5%), which sits a nose above Bamba’s (15.9%). Also, both players recorded exactly 10 rebounds in their last meeting with the Hornets.
Leg #4. Miles Bridges 2+ Made Threes
Related Straight Bet: Miles Bridges o2.5 Made Threes (+126 at FD Sportsbook)
Straight Bet Size: .25u
Bridges nailed five three-pointers on 10 attempts against the Magic in October. Both numbers marked season highs. As a result, I feel very comfortable targeting him here. The Magic have surrendered an above-average number of made threes per game to opposing fours (2.23) of late, and that’s where Bridges spends the bulk of his minutes. We don’t need him to have another season-high to cash this prop, either — he averages 2.3 made threes per game, so even a below-average night would suffice.
Total Odds: +430 at FD Sportsbook
Parlay Bet Size: .25u
Join the BettingPros Discord Chat for Live Betting Advice >>
Whether you’re new to sports betting or a betting pro, our How To Bet and Sports Betting Strategy and Advice pages are for you. You can get started with our Sports Betting 101 Section — including 10 Sports Betting Tips for Beginners — or head to more advanced sports betting strategy — like Key Numbers When Betting Against the Spread — to learn more.
Isaiah Sirois is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Isaiah, check out his archive and follow him @is_sirois.