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NBA Player Props & Picks: LaMelo Ball and Luka Doncic Among Top Plays (December 29)

Munaf Manji breaks down his three favorite NBA player prop bets for Thursday, December 29th, including a play on LaMelo Ball.

Thursday night features a six-game schedule in the NBA. Check out the top player props and picks for tonight’s NBA slate, including plays on LaMelo Ball and Luka Doncic.


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NBA Player Props & Picks

Mason Plumlee, Over 11.5 Rebounds (+100)

Spread Hornets -1
Time | TV 7 p.m. ET | NBA League Pass
Best Line DraftKings

The Charlotte Hornets will host the Oklahoma City Thunder tonight, and Mason Plumlee should have plenty of success on the glass in this matchup.

The Thunder are the worst rebounding team in the league as they have allowed their opponents to grab 48 rebounds per game. The Thunder also rank 26th in Rebounding Rate and dead last in Defensive Rebounding Rate, which should leave opportunities on the offensive glass for Plumlee.

The Thunder, who are short on big men of their own, are allowing opposing centers to grab 16.3 rebounds per game, which ranks third-worst in the league. The Hornets are dealing with injuries in their frontcourt, which have bumped Plumlee’s minutes near 28 per game. Expect Plumlee to feast on the boards in this matchup and play this up to 11.5 rebounds.


Luka Doncic, Over 17.5 Rebounds + Assists (-115)

Spread Mavericks -10
Time | TV 8:30 p.m. ET | NBA League Pass
Best Line FanDuel

Luka Doncic is coming off a historic performance on Monday night against the Knicks when he dropped 60 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists. The Mavericks will welcome the Rockets tonight in what should be another favorable matchup for the Slovenian sensation.

The Houston Rockets struggle to defend the point guard position. In fact, the Rockets allow opposing point guards to average 9.1 assists per game, which ranks among the bottom five in the league. Doncic has gone over this projection of 17.5 rebounds plus assists in three straight games against the Rockets, including their game last week.

Over his last three games against the Rockets, Doncic is averaging 12 rebounds and nearly eight assists. There is a slight edge here with this projection a bit low, and I like this up to 18.5 at FanDuel.

Pick: Luka Doncic Over 17.5 Rebounds + Assists


LaMelo Ball, Over 3.5 3s Made (-137)

Spread Hornets -1
Time | TV 7 p.m. ET | NBA League Pass
Best Line Parx

Since LaMelo Ball has returned from injury, he is firing on all cylinders from beyond the arc. In December, Ball is averaging 11.4 attempts per game from the 3-point line while shooting 38.5% on 3s and averaging 4.4 makes per game.

Ball has knocked down four or more 3s in seven of eight games so far this month. The lone exception came in his last game against the Warriors as he went just 2-for-11 from beyond the arc. 

The Thunder are also struggling to defend the 3-point line as they have allowed opponents to shoot 36.5% from beyond the arc, which ranks 24th. Barring a second consecutive unusually cold night, Ball should go over this line as he has consistently gotten the 3-point shooting volume up this month.