A win-or-go-home matchup takes place Thursday night in Atlanta. The Hawks stunned the Celtics in Game 5 in Boston without Dejounte Murray. Now, the Celtics look to bounce back and close out this series to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers.
With just one game on Thursday night’s NBA Playoff slate let’s take a look at two NBA player props today that have value.
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NBA Player Props & Picks
Trae Young, Over 1.5 Steals (+115)
| Spread | Celtics -6.5 |
| Time | TV | 8:30 p.m. ET | TNT |
| Best Line | DraftKings |
Trae Young is a great scorer, but he’s also been great at making plays on the defensive side of the ball in this series. Young has recorded at least two steals in four of the five games of this series. Meanwhile, the Celtics are averaging 14 turnovers per game this season. More importantly, the Celtics starting backcourt is averaging close to six turnovers per game.
Despite this series being high scoring, the Celtics are prone to turnovers because of their fast pace. This may not be the most exciting play for Young, but if the Hawks want to extend this series they will need to create turnovers and get their hands in the passing lanes. I expect Young to continue to get steals in this win-or-go-home matchup. Take the over of 1.5 steals.
Dejounte Murray, Over 21.5 Points (-105)
The Hawks have life and plenty of confidence coming into Game 6 and I’m zoning in Dejounte Murray to have a big game for the Hawks. Murray was suspended for making contact with an NBA referee at the end of Game 4 and had to miss Game 5 as a result. However, Murray has been having a great series for the Hawks. He is averaging 25.3 points per game on 45.6% shooting from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc.
Murray is averaging 38.3 minutes per game in this series and the shot volume has been there. In fact, Murray is averaging close to 23 shot attempts per game in this series. Murray has scored 22 or more points in all four games he’s played this series. I expect the Celtics to focus on slowing down Young after his performance in Game 5.
Based on the number of minutes and the shot volume Murray has produced in this series, I expect him to get over 21.5 points. I like this prop up to 23.5 points.