Last night Anthony Davis delivered us a +450 first basket scorer winner in the first of this seasons play-in games. Tonight we will be looking to have another winning selection as the 9th and 10th seed teams in each conference collide. The Chicago bulls will be visiting the Toronto Raptors live on ESPN, with the winner getting to take on the Miami Heat. While out west the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the New Orleans Pelicans with the wi nner getting to face the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Do check out our NBA picks for today’s games. But for now let’s check out my favourite first basket scorer bets for Wednesday.
Over the last 10 games both the Chicago Bulls and the Toronto Raptors have been able to gain possession on the opening tip on 5 occasions. However, in their 3 matchups this season, the Raptors have won tip and made the first shot in every game. I expect that trend to continue tonight. Jakob Poeltl has a size advantage over Nikola Vucevic and should be favoured to get the Raptors the first shot.
In the last meeting between the teams, OG Anunoby took the first 2 shots for the Raptors. He made 1, which also was the first basket of the game. It would not be surprising to see them turn to him once more. He has made 38.7% of his 3-pointers this season, the best mark on the Raptors roster. Anunoby is also an explosive athlete and a strong physical presence. The likes of DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine could be overpowered by the forward on his drives to the rim. It would be a major benefit for the hosts if they could get either in early foul trouble too. The Bulls are just 20th in defensive rating over the last 10 games, so the forward could get more than one go at this.