To cap off Thursday's four-game slate, the Los Angeles Lakers welcome the Milwaukee Bucks to town. Read on for our Bucks vs. Lakers player props based on the best NBA odds.
Two days after becoming the NBA's all-time leading scorer in a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, LeBron James and the Lakers must bounce back against a hot Bucks team during a nationally televised battle. Milwaukee (37-17) has won eight games in a row, while Los Angeles (25-30) is looking to turn a new leaf after trading away guard Russell Westbrook.
James is listed as questionable due to an ankle injury but assuming he plays, this game will feature multiple star players. And that serves as a good opportunity for bettors to attack the NBA player prop market to have action on Thursday's marquee matchup.
We've looked at the best Bucks vs. Lakers pick, and here a re our best Bucks-Lakers player prop picks for Thursday (odds via DraftKings Sportsbook and FanDuel Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
While the Bucks and Lakers are on center stage Thursday, we're also looking at the best Bulls-Nets picks and tracking the NBA Finals odds on the day of the NBA Trade Deadline.
Bucks vs. Lakers player props for Thursday
- LeBron James Under 47.5 points, rebounds, and assists (-115 via DraftKings) ????
- Anthony Davis Under 3.5 assists (+125 via DraftKings) ???
- Giannis Antetokounmpo Over 13.5 rebounds (-132 via FanDuel) ????
Bucks vs. Lakers odds
Check out our NBA Finals odds and NBA MVP odds.
Bucks vs. Lakers NBA player props
It almost makes too much sense to fade Le Bron after he surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA's all-time leading scorer on Tuesday.
James, who needed 36 points to accomplish the feat, had a scoring prop of 33.5 ahead of that game and made history before the end of the third quarter. From the very first possession, it was obvious James was going for the record, as he was more aggressive on the offensive end.
With his scoring prop back down 29.5 or 30.5, we prefer taking the Under on his PRA line of 47.5 at DraftKings, especially since it is set at 46.5 at most other shops. This allows us to bet against LeBron scoring 30-plus points, but does give us some extra cushion based on NumberFire's projection of 27.3 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 7.2 assists for The King.
The Bucks rank third in defensive net rating, and honestly might roll in this game based on the 8.5-point spread. James will have a tougher time getting production in this one – if he's even looking for it. As a result, we would play this four-star pick down to 46.5 with -130 juice.
Consider me concerned about Anthony Davis, who scored just 13 points to go along with eight rebounds and two assists against the Thunder. He had a clear mismatch in that game, and simply failed to take advantage. He also looked disinterested on the bench in the midst of LeBron's once-in-a-lifetime moment on Tuesday.
The Lakers could always make a concerted effort to get Davis more involved in this one, which does scare me off his scoring prop of 26.5. So let's take the plus-money price on his assist line instead, as he has failed to clear this number in four consecutive games.
NumberFire projects 3.2 assists for Davis, giving us a significant edge at this price on DraftKings. We'd play this down to +120, but there are juiced 4.5 assist lines being offered if you'd prefer to have some extra cushion. After all, this is only a three-star pick because we know home scorekeepers can be a bit generous when crediting assists.
It is true, I do have the ability to bet an Over after all. Identifying a bet on Giannis Antetokounmpo was more difficult than you'd expect, as projections are mostly in line with his scoring prop and assist prop. Then it hit me, let's bet on the league's best rebounder dominating the glass against an inferior Lakers squad.
Antetokounmpo paces the NBA with an average of 12.4 rebounds per game, but that clip is up to 15.7 boards per contest in the month of February. He's cleared this Over in three of his last four games, including a 19-rebound effort against the Clippers.
Fourteen rebounds seems like the most likely outcome for the league's best player, as a few other sportsbooks ha ve set this line at 14.5 and juiced toward the Under. But I prefer taking the Over at FanDuel, and watching Giannis pile up the rebounds against a Lakers team that has traded away Westbrook and Thomas Bryant over the last 24 hours.
Feel free to play this four-star pick up to -150 at this line, but I'd recommend taking another prop if it goes past that. For Giannis, I am tempted by the +126 offering at FanDuel for him to finish Under 0.5 blocks, as he has failed to swat a shot in four of his last five games.
Bucks vs. Lakers player prop picks made 2/9/2023 at 3 p.m. ET.
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