Some people like to sweat out a bet for 48 hard minutes – others like immediate satisfaction. Count us as being in the latter, which is why we like to get down with NBA first scorer props. And we’ve decided to pass that knowledge on to you with our first scorer bets for January 30. Go here for NBA Championship odds.
Of course, there are plenty out there taking blind guesses at this stuff. It’s easy to pick the most popular player or look at what happened in the last game. However, we spent the time pouring through the analytics to make sure that we give you the best odds to stay in the green on these first scorer props for January 30.
Come check out what we have cooked up for this slate of games.
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NBA First Scorer Props – January 30
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Washington Wizards
Tipoff – 7:00 pm EST
Capital One Arena – Washington, DC
Broadcast – NBA TV
The Wizards are becoming one of the top teams in the league to fade when it comes to the first bucket. Their 41.3% first scorer success rate ranks 28th in the NBA and lags behind the Lakers by a 12.0%. That’s not the only disadvantage they’ll have in this on. The Lakers are an above average team when it comes to winning the tip. They’re getting 57.8% of the first possessions in their games. That should be more than enough to be confident they will here. Alexandre Sarr and the Wizards are winning just 45.7%. With the tip winners this year getting 65.1% of the first buckets, it’s looking like a play on the Lakers here.
The clear play from the Lakers here should be on Austin Reaves. In each of the last two games, he’s taken the first shot for the Lakers. Additionally, in the most recent game, he took two of the first three shots for the squad. That volume should be enough to get you behind him. Additionally, he’s not even close to being the odds-on favorite for Los Angeles here.
First Scorer Bet for January 30: Austin Reaves (+600)
Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Utah Jazz
Tipoff – 9:00 pm EST
Delta Center – Salt Lake City, UT
Broadcast – NBA TV
In this short slate of games, there isn’t a ton of advantages to exploit on the first bucket. Instead, we’ll go with a team that’s hot right now. The Timberwolves are putting up far better numbers in the last month than they have all year. However, even with the slow start, they are at 59.6% on the tip and 57.5% on the first bucket. Those numbers are 1.8% and 6.4% ahead of the Jazz respectively. Those figures along with their hot streak should put them in prime position to get on the board first here.
If I’m looking for someone on the first bucket here, I like Rudy Gobert. He’s taken one of the first three shots in two of the last three games. In addition to that, the Jazz have been ugly in the paint on defense in the last three games. They’ve allowed 50.7 points per game in the paint over that time. With the bulk of Gobert’s offense coming from there, it increases his chances of scoring first in this one.
First Scorer Bet for January 30: Rudy Gobert (+650)
If you’d like even more info to help make your first scorer bets for January 30, check out the NBA Gambling Podcast. They’re dropping episodes five days a week to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar.
