The NBA Finals is finally here. The Pacers and the Thunder are ready to do battle on Thursday – and we’re ready to hit you with all the prop knowledge that you might need. That’s right! We’ve got our two favorite prop bets for Game 1. Come check out who is hot and who isn’t. Who can keep up that pace from their conference finals? We have the answer.
And if you want more thoughts on NBA Finals Game 1, be sure to check out the NBA Gambling Podcast.
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Two Prop Bets for NBA Finals Game 1
Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
Tipoff – June 5th, 8:30 pm EST
Paycom Center – Oklahoma City, OK
Broadcast – ABC
The NBA world (and Tyrese Haliburton) was shocked by Pascal Siakam’s conference MVP performance. He showed out in a big way in the series and put up some gaudy numbers. However, before we get all excited about those performances, it’s important to remember that it wasn’t a consistent effort.
For Thursday’s action, the books have Siakam’s points + rebounds + assists lined at 29.5. If we apply that line to the Eastern Conference finals, Siakam went 3-3 in the series. Now, in the three that he went over, he beat that line with the points alone. Still, he only managed to get that high in half of the contests. Even worse, only one of those overs was on the road.
What will make this even harder for Siakam is that he’s facing a team that effectively plays two centers in Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. Plus, Jalen Williams also pulls down a ton of boards. With less to go around on the glass, I think Siakam comes in under this mark.
Prop Bet #1: Pascal Siakam Under 29.5 P+R+A (-115)
These two squads squared off twice during the regular season. In neither of those games was Chet Holmgren available. However, in the year prior, Holmgren played against the Pacers twice. In each of those two games, he fired off six shots from deep. While the lineups are a bit different this year, I like the fact that he’s shown some volume against Indiana before.
Additionally, we saw a lot of attempts from him late in the series with the Timberwolves. He took 18 total three-pointers in the last four games (or 4.5 per game), and nabbed multiple buckets in each of the last two.
Between the numbers from last year and the uptick in this one, I like Chet’s chances to make multiple three-pointers in this one. Plus, with an underdog price tag on the over, I’m sold.
Prop Bet #2: Chet Holmgren Over 1.5 Three-Pointers (+120)
If you’d like even more info to help make your prop bets for Game 1, check out the NBA Gambling Podcast. They’re dropping episodes five days a week to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar.
