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 March 18. 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 March 18.
Come check out what we have cooked up for this slate of games.
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NBA First Scorer Props – March 18
Brooklyn Nets vs. Boston Celtics
Tipoff – 7:30 pm EST
TD Garden – Boston, Massachusetts
Broadcast – NBA TV
Heading into their Tuesday home contest with the Nets, the Celtics are a little banged up. However, one name not on the injury report is Kristaps Porzingis, and that’s a good things for first bucket bettors. Porzingis is grabbing the first possession at a 69.7% clip, which outpaces the Celtics as a team by 10.9% and the Nets by 29.4%. With the tip winner getting 66.0% of the first scores this year, that puts the Celtics in a good spot. They also have a decent 5.2% lead in first bucket success rate, which is enough for us to side with Boston here.
As perviously mentioned, the Celtics are banged up. Jaylen Brown is out for Tuesday and Jayson Tatum is listed as questionable. When either of them are out, Jrue Holiday gets a spike in his early action. However, with Tatum currently listed as questionable, the number is still high on Holiday. Even if Tatum goes, the value on this play could pay off in a big way if they get him another early look.
First Scorer Bet for March 18: Jrue Holiday (+1000)
Milwaukee Bucks vs. Golden State Warriors
Tipoff – 10:00 pm EST
Chase Center – Oakland, CA
Broadcast – NBA TV
The Warriors are one of the very worst teams on the first bucket this year. They’re scoring first just 39.7% of the time, which is good enough for 28th place in the league. Part of the reason for that is a large portion of games in which they didn’t start a center, but they also have questionable shot selection early on. The same can not be said for the Bucks, who are 6th in the league when it comes to scoring first. They also are getting the opening tip 60.3% of the time, which is 25.0% better than the Warriors.
If we want to get specific on the player for the Bucks, I’m digging Kyle Kuzma for Tuesday. He’s seeing a lot of the early work for the Bucks, despite there being two players getting much more overall work than him. In fact, he’s taken two of the last three first shots for the Bucks. That volume is worth keeping an eye on here on the road.
First Scorer Bet for March 18: Kyle Kuzma (+700)
If you’d like even more info to help make your first scorer bets for March 18, check out the NBA Gambling Podcast. They’re dropping episodes five days a week to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar.
