This article is part of our NBA Picks series.
Alex Barutha: Damian Lillard over 4.5 threes (+125) vs. Pelicans -- DraftKings, 12:47 PM CT
I'm not going to overthink this one. The Pelicans allow the most made threes in the NBA (16.0), and Lillard loves to shoot from distance. He's averaging 4.2 made threes per game across the past six contests, so I like getting the plus money on the over. Lillard has also hit the over in 13 of his 30 appearances this season.
Nick Whalen: Tobias Harris OVER 7.5 rebounds (-110) vs. Houston -- DraftKings Sportsbook
I like this bet for two reasons: First, Harris is averaging 7.4 rebounds per game on the year, so you're not asking him to do anything exceptional. Second, the Rockets have been the league's worst rebounding team (TRB%) without Christian Wood. Over the last five games, they rank 24th in offensive rebound rate and 25th in defensive rebound rate, all while playing at a top-10 pace and ranking 29th in effective field goal percentage. With DeMarcus Cousins struggling, the Rockets have been forced to go small up front, and the results haven't been pretty. The likely return of Joel Embiid may hurt Harris' chances to rack up boards, but he's grabbed double-digit rebounds in four of his last six games.
Joe Bartel: Trae Young UNDER 3.5 rebounds (+125) -- (DraftKings Sportsbook - 12:53 PM)
Honestly, this is purely a bet from an odds perspective. Considering all my "obvious" parlay fillers have been putrid as of late, might as well try the flip side to reverse the luck. This isn't a gut bet by any means though. Young has gone under this total in four of the last five games and is averaging just 3.9 rebounds per game on the year. The Celtics also tend to do well against opposing point guards defensively, so I think all signs point to a nice target for plus money.
