Handicapping the NBA: Wednesday Picks

Will Tim Hardaway Jr. step up in the absence of Luka Doncic?
Handicapping the NBA: Wednesday Picks

Alex Barutha

3-Leg Parlay (+232): Darius Garland + Ricky Rubio + Cedi Osman to all score 15+ points at Nets -- FanDuel, 1:03 PM CT

The Cavs will be without Collin Sexton, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen and Lauri Markkanen for this game. There isn't a huge sample size without those guys, but I expect Garland, Rubio and Osman to carry the offense.

2-Leg Parlay (+209): DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine to each score 25+ points at Trail Blazers -- FanDuel, 1:05 PM CT

The Blazers are the seventh-worst defense in the league, and with Nikola Vucevic still sidelined, DeRozan and LaVine are the clear-cut, go-to options on offense. Per 36 minutes with Vooch off the court, DeRozan averages 34.0 points and LaVine averaged 28.9 points.

Tim Hardaway Jr. over 24.5 points + rebounds + assists (-106) at Suns -- FanDuel, 1:06 PM CT

Kristaps Porzingis over 20.5 points (-110) at Suns -- FanDuel, 1:06 PM CT

I'm grouping these together, as the absence of Luka Doncic will open up an absurd amount of usage in Dallas' offense. Both Hardaway and Porzingis are clear beneficiaries. Per 36 minutes with Doncic off the court, THJ is averaging 21.4 points on 19.3 shots, 8.4 rebounds and 6.8 assists, while Porzingis averages 36.1 points on 22.7 shots.

Nick Whalen

Daniel Gafford UNDER 8.5 rebounds (+100) at Charlotte Hornets -- DraftKings Sportsbook, 2:00 PM CT

I recognize that Charlotte is one of the worst rebounding teams in the league, but this is a suspiciously high number for a player who is yet to top eight rebounds in any game this season. Gafford has five or fewer rebounds in nine of 11 contests, and his workload is typically capped in the 20-to-25-minute range. Maybe I'm a sucker for biting on this line, but there's little statistical evidence to suggest Gafford suddenly breaks out. He pulled down nine or more rebounds only five times in 61 appearances in 2020-21.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Alex is RotoWire's Chief NBA Editor. He writes articles about daily fantasy, year-long fantasy and sports betting. You can hear him on the RotoWire NBA Podcast, Sirius XM, VSiN and other platforms. He firmly believes Robert Covington is the most underrated fantasy player of the past decade.
Now in his 10th year with the company, Nick is RotoWire's Senior Media Analyst, a position he took on after several years as the Head of Basketball Content. A multi-time FSGA and FSWA award winner, Nick co-hosts RotoWire's flagship show on Sirius XM Fantasy alongside Jeff Erickson, as well as The RotoWire NBA Show on Sirius XM NBA with Alex Barutha. He also co-hosts RotoWire's Football and Basketball podcasts. You can catch Nick's NBA and NFL analysis on VSiN and DraftKings, as well as RotoWire's various social and video channels. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @wha1en.
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