Five games are on the NBA slate for tonight, and we are ready to roll. Even though both teams have losing records, the best matchup of the night is between the Toronto Raptors and the Los Angeles Lakers. Can LeBron and AD get their team's record back to .500 on the season?
Bummed about college football being over? We are too! Let's cheer ourselves up with some NBA action! Here are the best player props for Tuesday, January 9. Good luck, folks!
Immanuel Quickley UNDER 18.5 Points (-118) (BetRivers)
Quickley is a pretty adequate scorer, but he's only averaging 15.3 points per game this season. The former Kentucky standout has a median points number of 17 this season. Though that only points to a small amount of value on the Under, we love that Quickley has stayed under this total in 22 of his 36 outings this season.
The Lakers have their share of defensive problems, but they still rank an impressive 8th in defensive efficiency. Los Angeles also ranks 6th at defending two-point shots. My only concern here is that the Lakers don't defend three-pointers all that well (20th).
All of that being said, the Lakers have played much better at home this season. They are a respectable 12-6 on their home court, and I expect a solid effort on the defensive end from their guards. Let's play the Under on Quickly to get this party started.
Pascal Siakam OVER 4.5 Assists (-115) (BetMGM)
Geeez! I'm betting on two Toronto players! What's the world coming to? Chill out Raptors fans, I'm just joking. Siakam is actually one of my favorite players to watch in the league.
The former New Mexico State star remains the leader of this Raptors squad. Siakam is averaging 22.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 5 assists per game this season. He's a very skilled passer for a big fella, and I think he'll kick the ball out quite often to RJ Barrett and Scottie Barnes in this contest.
As far as the metrics go, Siakam has dished out 5 assists or more in 22 of his 36 games in 2023-24. He's also gone over this total in 6 of his last 9 games, so current form is in our favor as well. It also doesn't hurt that the Lakers only rank 19th in assists allowed per game this season. Take the Over!
Jaden Ivey UNDER 16.5 Points (-111) (FanDuel)
Ivey is one of the few bright spots on a very bad Pistons team, but this number is a shade too high. The former Purdue Boilermaker is only averaging 12.9 points per game this season. He's also scored 16 points or less in 23 of his 32 games.
I'm sure the oddsmakers upped Ivey's point total because of the poor Sacramento defense. That being said, a nearly 22% increase from Ivey's season-long average seems like too much of an adjustment to me. As bad as the Kings defense is, they do rank 3rd in fast break defense.
This means that Ivey shouldn't be able to get any easy layups in this game. Also, Ivey only scored 5 points against this same Kings team back on December 16. Let's play the Under on the young Pistons guard.
