We didn’t think we would be writing about Game 5 of the NBA Finals. All signs pointed to the Boston Celtics blowing the Dallas Mavericks out of the water, but that didn’t end up being the case.
In fact, the Mavericks decided to lay the hammer down, coming hot out of the gates, and jumping out to a massive lead over the Celtics. While we didn’t expect that to happen, we’re certainly excited for another night of NBA action.
This gives us another opportunity to study Underdog’s board of player props, and we’ve put together our favorites below. After going 1-3 in Game 4, let’s turn it around with a clean sweep in Game 5!
Luka Doncic OVER 9.5 First Quarter Points
For whatever reason, we love taking the over on Doncic’s first quarter points line, as he tends to start games with a barrage of scoring.
While we expect the Celtics to win tonight, look for Doncic to have a massive first quarter, hopefully cashing the over with ease.
Live player props data coming soon for Jrue Holiday.
Jrue Holiday OVER 4.5 Assists
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that the Celtics struggled to score in Game 4. In fact, their 84 team points were the lowest they’ve scored since Game 7 of last year’s Eastern Conference Finals.
This is an indication that Game 4 was a true anomaly, and a lack of scoring led to a lot fewer assist attempts. With that in mind, we expect the Celtics to bounce back in a big way tonight in the scoring category, giving players like Jrue Holiday to rack up assists.
We wouldn’t be surprised if he had six or seven assists tonight, giving us confidence that the over is the move in this one.
Live player props data coming soon for Jaylen Brown.
Jaylen Brown OVER 24.5 Points
We waffled between Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum’s point totals for this game but ultimately decided on Brown’s. Brown has been the more consistent player throughout the series.
While Tatum did have a 30+ point outing in Game 3, we just don’t have enough confidence in him to take his line tonight. Brown is simply too good, and if Holiday is dishing out assists in the manner we expect, he could score closer to 34 points, hitting the over with ease.
