Today’s NBA Player Prop Picks: Edwards Raids Hornets

NBA action is back in full swing following the All-Star break, and what better way to tip off the weekend than with some winners in the player prop market?

Anthony Edwards is coming off his first All-Star Game experience and could be in for a big night against the buzz-less Hornets. The Brooklyn Nets are fun again and their army of 3-and-D wings could be tough to stop tonight against the Bulls. But who to back? And with Steph Curry still sidelined, Klay Thompson should achieve liftoff vs. the Rockets.

Here are my best NBA player prop picks for Friday, February 24.

NBA player props for February 24

• Edwards dbl-dbl
• Johnson Over 2.5 threes
• Thompson Over 25.5 pts

Picks made on 2/24/2023 at 12:45 p.m. ET.
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.

Today’s best NBA player props

The odds widgets below represent the best odds currently available for each betting market at regulated sportsbooks.

Wolf in Ant's clothing

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards should be flying high. Edwards is coming off his first NBA All-Star game experience and was on fire heading into the break. I’m betting he continues that hot steak when he hosts the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night.

Edwards drops 24.9 points per game this season on 46.4% shooting, but he has taken his game to the next level of late. Over the last 15 games, those numbers have bumped up 28.4 points and 48.3%, including 38.7% from 3-point range. And it’s fair to say the Hornets aren’t really equipped to slow him down.

Charlotte ranks 24th in defensive rating but taking Edwards to go Over his point total feels a little boring. So instead, I’m looking at Edwards to record a double-double at a crazy +850 value.

Edwards only has seven double-doubles this season, and all but one come via 10 or more rebounds. And there’s a bit of a theme when you see some of the opponents he’s done it against. He’s done it twice against Oklahoma City, once against Dallas, and another against Sacramento. 

Those all are generally smaller teams that struggle with rebounding, and the Hornets fit the bill. Charlotte was a bad rebounding team, ranking 24th in rebounding rate. Then they traded their best rebounder, Mason Plumlee to the Clippers at the trade deadline.

There are also a ton of boards up for grabs in Hornets games because they take the third most shots per game while ranking 29th in effective field goal percentage. So, it’s no shock Charlotte is next-to-last in opponent rebounds per game.

That and the price are enough for me to take a stab at Ant to record his eighth double-double of the season.

Anthony Edwards prop: Record a double-double (+850)

Killa Cam

The suddenly-fun-again Brooklyn Nets begin their post-All-Star game schedule with a visit to Chicago to take on the Bulls. The Bulls are the ones on the outside looking in when it comes to the Eastern Conference playoffs, but they're the ones getting chalk at home against the new-look Nets. 

That said, the Bulls could have trouble containing Brooklyn. The Nets have a funny roster makeup after all their trades and the team now seemingly mainly consists of 3-and-D wings. And to be honest, I kind of dig it. 

It’s the three part I’m interested in for this matchup. The Bulls are a little lax when it comes to their perimeter defense. Chicago allows the fourth most 3-point attempts and makes per game this season.

So, which Nets 3-and-D wing do we target in the 3-pointers made market? Well, Spencer Dinwiddie and Cam Johnson both have their 3-pointers made prop set at 2.5 with the Over in the +120 price range for Dinwiddie and +130 for Johnson.

But I think it should be the other way around. Dinwiddie is attempting 6.3 threes per game, while Johnson is taking 8 per game during their short time with the Nets.

I like the added value with Johnson here tonight.

Cam Johnson prop: Over 2.5 3-pointers made (+130)

Klaystation

If the Golden State Warriors want to make a real run at their title defense, they’re going to need a few things to happen. Steph Curry needs to be healthy and they’re going to have to start stringing together some wins.

They should be able to start a streak tonight against a Houston Rockets team that has its eyes firmly set on Victor Wembanyama and the NBA Draft lottery. The Rockets have an NBA-low 13 wins on the season, and while they have a few good pieces to build around, it will still be a while before this team takes off.

The Rockets' effort on the defensive end of the floor leaves something to be desired, to say the least. The team ranks 28th in defensive rating but Houston’s real problem lies on the perimeter.

The Rockets allow the most 3-point attempts per game while ranking 25th in opponent 3-point shooting percentage. I think you know where I’m going with this. 

Klay Thompson has picked up his game in the wake of Curry’s latest absence. The other Splash Brother is averaging 21.4 points per game while shooting 39.8% from 3-point range for the season. But in the last six games without Curry, those numbers bump up to 25.8 and 43%.

Thompson’s point total for this one is set at 25.5, and while he’s gone Over that number three times in the last six games the matchup with the Rockets makes this a solid play. The last time Thompson faced the Rockets back in November, he went for 41 points on 14-of-23 (60.9%) shooting.

Klay Thompson prop: Over 25.5 points (-110)

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