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Expert prediction

NBA Player Props, Breakdown, Odds, and Picks (May 17)

  • Annie Adkins
  • May 17, 2023 at 5:30 AM EDT

Pick rationale

Analysis & key factors

  • Miami and Boston once again go into a battle for the East.
  • Game 1 of the Heat vs Celtics series is on tonight.
  • The Celtics look set to tame Heat’s scoring leader.

We’ve got some NBA player props for you!

Last night, we hit an NBA player prop with +122 odds; can our props win twice in a row? We sure think so! The prop you’re gonna read about in this post is centered around Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals – Miami Heat vs Boston Celtics.


Heat vs Celtics

How to Watch:

  • When: Wednesday, May 17, 2023, at 8:30 p.m ET
  • Where: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts         
  • Channel: TNT

Odds

Historical odds are unavailable. The original analysis is preserved.

Prop Pick

The Miami Heat and Boston Celtics meet in the Conference Finals for the second year in a row. Last time, it was Boston that triumphed 4-3 in the series, winning three games at TD Garden. The Celtics are expected to do something similar in 2023 as well. Game 1 is played on their turf and the oddsmakers are giving -370 on them to win.

It’s no surprise knowing how brilliant they’ve been on their turf this entire season, both offensively and defensively. In their most recent game – Game 7 of the East Semifinal series with the Philadelphia 76ers – they blew out the opposition 112-88.

Jayson Tatum stole the show with his offensive performance (51 points), but what really struck us is how good he and his teammates were defensively. Tatum himself recorded 13 defensive rebounds, helping his team keep the new NBA MVP Joel Embiid to just 15 points that evening.

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We’re sure the Celtics are going to do (at least) as great in defense this evening, this time against a team that hasn’t been impressive scoring-wise. The Heat’s scoring leader is Jimmy Butler whose PPG in the regular season was 22.9. He’s upped that number since the start of the postseason, going all the way to 31.1. Still, we honestly doubt he’s gonna get anywhere near that number tonight.

NBA Player PropsOdds
Jimmy Butler to score under 27.5 points

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