NBA Thursday player props: Fade McCollum, bet Edwards
Following Wednesday's six-game slate, the board opens up Thursday with a whopping nine.
Here are the five top player props on our radar.
CJ McCollum under 4.5 assists
How many total assists will the Trail Blazers notch tonight? Their .515 per made field goal is dead last in the NBA, while the Suns' 0.566 allowed comes in at No. 3.
Phoenix doesn't let up an inch. The unit is top four in assists allowed per game to four separate positions on the court, but the best player to fade is McCollum.
The Suns only give up 4.2 assists to shooting guards per contest - the third-best mark in basketball - and McCollum has been held under this total in three of his last four starts.
Dejounte Murray under 14.5 points
Murray's averaged 18.3 points over his last four games for the Spurs, but I'm not buying the hot streak; three of those came against bottom-six defenses in points per game allowed to point guards (Trail Blazers, Bucks, Kings).
Thursday's clash against the Knicks is a serious step up in competition.
New York hasn't budged against opposing point guards this season, surrendering a league-low 21.3 points per outing. The position's also shooting just 41.9% from the floor versus the Knicks, the third-worst clip in basketball.
Anthony Edwards over 2.5 made threes
Edwards' 3-point total under cashed Tuesday against the Pistons. Now, we're taking the Timberwolves rookie's over in what'll be a much better matchup.
Whereas Detroit flourishes against small forwards - top eight in points, 3-pointers, and shooting percentage allowed over the last 15 - the Nuggets can't stop them. This season, Denver's giving up 22.6 points and three made triples per game on an overall 47.8% shooting clip, which all rank bottom eight.
Paul George under 3.5 made threes
The Hornets give up the most 3-pointers per game to shooting guards this season (4.1), but I'm still fading George in this spot. The Clippers star has been held to three or fewer makes in nine consecutive.
Facundo Campazzo over 20.5 combined points + rebounds + assists
Campazzo missed this total by one-half point in his most recent outing. Prior to that, he had shattered it in three straight, against top-tier competition no less (Nets, Jazz, Knicks).
Thursday's total for the 30-year-old seems awfully low, considering the opponent. The T-Wolves enter the night No. 27 in defensive efficiency and are bottom 10 in points, rebounds, assists, and 3-point makes to point guards this season.
Alex Kolodziej is a betting writer for theScore. He's a graduate of Eastern Illinois who has been involved in the sports betting industry for 12 years. He can quote every line from "Rounders" and appreciates franchises that regularly wear alternate jerseys. Find him on Twitter @AJKolodziej.