Expert NBA Best Bets and Player Props Today – Friday, January 12th
The 2023-24 NBA season has begun and we’re excited over here at VSiN. As always, Jonathan Von Tobel will be providing you with his exceptional coverage of the greatest league in the world. Just click here for all of his content. However, all of my picks will be featured in this daily column, which will combine my best bets and player props. So, keep reading to find out how I’m playing the NBA slate on Friday, January 12. Also, check out our NBA Odds page for the latest line movement.
MORE: Check out our Pro Picks page for everything our experts have on January 12
2023 Record: 155-133-1 (+18.25 units)
NBA Best Bets Today – January 12
Golden State Warriors at Chicago Bulls – 8:00 pm ET
The Warriors are coming off a 36-point loss to the New Orleans Pelicans and have now lost six of their last eight games. They’re really struggling on both ends of the floor right now, and they now head to Chicago for a four-game road trip. The Bulls have also won three games in a row and they’re 13-7 straight up and 14-5-1 against the spread in their last 20 games. This Chicago team is playing some great basketball, and Zach LaVine has done a nice job of fitting in since returning to action. With that in mind, this is a really tough spot for the Warriors.
I think a good argument can be made that Chicago is the better team on both ends of the floor, and having Alex Caruso to defend Stephen Curry is a real luxury. Caruso is arguably the best perimeter defender in basketball, so Curry will have his work cut out for him here. There’s no such thing as really shutting down Curry, but making him work and tiring him out should be enough to give Chicago a big edge here.
The Bulls also happen to be 13-9 SU and 12-9-1 ATS when playing at home this season. They like playing in this building, and they’ll have some fired up fans tonight. This is a fun basketball team right now, which feels crazy to say after what we saw early in the season.
Bet: Bulls -3 (-110)
Toronto Raptors at Utah Jazz – 9:30 pm ET
The Raptors are wrapping up a six-game road trip tonight, so I’m expecting a little fatigue out of a group that has been playing extremely well since trading OG Anunoby for Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett. It’s just tricky to be on the road for this long, and playing in Utah is especially rough. Not only are the Jazz scorching hot at the moment, but they’re 12-5 SU and 13-3-1 ATS at home this year. That said, I think asking the Raptors to cover such a small number is a tough ask — especially with Utah being 12-4 SU and ATS over its last 16 games.
This Jazz team simply feels like it’s still being disrespected a bit by the oddsmakers. I know that nobody expected Utah to be good before the season, but at some point we have to treat this like a team that is ninth in the league in net rating over the course of the last month. The Jazz are also Top 15 when it comes to both offensive and defensive rating in that time, so they get the job done on both ends of the floor.
This could also be a very difficult matchup for Toronto, as Jakob Poeltl is out. Losing size is not what you want against this Jazz team, as Utah is first in the league in offensive rebounding. I also think the Jazz’s ability to create turnovers is going to get to the Raptors a bit here.
Bet: Jazz -2.5 (-115 – 2 units)
NBA Player Props Today – January 12
Indiana Pacers at Atlanta Hawks – 7:30 pm ET
This game has the highest total of the night, by far. That said, I think it’s a good idea to target some player props here, and I like Myles Turner to hit at least two 3s tonight. Turner isn’t shooting very well lately, as he is just 2 for his last 13 from deep. But he’s a better shooter than his numbers suggest, and the Hawks are as good of a matchup as you can ask for. This Atlanta team is absolutely miserable defensively, and only four teams in the NBA are giving up more made 3s per game. So, I’m expecting Turner to get some clean looks at the rim and I trust him to knock them down. He actually made two triples when these teams met last Friday.
Bet: Turner Over 1.5 Made 3s (+104 – 1.5 units)
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