Player props can be useful in a variety of ways, from taking advantage of them straight up (to the tune of cold hard cash), to measuring a player's potential to produce in daily fantasy basketball.
While you can use those odds in fantasy, you can also utilize our fantasy projections and a variety of other tools to help make money on betting everyday player props.
For the purposes of this article, we are using the odds provided at FanDuel Sportsbook to pinpoint three spots where value can be had on a player's stat line, scoring, or even shot type.
Please note that betting lines and our game projections may change throughout the day after this article is published.
John Collins, Over 8.5 Rebounds
John Collins returns from his 25-game suspension to the Atlanta Hawks, and they're in dire need of his help -- riding a seven-game losing streak. Collins played five games this season and averaged 17 points and 8.8 rebounds. Versus the Cavaliers in Cleveland tonight, Collins will battle for boards with Kevin Love (10.8) and Tristan Thompson (10.0) down low, and take over as the Hawks leading-rebounder. In the 25 games Collins was out, Jabari Parker (6.3) and Alex Len (5.3) led the Hawks in rebounding.
In Collins' first three games of the season, he recorded three games of eight rebounds or more against quality opponents with great interiors; 76ers (8), Pistons (10), and Magic (12). In the next two games, he recorded seven rebounds in back to back games versus the Heat. I like Collins to have a minimum of eight rebounds tonight, and he could easily go over that number against another bottom-cellar team in the East. His over/under on points is 17.5, which is also appealing if you believe Trae Young will feed Collins in his first game back.
Julius Randle, Over 28.5 Points + Rebounds
The New York Knicks welcome the Washington Wizards to Madison Square Garden in what could be a shootout. The Wizards are second in pace (104.4), third in points per game (117.4), and fourth in offensive rating (112.1), while the Knicks' highlight is their offense rating in games they've won (116.4). If Julius Randle and the Knicks can keep this close at home, he should his earn his second straight 20-point game and sixth-straight of 8 rebounds or more.
Randle scored 16, 17 and 20 points over his last three home games and led the team in scoring (20) in the loss to the Bucks. Randle has either led the team or finished second in boards in all of his past five games. The Wizards are last in the league in rebounding (41.4) and are without their leading rebounder Thomas Bryant, so Randle could feast and hit the over on 28.5.
Jrue Holiday, Over 19.5 Points
Jrue Holiday and Brandon Ingram have been the primary scoring options for the Pelicans as we all await the debut of Zion Williamson. Holiday is averaging 19.6 points per game, and he scored 22 points in the first game versus Portland on November 19th. Since then, Holiday has scored 20 or more points in 10 of 16 games and four of nine times on the road.
New Orleans is seventh in pace (103.5) and Portland is 11th (102.4), making a case for both teams to play run-and-gun basketball. Holiday is averaging 21 over his last five games and has scored 20 or more in 7 of his last 11. Our model projects Holiday at 19.5 points tonight, but I like the high pace to push the over.
Vaughn Dalzell is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Vaughn also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username vdalzell. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.