I’ve got three prop bets from Sunday’s NBA playoff slate.
The pregame narrative: Derrick White shoots with volume and accuracy from deep and is a great bet to clear his 3-point total against the Orlando Magic. Elsewhere, back Alperen Sengun on the glass and fade Donovan Mitchell.
Check out the best NBA prop bets for first-round playoff action on April 20.
NBA prop bets
Best Bet: Derrick White 3+ threes (-134)
White isn’t the first or second option on the Celtics, but that’s why they’re a championship-winning team.
The veteran shooting guard fits perfectly into Boston’s system and provides steady 3-point scoring while playing elite defence.
- White averaged 3.5 threes on 9.1 attempts this season (38.3%).
- He took 69% of his shots from deep, which ranked in the 94th percentile of all NBA players, according to Cleaning the Glass.
- In last year’s postseason, White hit 3+ threes in 12 of 19 games.
Boston is favoured to run it back and win the East this year, and I expect White to be a significant contributor during its playoff run.
Orlando is a great defensive team, but it is best at containing the paint and mid-range. The Magic allowed opponents to shoot 37.3% from deep in non-garbage-time situations this season, which was the fifth-highest rate in the league.
Joe Mazzula’s game plan revolves around taking a crazy amount of 3s, and I expect White to have a heavy volume on Sunday.
Key stat: White hit 3+ threes in 57 of 76 games this season (73.6%).
Best NBA picks
Sengun over 10.5 rebounds (-114): The Golden State Warriors are an A-plus matchup for opposing bigs.
- Golden State allowed the most rebounds per game to opposing centres over the last 30 days (17.24) and the third-most over the entire season (16.38).
- 6-foot-7 Jimmy Butler is the tallest player in its starting lineup, with 6-foot-6 Draymond Green playing centre.
Sengun had the luxury of playing the Warriors two weeks ago and finished that game with 14 rebounds in 33 minutes. That marked the third-straight game against Golden State where he cleared this total.
The Turkish centre averaged 10.3 rebounds this season, so this line seems light considering the opponent.
Mitchell under 24.5 points (-106): This is less about Mitchell’s performance and more about how good the players around him are.
The Cleveland Cavaliers coasted to an Eastern Conference-best 64-18 record, scoring by committee. Seven different players averaged over 10 points per game with four taking more than 10 shots per game.
Mitchell led the pack in both categories (24.0 PPG, 18.6 FGA/game), but he was far from the clear-cut alpha dog you see on other teams.
Fading him against this number makes sense, especially against the Miami Heat.
Miami ranked ninth in defensive rating this season and held opposing shooting guards to the second-fewest points (20.68) and 3s (3.02) per game.
NBA prop picks made at 3:05 p.m. ET on 04/18/2025.
Avery joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2022 before stepping into a full-time role soon after. He loves betting on and analyzing golf — mainly because it’s easier than actually playing — but is a fan of all sports, from the NFL to the UFC.