Bucks vs Pelicans Props – Best Player Prop Bets February 25th

• The Milwaukee Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans matchup on February 25th
• The Pelicans won a high-scoring game between the two earlier this season
• Get the latest player props and picks below

The New Orleans Pelicans and Milwaukee Bucks meet for the second time this season on February 25th. Milwaukee is favored by nine points over the Pels, despite Jrue Holiday’s continued absence through health and safety protocols. New Orleans is expected to be at full strength for Thursday’s game.

Sitting 19-13 on the season, Milwaukee has put together a three-game winning streak after losing five in a row. The Pels have won just two of their last seven.

Pelicans vs Bucks Player Props and Odds

Odds taken on Feb 25 from FanDuel

Lonzo Stays Hot

Lonzo Ball has had a weird season. He couldn’t make a shot for the first few weeks. It’s turned around of late for the former Laker, though, as he’s shot 47% from three in February, scored over 16 points per game and improved to 84% from the charity stripe. This version of Ball is worthy of the hype.

With the three-pointer falling, his 2.5 line seems reasonable, but it might be better than that. Ball has made over 2.5 threes in 10 of his last 11 games, and his best shooting game of the season came against the Bucks. That night was a three-point feast for the Pels, and Ball led the way with seven-for-13 from deep.

It’s also worth considering that despite the improvement from the Bucks defense, they still give up a lot of threes. Milwaukee ranks 25th in opponent three-point attempts, and 28th in non-corner threes. Ball is in the 84th percentile in number of shots which are non-corner threes. He’s going to get a lot of the shots he specializes in.

It isn’t extreme to say Ball has been playing the best basketball of his career of late. He faces a Bucks defense which is happy to give up the shots he’s been draining recently. A case can be made for his points over, but the over 2.5 threes is probably the best bet here. Ball has thrived with Zion Williamson running the point, and he should get a lot of catch-and-shoot opportunities as the defense collapses on Williamson.

• Pick: Lonzo Ball over 2.5 threes (-162)

Giannis Keeps Scoring

Giannis Antetokounmpo might not be getting much love for MVP, but he’s putting up monster numbers again. He’s sixth in scoring in February, and he’s scored 34 or more in three of his last five games. The jumper still isn’t reliable, but defenses cannot stop him getting to the rim.

New Orleans is 27th in the league in opponent field goal percentage at the basket. They couldn’t slow the Greek Freak down in their previous meeting either, as he scored 38 points on 27 shots. The Pelicans defense ranks among the worst in the league. An inability to stop transition scoring is a big part of that – only one team is giving up more points per 100 transition plays than New Orleans.

Antetokounmpo, of course, is the comfortable league leader in transition points per game at 9.1. The 32.5 total points line might look a bit high for a guy averaging under 30 per game, but there’s very little to suggest the Pelicans can keep Antetokounmpo under control.

Giannis couldn’t believe this Bucks reporter got a new job. 😂😂pic.twitter.com/1SlkKt7NLB

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) February 20, 2021

The greatest question of this prop will be Antetokounmpo’s minutes. If the game is close enough, he should easily hit the over. Will the Pelicans force the Greek Freak to play substantial fourth quarter minutes?

With four triple-doubles on the season, it’s worth considering Antetokounmpo to get his fifth at +370, too.

• Pick: Giannis Antetokounmpo over 32.5 points (-110)