January 12th NBA Player Props – Best Bets Featuring Evan Mobley & More on Wednesday Night

• Wednesday night is an exciting night around the NBA, headlined by the Nets and Bulls matching up in Chicago
• Elsewhere, the Sixers take on the Hornets and the Lakers matchup with the Kings
• Read below for the best player prop bets on January 12th

With three 7:10pm ET tip-offs, it’s a quick start to Wednesday’s NBA slate. Charlotte and Philadelphia are in the first wave of games, with the Hornets priced as 5.5-point underdogs. Tipping off at the same time, there’s a Southeast Division duel between Orlando and Washington and the Celtics take on the lowly Pacers.

Dallas and New York get underway at Madison Square Garden half an hour later, as do Miami and Atlanta in Georgia.

There’s a Texas matchup between the Spurs and Rockets at 8:40pm ET before a fun contest in Utah as the Jazz host the Cavs. The final two games of the night see the Kings and the Lakers play each other for the second time this year and a heavyweight Eastern Conference battle between the Nets and Bulls.

NBA Player Props – January 12th

Odds as of Jan 12 at FanDuel

Mobley Uses His Size

Cleveland faces Utah on Wednesday night. Rudy Gobert remains in health and safety protocols, and the Jazz are feeling his absence. They have lost three straight without Gobert – the defense has cratered. The Jazz are a bottom ten defense in minutes without Gobert in general, and they have the worst defensive rating in the NBA over the last three.

Gobert compensates for a lack of size on the Utah roster. Hassan Whiteside might be big, but he’s not in the same galaxy as Gobert defensively. Being small is a nightmare against the Cavaliers, who play three seven-footers, including the ultra-skilled Evan Mobley.

Since returning from a Covid-19 absence, Mobley has recorded 17 or more points in six of eight games. He’s scoring 18.3 per game over that span, and shooting north of 57% from the field.

Whiteside will be dealing with the rim-running of Jarrett Allen. That leaves Mobley with a massive size advantage over his matchup either in Royce O’Neale or Bojan Bogdanovic. The rookie is comfortable shooting over smaller defenders and using his silky smooth footwork to get to the basket.

Cleveland and Mobley would have posed a matchup problem for Utah even if Gobert was available. Without Gobert, the Cavs should be able to thrive against a struggling Utah defense. Take Mobley’s over.

• Pick: Evan Mobley over 16.5 points (-106)

Murray Dominates Houston

San Antonio remains without Keldon Johnson and Derrick White. Unsurprisingly, Dejounte Murray’s usage increases when he’s on the floor without White and Johnson. He also shoots more efficiently from the field, and sees a considerable leap in his assist and rebounding rates.

Murray’s points, rebounds and assists market is what stands out here. He’s gone over 38.5 in three of his last four games.

Houston is the best team in the NBA to put up numbers against right now. They are dead-last in defense over the last 10 (and sit miles behind 28th), and they have the worst rebounding percentage over that span.

Their perimeter defense is equipped to contain Murray, with both Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr being weaknesses on that end. A lot will be asked of Jae’Sean Tate to stop Murray controlling the game.

Much of the Rockets’ poor defense comes down to a failure to protect the rim. They allow the third-most attempts in the restricted area, and the fourth-worst effective field goal percentage on such shots. Murray is an elite rim finisher, converting 66% of his attempts at the basket.

These are two of the top three teams in pace over the last 10. There will be plenty of extra possessions for Murray to load up the box score – he should easily make this over.

• Pick: Dejounte Murray over 38.5 points, rebounds and assists (-108)