Saturday NBA Player Props and Best Bets (Nov. 20)

• The Rockets and Knicks get Saturday’s NBA schedule underway at 5pm ET
• Miami and Washington clash at the top of the Eastern Conference, while the Sixers face the Blazers in Portland
• Read below for Saturday’s NBA player props and best bets

We’ve got nine games to get our teeth stuck into on Saturday’s NBA schedule. Houston and New York tip things off at Madison Square Garden before the Heat and Wizards match up in the capital. Despite their strong start to the season, Washington is a narrow underdog.

The 7-9 Hawks are looking to extend their winning streak against LaMelo Ball and the Hornets. There’s a battle of young guards as Ja Morant’s Grizzlies take on Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves. Philadelphia in Portland and Utah in Sacramento wraps up the night’s action.

NBA Player Props – November 20th

Odds as of Nov 20 at FanDuel

Jackson Jr Keeps Scoring

The Memphis Grizzlies have won consecutive games, boosting their offense into the top 10. After a 4-point nightmare against the Pelicans, Jaren Jackson Jr has put up 18 points in each of those wins, draining five of his 13 threes in the process.

Jaren Jackson Jr. Per Game:

October (5 games)
12.7 pts/ 5.2 REB/ 1.7 BLK/ 0.8 STL
30% FG% 27% 3P% 3.7 PF

November (7 games):
16.3 pts/ 6.5 REB/ 2.2 BLK/ 0.7 STL
46% FG% 47% 3P% (5.7 3PA) 3.2 PF

Slow but steady improvements to build on

— Shawn Coleman (@StatsSAC) November 13, 2021

Consistency remains an issue for the former fourth overall pick, but aside from the showing in New Orleans, there are signs JJJ is getting into some rhythm after an up and down start to the year. He’s scored 18 or more in four of his last five games, taking him to an average of 15.9 points per game over his last eight.

Jackson faces a Timberwolves’ defense which ranks around middle of the pack thus far. That’s perhaps deceptive, though, given that Minnesota is giving up the third-most corner threes, and sits in the bottom half in letting opponents get to the rim. The T-Wolves are the league leaders in opponent three-point shooting percentage — they’re destined for that luck to change soon.

not gonna lie, about lost my mind when Jaren Jackson pulled this out the bag. probably his best off-the-dribble move he's made since his return from injury pic.twitter.com/nS2rwDQbyh

— Parker Fleming (@PAKA_FLOCKA) November 15, 2021

This game should be played at a good pace with Jackson often matching up with Karl-Anthony Towns, who still brings patchy defensive effort. Jackson will benefit from the Wolves giving up so many threes. He’s shooting almost 40% from downtown over his last eight and looks well-set to continue his strong scoring from recent games.

• Pick: Jaren Jackson Jr over 15.5 points (-118)

Maxey Does His Thing

Tyrese Maxey has gone past this points and assists line in four of his last five. He’s done it just in points in three of those games. Maxey’s breakout has rightly gotten a lot of attention, and he’s in a great position for another big night against the Blazers.

Tyrese Maxey's last 5 Games 🔥

22 PTS, 60% FG, 67% 3PT
16 PTS, 50% FG, 50% 3PT
24 PTS, 67% FG, 75% 3PT
33 PTS, 63% FG, 33% 3PT
31 PTS, 50% FG, 44% 3PT@TyreseMaxey | @sixers pic.twitter.com/JMmyAeA3v4

— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) November 19, 2021

Portland’s defense is better than last year, but it’s still bad. They are in the bottom five in defensive rating, and rank 27th in opponent effective field goal percentage. Only one team gives up more shots at the rim, and they are bottom five in conceding corner threes. They have done a decent job protecting the basket, allowing the fourth-best percentage in the restricted area, but opponents are shooting well from short mid-range.

Short mid-range is Maxey’s game. He’s in the 80th percentile in field goal percentage from that area thanks to his now trademark floater, and he’s made a marked improvement in his finishing at the rim.

Tyrese Maxey this season:

18.4 PPG
4.4 APG
52.3 FG%
43.4 3P%
84.1 FT%
18.4 PER*

*For comparison, Ben Simmons’ PER was 18.3 last season. pic.twitter.com/PzP047ikTf

— StatMuse (@statmuse) November 19, 2021

While Portland might yet prove to be better than their 8-8 record suggests, this team is never going to a strong perimeter defense with Dame Lillard, Anfernee Simons and CJ McCollum.

Joel Embiid remains out. Maxey is going to run the show in Portland. He should get this with time to spare.

• Pick: Tyrese Maxey over 22.5 points and assists (-111)