NBA betting tips, DFS picks for Wednesday: Towns, Wembanyama lead best bets
ESPN's basketball daily cheat sheet is your pregame destination before you lock in daily fantasy and betting decisions for that night's games. Here you'll find our top insights for the slate, including players to target for your daily fantasy rosters, along with game-by-game injury reports.
What you need to know for Wednesday
Our slate tonight is a repeat of Monday's second-round openers: the Philadelphia 76ers at the New York Knicks followed by the Minnesota Timberwolves at the San Antonio Spurs. We have more information this time around than we had on Monday, though, which hopefully gives us more insight.
On Monday, the 76ers were less than 48 hours removed from the conclusion of an epic seven-game series with the Boston Celtics where they completed a rare comeback from being down three games to one. Typically, teams that win a Game 7 and quickly turn around for the first game of the next series tend to get blown out.
That is definitely what happened on Monday, where the Knicks won their second straight game by more than 35 points. I expect this game to be more competitive, though, with the 76ers having had time to physically and mentally recover. The Knicks are still playing great basketball, but I'd be surprised to see another 30-point win in Game 2.
Out west, literally the morning before Game 1, the sentiment was that Anthony Edwards was week-to-week on returning from his knee injury and might not play in the series at all. Fast forward one day and Edwards not only played, but contributed significantly to the Timberwolves taking Game 1 from the Spurs.
Victor Wembanyama had a historic triple-double featuring 12 blocked shots, but he went 0-for-8 from 3-point range and struggled to score against the physical Timberwolves defense. I expect another hard-fought game tonight, but I would be surprised if Wemby and De'Aaron Fox were to combine to go 0-for-12 from 3-point range two games in a row.
We will see many storylines play out tonight. So, let's dig deeper and identify some betting angles and DFS players of interest from this Wednesday slate.
Dré's bets for Wednesday
Karl-Anthony Towns over 4.5 assists (+117)
Knicks head coach Mike Brown pulled out a twist before Game 4 against the Hawks last round, implementing some of the offensive sets from when he used to be an assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors. In those sets, Towns plays more of the point-center role that Draymond Green often fills for the Warriors. The results have been immediate and positive. Towns has notched 32 assists in the four games since, including two triple-doubles and at least six assists in all four games. Being able to get plus-money on him getting five assists is good value.
Minnesota Timberwolves +10.5 points (-118)
While I expect the Spurs to play better tonight than they did on Monday, it seems over the top for them to be favored by double-digits to a team that just beat them. In fact, this season (including Game 1), the Timberwolves have won three of the four matchups with the Spurs. The Spurs' only win (in January) was by just three points. I expect a hard-fought game. The Spurs could come out on top, but I will take the Timberwolves with 10.5 points.
Victor Wembanyama over 4.5 blocks (-119)
Wemby has hit video-game levels of late when it comes to his defense. He has a whopping 25 blocked shots over his last three games, including 12 in Game 1. After that game, Wemby suggested that he may need to rearrange his energy output in Game 2 to focus more on his offense. Still, he's so locked in on defense right now, he could cut his blocked shot production in half from Game 1 and still surpass this threshold.
Top Daily Fantasy Values of the Day
$8,100+ salaries
Victor Wembanyama, C, Spurs ($10,600)
Wembanyama's blocked shots are extremely valuable in this scoring format. Add in a likelihood to bounce back on offense, and Wemby is worth the high price tag.
Karl-Anthony Towns, C, Knicks ($8,400)
Towns is a nightly triple-double threat while playing the "Draymond Green role" in the Knicks offense, adding to his fantasy value.
$6,100-$8,000 salaries
De'Aaron Fox, PG, Spurs ($7,000)
Fox had an awful Game 1 and his team lost. He finished the last series strong, and I expect him to bounce back in Game 2.
OG Anunoby, SF, Knicks ($6,500)
Anunoby has been metronome-consistent as a scorer and defender in these playoffs. If Game 2 is more competitive, he should have to stay on the court longer and, thus, produce more.
$3,500-$6,000 salaries
Dylan Harper, PG, Spurs ($4,700)
Lately, Harper has been playing near-starter minutes and yielding starter-level production for the Spurs. Over his last four games, he has averaged more than 29 FPPG.
Terrence Shannon Jr., SG, Timberwolves ($4,300)
Even with Edwards back and Ayo Dosunmu questionable, Shannon has played well enough to maintain impact minutes. He can produce solid fantasy numbers.
Projections and Injury Reports
Basketball Power Index by ESPN Analytics. Injury aggregation by Rotowire.com. Odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook
Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks
7 p.m. ET
Line: 76ers +7.5 (-105) | Knicks -7.5 (-115)
Money line: 76ers +240 | Knicks -298
Total: 216.5 (-108 O, -112 U)
BPI Projection: Knicks by 10.4, straight up 79%, 214.8 total points.
Injury Report:
76ers: Joel Embiid (OUT - ankle, hip)
Knicks: None reported
Minnesota Timberwolves at San Antonio Spurs
9:30 p.m. ET
Line: Timberwolves +10.5 (-118) | Spurs -10.5 (-102)
Money line: Timberwolves +310 | Spurs -395
Total: 216.5 (-112 O, -108 U)
BPI Projection: Spurs by 9, straight up 76%, 219.4 total points.
Injury Report:
Timberwolves: Donte DiVincenzo, (OFS - Achilles); Anthony Edwards, (GTD - Knee); Ayo Dosunmu, (GTD - Calf)
Spurs: David Jones Garcia, (OFS - Ankle)
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