Some people like to sweat out a bet for 48 hard minutes – others like immediate satisfaction. Count us as being in the latter, which is why we like to get down with NBA first bucket props. And we’ve decided to pass that knowledge on to you with our first bucket bets for March 29. Go here for NBA Championship odds.
Of course, there are plenty out there taking blind guesses at this stuff. It’s easy to pick the most popular player or look at what happened in the last game. However, we spent the time pouring through the analytics to make sure that we give you the best odds to stay in the green on these first bucket props for March 29.
Come check out what we have cooked up for this slate of games.
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NBA First Bucket Props – March 29
Miami Heat vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Tipoff – 7:30 pm EST
Wells Fargo Center – Philadelphia, PA
Broadcast – NBA TV
The difference when it comes to first bucket success with these two teams is minimal. The 76ers hold a slight advantage of 2.7%, which doesn’t really tell us much. However, there is a lot bigger of a difference when it comes to the tip. The Heat win the tip 21.9% of the time more often than the 76ers. That number gets even wider when you consider how bad Guerschon Yabusele has been on the tip. He’s winning just 21.4% of the jumpballs this season. When you compare that to the 73.3% wins for Bam Adebayo and include that the tip winner is getting 65.5% of the first buckets, this seems like the time to play the Heat to score first.
If we want to get greedy and look for an individual player, there are two that stand above the rest on the Heat. The first is Andrew Wiggins, who has taken the first shot in two of the last three games. Unfortunately, he’s out of commission for Saturday. So we’ll pivot to the other – Kel’el Ware. He took two of the first three shots last time out. He’s a prime option for when the other team doesn’t have a lot of block defense options. I expect the 76ers to put too much focus on Bam Adebayo on the block, freeing Ware up for an easy dunk.
First Bucket Bet for March 29: Kel’el Ware (+750)
Indiana Pacers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
Tipoff – 8:00 pm EST
Paycom Center – Oklahoma City, OK
Broadcast – NBA TV
The lone thing holding the Thunder back from being one of the very best first bucket teams in the league is their sub-par tip win rate. Despite being a below average team on the tip, they are firmly in the top ten when it comes to first scorer success. They’ve got two things working in their favor in this one. The first is that Chet Holmgren is back on the tip. He’s grabbing the tip well above average and puts them in a better spot to score first. Additionally, the Pacers and Myles Turner rank 29th on the tip in the league. All of those things point to a pretty easy tip win and a likely first bucket for the Thunder.
If we’re going to get specific on the player for this one, it’s got to be Chet Holmgren. The Gonzaga-product gets busy in the early game every time he is in the starting lineup. If you take the first three Thunder shots from his last three starts, he accounts for 44.4% of all of those shots. That volume paired with his ability to get high-percentage looks should put him in a great spot on Saturday.
First Bucket Bet for March 29: Chet Holmgren (+550)
If you’d like even more info to help make your first bucket bets for March 29, check out the NBA Gambling Podcast. They’re dropping episodes five days a week to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar.
