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 April 19. 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 April 19.
Come check out what we have cooked up for this slate of games.
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NBA First Bucket Props – April 19
Milwaukee Bucks vs. Indiana Pacers
Tipoff – 1:00 pm EST
Gainbridge Fieldhouse – Indianapolis, IN
Broadcast – ESPN
Of all of the playoff series starting up on Saturday, this is the easiest to call on the first bucket. The Bucks should be on the board in the vast majority of the games in this series. The Bucks were 6th in the NBA when it comes to winning the tip thanks to the handy work of Brook Lopez. On the other side of the circle, the Pacers and Myles Turner were one of three teams to not win at least 30% of their tips during the regular season. With the tip winner getting 65.7% of the first buckets, we’re already in a good spot for a -160 play on the Bucks here. However, when we add a 15.4% lead in first bucket success rate, it’s an amaxing value.
If we decide to get cute and play a specific player, I like Taurean Prince. These teams faced off against each other four times during the season and the Bucks scored first in all four of them. The culprit in half of those games was Dame, who unfortunately is out for this one. Another went to Andre Jackson, who won’t be in the starting lineup. If someone is going to steal an early outside shot that would have usually went to one of those two, I like Prince’s chances to be that guy.
First Bucket Bet for April 19: Taurean Prince (+1100)
Detroit Pistons vs. New York Knicks
Tipoff – 6:00 pm EST
Madison Square Garden – New York, NY
Broadcast – ESPN
This series should also bare fruit for us on the first bucket over the next week. The Pistons were one of the very best teams in the league in scoring the first bucket. They scored first in 59.0% of games, which is good enough for 3rd in the NBA. The Knicks, meanwhile, sat 23rd in that metric with a 44.9% average. If that’s not enough of a reason to get behind the Pistons, you can also point to their tipoff wins. They should have a marginal lead over the Knicks in that department as well. Using that I like the Pistons to score first at -105.
As for individual players, I like Tobias Harris to tickle the twine first. He has, by far, been the best early scorer for the Pistons on the year. He scored first in 13 different games this year for the Pistons, which is nearly as much as the next two Pistons on the list. We’ll give him a play here at a modest number and hope he gets that first look.
First Bucket Bet for April 19: Tobias Harris (+600)
If you’d like even more info to help make your first bucket bets for April 19, check out the NBA Gambling Podcast. They’re dropping episodes five days a week to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar.
