Keep an eye out for emerging Pacers star Bennedict Mathurin tonight against the Rockets, while Donovan Mitchell’s playmaking should be a factor after the Cavs first loss of the season.
After a night where Donovan Mitchell played 40 minutes in a grueling battle against the Boston Celtics away from home, it is difficult to see him playing a full game and getting to the rim as many times as last night.
Especially with a slight shoulder issue we saw later in the game where he was hit by Tatum, Mitchell might become more of a playmaker today than usual, especially as the Cavs try to get Garland back on track. In his career, Mitchell averages 4.5 APG on back-to-backs. Let’s play that number tonight.
One of our favorites for Comeback Player of the Year, Bennedict Mathurin is once again flying under the radar as one of the most impactful players on a playoff team.
Mathurin wasn’t talked about during the last postseason much as he sat on the Indiana bench, hurt for the later stages of the regular season and all of the postseason. However, his athleticism and scoring chops are something we will continue to bet on as the season continues.
Mathurin has played over 34 MPG this month, scoring 21.7 PPG on 53/50/84 shooting splits. Legit. He’s also shot the 3-ball better away from home.
With Indiana playing a Houston team who is tough on the interior, I’m looking for Mathurin to get involved from beyond the arc, shooting over his average of 3.5 3PA away from home.
The rookie out of Washington State has been turning heads early in the season, making a case to become a part of the ROY race early on. Jaylen Wells is a fluid scorer who will see plenty of usage against the 76ers, who don’t have the perimeter defense to keep up with the Memphis pace.
Wells dropped 15 points and 8 points respectively in a B2B against Denver while playing 25-30 minutes in the last handful of games.
With Wells able to get hot quickly from downtown and his shooting percentages and scoring numbers much better at home, this is a great spot for the rookie to have a solid performance.
Throughout his 16 career games against the Knicks, Devin Booker sure has put on a show. Book has averaged 27.5 PPG over that span, including hitting this prop mark in six of those games.
Looking ahead to this matchup against Brunson, OG, and Bridges, I’m looking for Coach Bud to scheme Booker open off screens and plenty of off-ball movement. With KD out, the Suns will need to look to Booker early in this game off the ball in order to get some positive offensive movement.
Devin hit six 3s against Minnesota on a 44 point night before going ice cold against Orlando on Monday, shooting 1 of 7 from downtown. He’ll get back on track tonight.