10.03.2023

Portland Trail Blazers @ Philadelphia 76ers Game Preview and Prop Pick

The Philadelphia 76ers will look to win their fourth straight game tonight as they play host to the Portland Trail Blazers. We’ll preview the matchup before going over which prop market I’ll be targeting tonight.

Game Preview

The Portland Trail Blazers have had a less-than-ideal return from the All-Star break, as they have gone 3-5 in their eight games back. In that eight-game span, Portland’s -6.9 NET rating ranks 27th in the league, and in their most recent game, they picked up a loss to the Boston Celtics with a final score of 115-93.

That game was a good representation of Portland's problems on both ends of the floor. The Trail Blazers shot 37% from the floor in that loss to Boston, and that lack of offensive production has been an issue since the return and has led to them being ranked 20th in offensive efficiency.

Defense has been an issue for Portland most of the season, but now with their offense struggling to produce consistently, those issues have come to the forefront. Portland was 27th in the league in defensive efficiency in the first half of the season and are ranked 26th in the eight games they’ve played in the second half of the year. The defense will have their hands full tonight against a 76ers team that has won three straight.

Philadelphia is 5-3 in their eight games since the break, ranking 4th in offensive efficiency rating in that span. Philadelphia has only scored under 110 points in two of those eight games and is fresh off a convincing win over the Timberwolves in which they won 117-94. The 76ers were able to shoot 49% from the field and 60% from three in the game and managed to do it all without James Harden.

Prop Pick for the Game

For my prop play in this one, I’ll be targeting Tyrese Maxey over 20.5 points at (-115). The young guard is averaging 22.2 points per game over his past ten games and has gone over his point total in the past six games. Since his return to the starting lineup, Maxey has been aggressively looking for his shot, and his opponent tonight offers an excellent matchup for him to continue his impressive scoring pace.

Since the All-Star break, the Portland Trail Blazers have allowed the highest opponent field goal percentage in the NBA at 50.8%. In turn, opponents are also averaging 45.4 field goals made per game, which has the Trail Blazers ranked 27th in that category. Portland has only allowed less than 114 points in just one game since the break, and that lack of production is more than ideal for the Sixers' offense.

Over his last ten games, Maxey is shooting 53.6% from the field and 47.5% from three while averaging 15.1 field goal attempts per game, all of which make this prop jump off the page. Between the matchup and his recent performance, I think this is a perfect spot to target Maxey.