24.03.2023

San Antonio Spurs @ Washington Wizards Game Preview and Prop Pick

It will be a loaded Friday night in the NBA as ten games are scheduled to take place, including the Washington Wizards playing host to the San Antonio Spurs. We’ll preview the game before going over my best prop play for the action.

Game Preview

If the second half of the NBA season has made one thing clear, the Spurs will not be hiding how much they are tanking anymore. San Antonio has gone 3-7 over their last ten games, and in that span, they have the worst NET rating in the league at (-10.6). Entering tonight, the Spurs have lost two straight games and failed to score more than 94 points in either of them.

Over this recent ten games stretch, only three teams in the league have an offensive efficiency rating lower than 110.3, and the Spurs are one of them at 107.5. Aside from the blatant tanking, it doesn’t help that San Antonio has an injury report that looks like a CVS receipt, as ten different players are featured on it.

San Antonio won’t be the only team missing guys with injuries either, as the Wizards will be without Kyle Kuzma and Bradley Beal. Washington has lost four straight games, two of which have come in the absence of Kuzma. Between the injuries and overall lack of consistency recently, the Wizards are 2-8 over their last ten games, ranking 26th in NET rating at (-7.1).

The Wizards' offense has not quite been to the level of the Spurs, but they are still are the bottom of the league in offensive efficiency. Their 112.7 offensive rating is 24th in the league, and they also have the worst overall three-point shooting percentage in the league over the past ten games at 30.3%.

Defensively, Washington is near the bottom of the league in terms of efficiency rating, as they rank 27th in the past ten games and have allowed 117 or more points in four straight games.

Prop Pick for the Game

Deni Avdija’s rebounding total is currently set at 7.5, and for my prop play in this one, I’ll be targeting the over. In his last three games, he has exceeded his prop total while averaging 6.3 per game over his last ten games. The forward has stepped up big time in the absence of Kyle Kuzma since Kuzma is second on the team in RPG. That rebounding presence will likely continue tonight with Kuzma still out of the lineup.

Washington has a favorable matchup in terms of rebounding tonight as they take on a Spurs team that has allowed the second most rebounds per game over the last ten games. Opponents are averaging 47.7 rebounds against the Spurs, and in their most recent game against the Bucks, they allowed 54 total boards.

Neither side is playing at a high level as of late, so the rebounding opportunities will be plentiful tonight for the Wizards and Avdija. After pulling in eight total rebounds against a good rebounding team in the Nuggets, the forward should have no problem finding success on the boards tonight against a depleted Spurs team.