NBA Player Props and Best Bets for December 17: Giannis Antetokounmpo Props and More for the NBA Cup Final

Tuesday is an NBA holiday as commissioner Adam Silver is prepared to award the second-ever NBA Cup trophy to either the Milwaukee Bucks or Oklahoma City Thunder.

The cross-conference matchup pits the sustained greatness of Giannis Antetkounmpo and Damian Lillard against the new kids on the blocks, who won the Western Conference last year and are on their way to repeating as regular-season champions.

As the matchup draws nearer, here are our best Bucks vs. Thunder betting picks and player props for the In-Season Tournament finale.

Odds for today's prop bets are courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook. Place a winning $5 wager at FanDuel Sportsbook and receive $150 in bonus bets.

Best NBA Prop Bets for Tuesday, December 17

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Over 32.5 Points (-102) at FanDuel

This is a marquee matchup against a strong opponent, which means that Gilgeous-Alexander can expect to play extra minutes and have the ball in his hands even more than usual. He scored 32 and 39 points in two recent In-Season Tournament elimination games and scored at least 30 points in eight of his last nine games.

The Bucks showed tangible defensive improvements recently, but Gilgeous-Alexander is at the point where he can still drop a gaudy box score in the face of excellent defense. He also does a great job getting to the line and has the type of game that translates well to playoff-like atmospheres.

Damian Lillard Over 23.5 Points (-102) at FanDuel 

Lillard beat this line in nine of his last 10 games and shot 39.7 percent from three on 9.7 attempts per game in December. He looks comfortable in the offense and got a ton of touches in crunch time recently, memorably drilling a crucial three-pointer in the quarterfinal against the Orlando Magic.

The Thunder have the best defensive rating in the league, but Lillard too is great enough to overpower even the best defense. He also gets most of the Bucks’ shots in crunch time, and this figures to be a back-and-forth battle that comes down to the final seconds.

Isaiah Hartenstein Over 11.5 Rebounds (-106) at FanDuel

This feels like a big Hartenstein game given the Thunder’s overall lack of size and Giannis’ strength and power and, well, size. iHart beat this line in seven of 10 games as a member of the Thunder and could be in line for far more minutes than the 30.1 he averaged up to this point.

The 7-footer came up huge for the New York Knicks numerous times during the playoffs a year ago and plays with relentless activity, which is perfect for any championship game. Someone’s going to need to stop Giannis on the glass, and he has the best chance of anyone dressed in blue.

Giannis Antetokounmpo Over 11.5 Rebounds (-125) at FanDuel

But no matter how many minutes Hartenstein plays, the Thunder’s diminutive size is going to be a major issue for them… but not for the Greek Freak. He hauled in 14 rebounds in his last game and, despite going under in all preceding games this month, averaged 11.5 rebounds and has a history of dominating the glass during important outings.

The Thunder allowed the second-most rebounds per game to opposing players and don’t have a single player anywhere near Giannis’ size not named Hartenstein. They don’t even have a backup center in their rotation, which could make this a fairly easy over.

Gary Trent Jr. Under 1.5 Threes (+102) at FanDuel

Trent Jr. shot 38.8 percent from three, made 2.0 threes per game, and shot 41.2 percent from deep during December. He also went over five straight games before he shot a goose egg in his last outing, which begs the question “Why is the under a smart play?”

Trent Jr. is the point-of-attack defender whenever he comes off the bench. That means he’s going to have to exert a ton of energy trying to stay in front of Gilgeous-Alexander, who is one of the best scorers in the game. Trent Jr. is a great three-point shooter, but he didn’t make a three in the semifinal, largely because his legs were shot from trying to stay in front of Trae Young all night.

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