More than half the teams in the NBA -- 16, to be exact -- are once again in action on Friday, March 7.
ESPN's Grizzlies vs. Mavericks (7:30 p.m. ET) and Suns vs. Nuggets (10 p.m. ET) matchups have lost their luster thanks to the current state of the injury-ravaged Mavs and the Suns' surprising struggles this year.
Still, the eight games on the docket tonight offer to plenty watch for, including a sneaky-intriguing battle between the Trail Blazers and shorthanded Thunder, plus Cleveland's bid for a 13th consecutive win in Charlotte.
Without further ado, below are our best NBA player props for Friday, March 7.
De'Andre Hunter Over 13.5 Points (-102 at FD)
Cavaliers vs. Hornets, 7 p.m. ET
The Cavs have won 12 in a row and are humming offensively. They lead the league in both scoring (123.1 points per game) and offensive rating, with a league-best 122.9 points per 100 possessions.
Hunter, though, scored just six and 16 points, respectively, in his last two games while shooting a combined 0-for-6 from outside in the Cavs' wins over Chicago and Miami.
A good shooter like Hunter (he has made over 41 percent of his 3PA on the year, including 52.1 percent of his 48 attempts as a Cavalier) is a great bet to bounce back tonight, though, especially considering the opponent.
The Hornets have lost eight in a row and allowed 119 points or more in six of those games. More importantly, they just gave up 29 points to Wolves wing Jaden McDaniels in their last game.
McDaniels, like Hunter, is a long wing best known for his defense. He had only scored 25-plus points three times in 63 games this year prior to Wolves vs. Hornets on Wednesday, but scorched Charlotte, knocking down 13 of his career-high 21 FGA, including 3-for-9 on 3-pointers.
Prior to his trade from Atlanta to Cleveland in early February, Hunter was effective in both of his games vs. Charlotte:
ATL vs. CHA, 10/25/24: 24 pts, 7-of-14 FG, 8-of 8 FT, 7 rebounds, 3 assists
ATL vs. CHA, 11/30/24: 18 pts, 5-of-9 FG, 7-of-8 FT, 3 rebounds
Given A) the favorable matchup tonight, B) Hunter's efficient play throughout his brief Cavs tenure to date and C) the fact he's due for a good showing from behind the arc, a 15- or 20-point night from Hunter wouldn't shock us.
That makes this prop feel like a steal, particularly at this price.
1.5 units
Bonus bet: Hunter 3+ Made 3s (+172 at FanDuel) -- 0.5 units
Before we pivot to the rest of tonight's NBA slate, we recommend one more play on Hunter here.
His efficient 3-point shooting as a Cavalier on great looks while playing alongside Darius Garland (6.8 assists per game) makes him a tempting bet to knock down at least three triples this evening.
Considering he's already cashed this prop six times in 10 games for Cleveland, we love his chances to do it again tonight at +172 at FD.
Jonas Valanciunas o16.5 points (+100 at FD)
Spurs vs. Kings, 10 p.m. ET
At 7-3 in their last 10 games and 4-1 in their last five, the Kings are in a groove right now as they fight for the 6-seed in the West and the privilege of avoiding the Play-In games.
Tonight, however, they're without their top rebounder and one of their offensive leaders, Domantas Sabonis. With Malik Monk also unavailable, beating the Spurs could be a challenge. While San Antonio is reeling without Victor Wembanyama, it showed some fight in wins this week over Memphis and Brooklyn.
What we can count on from Sacramento in this game is a strong showing by center Jonas Valanciunas, who has stepped up over the last three games with Sabonis on the sidelines*.
Dating back to one game prior to Sabonis's injury, the 32-year-old Valanciunas is averaging just under 16 points per game in his last four contests, including a 15-point outing in only 14 minutes vs. Utah on Feb. 26.
We're bullish on Valanciunas' points prop tonight not only because he's averaging 13 field goal attempts per game over the last three games as his team's primary big, but because of the favorable matchup he has against the Spurs' thin frontcourt.
With Wembanyama in street clothes, San Antonio is starting Bismack Biyombo at center.
It all adds up to this being a great opportunity for Valanciunas, who has shown this year that he can still pile up the points when a heavy workload presents itself. Despite averaging a career-low in minutes on the season, JV has reached at least 20 points five times, and he has scored the 17 points needed for this prop to cash 10 times on the year.
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*****Sabonis started one of those games, a win over Houston on March 1, but logged less than two minutes before suffering a hamstring injury.
Anfernee Simons 25+ points (+155 at DK)
Trail Blazers vs. Thunder, 8 p.m. ET
The West-leading Thunder will not be anywhere near full strength tonight.
Lockdown wing defender Luguentz Dort, MVP favorite Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, C Isaiah Hartenstein, Cason Wallace and Jalen Williams are all listed as out, which is why the 28-35 Blazers are only 2.5-point road underdogs in OKC in this game.
With so many of top Thunder defenders unavailable, tonight's game looks like a prime opportunity for Anfernee Simons to have another big scoring night. He lit up Cleveland, Philly and Boston for 27, 34 and 30 points, respectively, in his last three games.
If Simons brings the same shoot-first approach he's brought to recent games to this contest, he could get to 25 points with ease. In his last three games, Simons has shot 33-for-70 from the floor, including 13-for-33 from 3-point land. With that in mind, a high-volume shooting night by Portland's offensive leader is a near-certainty.
The question, of course, is how effective he'll be ... but on that kind of volume, even a so-so shooting night should get him to at least 25 points.
And remember, with SGA, Dort, Wallace and Williams all on the bench, Simons will face far less resistance than usual from the typically defensively stout Thunder.
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This story was originally published March 7, 2025 at 2:57 PM.