Best NBA prop bets today for Bulls vs. Heat (DeMar DeRozan undervalued)
By Peter Dewey
The No. 8 seed is on the line for the Chicago Bulls on Friday, as they look to become the first No. 10 seed to advance to the postseason through the league’s play-in tournament.
Chicago upset the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night, but it has a tough matchup with the Miami Heat on Friday.
The Bulls are underdogs in this game, but I think there is a ton of value on them in the prop market, especially on star DeMar DeRozan.
Bulls vs. Heat best NBA prop bets today
- Nikola Vucevic to Record a Double-Double
- DeMar DeRozan OVER 21.5 Points
- Bam Adebayo UNDER 18.5 Points
Nikola Vucevic to Record a Double-Double
Nikola Vucevic picked up a double-double in the tema’s play-in win over the Raptors, scoring 14 points and grabbing 13 boards.
Vuc should dominate a Heat team that allowed Clint Capela to grab 22 rebounds on Tuesday night. The Bulls big man is much more talented than Capela offensively, and he’s averaging a double-double this season.
Plus, Wednesday’s double-double was Vucevic’s 13th in his last 18 games. He’s recorded one in all three games against Miami this season.
DeMar DeRozan OVER 21.5 Points
DeMar DeRozan took a bit of a step back on Wednesday night with Zach LaVine scoring 30 second half points, but he still finished with 23 points on 10-of-19 shooting in 39 minutes.
It’s going to be all hands on deck in this game, so I expect DeRozan to still see plenty of volume on offense. In his last four games against Miami, DeRozan has scored 26, 37, 24 and 24 points.
The Heat have also been terrible on defense since the All-Star break, ranking 22nd in the league in defensive rating. DeRozan should be able to reach 22 points, especially since he’s averaging 24.5 per game this season.
Bam Adebayo UNDER 18.5 Points
The Bulls have the best defensive rating in the NBA since the All-Star break, and I think they are going to hold Bam Adebayo in check on Friday night.
The Heat center scored just 12 points against Atlanta, and he’s struggled with his aggressiveness in the postseason the last few years.
Over last season’s playoff run, Adebayo scored more than 18 points just six times in 18 games. If you go back to the 2020-21 season, he’s cleared it in just seven of 22 games.
Adebayo is simply too inconsistent to trust in this prop.
—
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.