Player props can be useful in a variety of ways -- from taking advantage of them straight up to measuring a player's potential to produce in daily fantasy basketball on FanDuel. Here, we're going to focus on the former.

Using FanDuel Research's daily basketball projections -- which are powered by numberFire -- as a guide, here are some NBA player prop bets that look appealing via the NBA odds at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Please note: lines and projections are subject to change throughout the day after this article is published.

NBA Prop Bets

Fred VanVleet Over 23.5 Pts + Ast (-113)

The Portland Trail Blazers serve as one of the friendliest matchups in the NBA. Their 17-44 record has them sitting in the second-to-last spot in the Western Conference standings, they struggle with the league's fourth-worst net rating, and failed to win a game in the entire month of February.

In theory, Portland should be a great opposing team to target when looking for players who could have a big night on the stat sheet. But, in practice, the Blazers are getting blown out of a decent amount of games, oftentimes forcing starters to the bench by the time the fourth quarter hits.

However, the Houston Rockets, who come in with the league's seventh-worst net rating, are favored by only six points in tonight's matchup against Portland.

Enter Fred VanVleet, a player who seems primed to take advantage of Portland for the entirety of this game.

On the season, VanVleet is averaging 24.6 combined points and assists (PA).

The Blazers have the 10th-worst defensive rating this season while they are tied for the eighth-worst defensive rating since the start of 2024.

VanVleet, meanwhile, is averaging 26.1 PA against bottom-10 defensive teams.

If we adjust this split to only account for games where VanVleet played at least 30 minutes, he is averaging a 30.7 PA and has exceeded 23.5 PA in 8 out of 10 games.

VanVleet averages 36.8 minutes per game (sixth-most in NBA) and is projected to play 38.28 minutes tonight, so 30-plus minutes is not asking for much.

Add in that Portland cedes the 11th-most points and the 12th-most assists to point guards, and it's easy to see how VanVleet could have his way in this one.

Our projections anticipate VanVleet to net 25.7 PA this evening.

Jarrett Allen To Record 12+ Rebounds (-130)

A meeting between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves, two of the top 10 rebounding teams in the league, should be a battle of the bigs.

But with Karl-Anthony Towns (meniscus) out for Minnesota and Evan Mobley (ankle) out for Cleveland, Rudy Gobert and Jarrett Allen will be stuck doing the dirty work on the boards.

Gobert averages 12.8 rebounds per game (second-most in NBA) and will be a tough foe for Allen, but the latter has shown too much potential when Mobley is out for me to fade his rebounding prop tonight.

This season, Allen has played in 24 games sans Mobley. In this split, he is averaging 12.1 rebounds.

Allen plays 31.4 minutes per game and is projected to play 35.04 minutes this evening. If we adjust the aforementioned split to only account for games where Allen played at least 28 minutes, he is averaging 13.1 boards and eclipsed 12 rebounds in 12 out of 18 games.

If we take his 35.0-minute projection to heart, we can see he is averaging 14.2 rebounds in games with that much court time, and he's exceeded 12 rebounds in six out of eight games where he played at least 35 minutes and Mobley was out.

The Cavs are favored by a mere point against the T-Wolves. We should expect Gobert and Allen to go at it throughout this game, and I feel comfortable siding with a motivated Allen, who will take on a lot of rebounding responsibility tonight.

Precious Achiuwa Over 16.5 PR (-115)

The New York Knicks continue to get hit with injuries, but since Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson have been sidelined, Precious Achiuwa has given this team a boost.

Since Randle's injury in late January, Achiuwa is averaging 21.9 combined points and rebounds (PR) per game.

He has surpassed 16.5 PR in 13 of his last 15 games.

The Knicks will take on the Orlando Magic, which leaves us with a brutal game environment and a meager 205.0 over/under.

While Orlando is a tough matchup, it could help Achiuwa's production. It's not apt to play small ball against the Magic, so the Knicks could make it a priority to have size on the court.

This is the route the Knicks took a few weeks ago when these teams met up. In this game, Achiuwa played 43 minutes and recorded a monstrous 37 PR versus Orlando. We can't expect the same results this time around, but it does imply that Achiuwa is an important player in this matchup.

Orlando owns the league's fourth-best defensive rating. Since Randle has been out, the Knicks have played in six games against teams that rank in the top 10 of defensive rating. Achiuwa has shined in this split, averaging 23.5 PR and exceeding 16.5 PR in every contest.

FanDuel Research's projections have high hopes for Achiuwa, too. They expect him to net 18.8 PR tonight.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.