The San Antonio Spurs are looking to make a second-half run to reach the play-in tournament in the Western Conference, starting with the team directly ahead of them in the standings in the Phoenix Suns. 

Phoenix entered the All-Star break on a three-game skid, and it’s in serious danger of missing the play-in tournament entirely, sitting 1.5 games back of the surging Golden State Warriors. 

The Spurs, who made a major deal for De’Aaron Fox at the trade deadline, are even further out of the play-in mix, but can they gel with their new core and make a run?

Oddsmakers have San Antonio set as an underdog on Thursday night with Victor Wembanyama listed as doubtful due to an illness. This is an interesting matchup since it’ll be played on the University of Texas campus, where Suns star Kevin Durant played in college.

Here’s a full breakdown of the odds, players to watch in the prop market, and my prediction for this Western Conference battle. 

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Spread

Moneyline

Total

Suns Injury Report

Spurs Injury Report

Phoenix Suns Best NBA Prop Bet

Suns point guard Tyus Jones is averaging 6.0 assists per game this season, and he closed the first half on a four-game streak of putting up six dimes or more.

Now, he takes on a San Antonio defense that is 18th in the NBA in opponent assists per game. Per NBA.com, Jones is averaging 9.7 potential assists per game this season and 7.3 adjusted assists. 

Don’t be shocked if he cashes in on this plus-money prop tonight. 

San Antonio Spurs Best NBA Prop Bet

I love this matchup for De’Aaron Fox against a Suns team that is 25th in the NBA in defensive rating this season.

Fox has 22 or more points in four of his five games with the Spurs, and he came on in his last two games before the break, shooting 17-for-30 from the field while scoring 53 total points. He’s a great bet at this number considering that he’s averaging 24.6 points per game for the season.  

While the Spurs are six games under .500 this season, they are one game over .500 at home – something you’d expect from a young team.

With Fox in the fold, the Spurs certainly have a higher ceiling in the Western Conference, and I’m bullish on them in this matchup against a struggling Suns team — even with Wemby expected to sit

Phoenix ranks just 25th in the NBA in net rating and 26th in defensive rating over its last 10 games, a big reason for its fall out of the current play-in tournament field. On top of that, the Suns are the worst team in the NBA against the spread (19-34-1) through their first 54 games.

With the Spurs set as just two-point underdogs, I like them to cover — and potentially pull off the upset against this Suns team that has struggled defensively and is just 7-7 against the spread as a road favorite.  

Pick: Spurs +2 (-110 at DraftKings)

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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Find Peter Dewey’s NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on  BetStamp here.

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