Sean Barnard details his top Stephon Castle prop bets for tonight’s Game 2 between the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs.
Stephon Castle and the youthful San Antonio Spurs picked up a Game 1 win over the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in thrilling double-overtime fashion. The action will remain in Oklahoma City for Game 2, where the Spurs will attempt to take a commanding 2-0 series lead.
Looking at the odds for Game 2, the Thunder enter as 7.5-point favorites and hold -238 odds of winning outright on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Spurs hold +195 odds of pulling off the outright upset, with the game total set at 217.5 points.
With the stage set, here are my favorite Stephon Castle prop bets ahead of the Western Conference Finals Game 2.
Best Stephon Castle Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Stephon Castle Over 16.5 Points (-112)
After earning the NBA Rookie of the Year last season, Stephon Castle has increased his scoring output to 16.7 points per game across the regular season. He further increased this scoring output in the postseason, averaging 19.7 points per game in the playoffs. Castle tallied over 16.5 points in 34 of his 68 regular-season games played, and has surpassed this line in nine of the 12 playoff games.
The UConn product finished with 17 points in Game 1, shooting 5-for-14 from the field and 1-for-6 on three-point attempts. While he still reached the scoring total, this efficiency leaves plenty to be desired. It is worth noting that De’Aaron Fox is expected to be a game-time decision for tonight’s game. Fox missed the opening matchup due to right ankle soreness, and his level of ability has a direct impact on Castle’s outlook. Without Fox, the 21-year-old was given more on-ball responsibilities. This is also a major reason why Castle tallied a concerning 11 turnovers.
These turnover issues will be near the top of the list of issues to fix for the Spurs, even despite the win. Castle is at his best when playing simply and directly. Expect a clear effort to be made to limit his opportunity for turnovers and for Castle to seek out his own shots at a greater rate as opposed to overpassing. He is averaging 21.5 points per game across his past four matchups, recording over 16.5 points in each. The emerging star has not blinked at the weight of the moment at any point during this playoff run, and back him to record over 16.5 points again tonight.
Stephon Castle to Record 15+ Assists and Rebounds (+215)
In addition to his scoring, Castle averaged 7.4 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game across the regular season (12.7 combined). Since the playoffs kicked off, he has tallied 6.5 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game. Castle tallied 11 assists and six rebounds in Game 1 (17 combined assists and rebounds), and has tallied 15+ combined assists and rebounds in three of his past five games. The standard prop for Castle’s combined assists and rebounds is set at 11.5 for tonight on DraftKings Sportsbook, but I am pushing it up a bit higher given his recent performances.
There are several skills you can point to for what Castle brings to the table. But at the top of the list is his knack for making winning plays, regardless of what form this comes in. The former NCAA Champion is capable of scaling up his role in a variety of categories. With so much attention set to be spent on Victor Wembanyama, expect Castle to have success attacking the offensive glass and leaning on the Spurs star as a lob threat whenever possible.
Wembanyama will always be the face of the Spurs, but in many ways, Castle has become their heart and soul. Oklahoma City is sure to throw its best punch tonight, given the 1-0 series deficit. But count on Castle being the guy who stuffs the stat sheet and makes his impact felt in a variety of ways. The scrappy guard has tallied 15+ combined assists and rebounds in three of the past five games, and expect his workload to remain high and for Castle to deliver in the box score.
