The NBA Cup Finals features two of the biggest names in sports, both figuratively and literally. That’s because Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks will face Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder.

It seems fitting that these names will be illuminated in the bright lights of Las Vegas as the game is played at T-Mobile Arena.

And with such big names, as you know, we have to have some Bucks vs. Thunder props to go with it.

Here are my NBA picks for the NBA Cup Finals on Tuesday, December 17th.

Top Bucks vs. Thunder props for tonight

The selection took place on December 17th

Bucks vs. Thunder player props for December 17th

Prop Bet #1: Damian Lillard over 4.5 rebounds

+115 at bet365

I love the Oklahoma City Thunder. I love Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. And I think a win in the NBA Cup Finals tonight could be a taste of what we’ll see from OKC in June.

Still, I’ll happily let them fade on the glass while the opposing player’s props bounce off. The Thunder are great at many things. It’s just a rest, that’s not part of it. Now, some of that is due to injuries, but it doesn’t change the fact that OKC is going into this matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks, who are 28th in the NBA in rebounding rate and last Rank in opponent rebounds per game.

So the question arises, which Bucks player should you support in this duel? Giannis Antetokounmpo is still a monster on the boards, averaging 11.5 rebounds per game this season, but 12.5 is a big number, even for the Greek Freak.

Instead, I turn to one of the smaller Bucks, guard Damian Lillard. Lillard is known for his scoring and playmaking ability, but he is also Milwaukee’s fourth-best rebounder, averaging 4.5 per game.

His rebounding prop is set at 4.5 for this game, with the over getting decent plus money. He has exceeded that number in six of his last 11 games and in three of his last four overall. At this price and in this match, I’m happy to support him doing it again.

Prop Bet #2: Lu Dort over 2.5 made threes

+125 at bet365

As mentioned, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are the biggest names in this NBA Cup Finals (literally), but the winner of this great matchup will need to bolster some of their secondary players.

So let’s go from the longest name to the shortest: Lu Dort. The Oklahoma City Thunder’s 3-and-D specialist may not be scoring as much as he has in years past, but he is having arguably the best shooting season of his career and is coming into this big game from long range.

There, he’s shooting a career-best 40.3% from 3-point range on 5.6 attempts per game for the Thunder this season and he’s just shooting the lights out.

The 25-year-old has shot 12 of 23 attempts (52.2%) from deep over the last three games, including a 5-for-9 performance in OKC’s semifinal game against the Houston Rockets. Filming in the T-Mobile Arena doesn’t seem to be a problem for Dort.

Now he faces a Milwaukee Bucks team that is mediocre at defending the perimeter, ranking 14th in opponent 3-point attempts per game and 15th in opponent 3-point shooting percentage.

Dort’s three-point odds for this NBA Cup final are 2.5, the over is a tempting +125. He has surpassed that number in three straight games and in four of his last seven games overall. This price is good enough to help Dort keep the hot hand tonight.

More NBA Cup Finals picks from Covers

Prop Bet #3: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander over 5.5 rebounds

-115 at bet365

They knew we had to have a prop for one of the big boys in the NBA Cup Finals. For that, we turn to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

The Oklahoma City Thunder point guard is truly playing at an MVP level. SGA enters this matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks averaging 30.3 points, 6.3 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game.

While it seems like Gilgeous-Alexander is already doing everything, the Thunder point guard is doing even more work cleaning the glass lately. SGA’s rebounds have increased to 6.4 in the last eight games, with him knocking down eight boards in each of the Thunder’s last two games.

And OKC isn’t the only team in this matchup that has had problems on the boards this season. The Bucks rank 21st in rebound rate and 22nd in opponent rebounds per game.

SGA’s rebounding prop is a modest 5.5. That’s a number he’s surpassed in six of his last eight games, and I like his chances of maintaining that number tonight in Las Vegas.

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