Nets vs. Prediction Bucks, odds and best NBA prop bets for Thursday, January 2

Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks erased a major deficit on New Year’s Eve against the Indiana Pacers to move to three games over .500 on the season.

On Thursday they will play a much easier matchup against the Brooklyn Nets, who just lost by 17 points to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night.

Brooklyn has expanded its roster in recent weeks, dealing Dorian Finney-Smith to the Los Angeles Lakers and Dennis Schroder to the Golden State Warriors. While the Nets got D’Angelo Russell back in the Finney-Smith deal, there’s a chance they make more moves to weaken their team and improve their position in the 2025 NBA Draft.

This is the seventh time this season that Brooklyn has played on the second night of a back-to-back, and so far they are 4-2 against the spread at this venue.

Meanwhile, the Bucks are the favorites at home (5-8-1 against the spread there) as they look to continue moving forward with Giannis, Damian Lillard and Khris Middleton all healthy.

Let’s discuss the odds, the players to watch in the prop market, and my prediction for Thursday’s contest.

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Spread

money line

Total

Netting Injury Report

Bucks injury report

Best Brooklyn Nets NBA Prop Bet

With Brooklyn in the midst of a selloff, Cameron Johnson has seen his offensive role expand, especially since Cam Thomas suffered an injury.

In the 2024-25 season, Johnson is shooting 43.2 percent from 3-point range, averaging 3.2 three-pointers per game on 7.4 attempts. He has made at least three shots from beyond the arc in seven of his last 10 games.

Milwaukee is a favorable matchup for Johnson, as the Bucks rank 22nd in the NBA in opponent three-pointers made per game and 18th in opponent three-point percentage.

Best Milwaukee Bucks NBA Prop Bet

Khris Middleton missed the start of the season after offseason surgery on both ankles, but has returned to the starting lineup in the last five games, playing more than 30 minutes for the first time in the 2024-25 campaign on Tuesday at a win over Indiana.

In his last six games, Middleton is averaging 18.3 points per game, scoring at least 15 points in all five of his starts. He has also attempted 13.6 shots per game as a starter, taking at least 11 in each of those games.

He is underrated with this figure against a Brooklyn team that ranks only 25th in the NBA in defensive rating.

Brooklyn actually held their own with the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night before being outscored by 14 in the fourth quarter to lose by 17.

Now, he has a tough turn against Giannis and the Bucks, who are 1-1 against the spread when favored by double digits this season.

While Brooklyn clearly has a talent deficit in this matchup, I think they could be an intriguing bet in the first half of this game. Overall, the Nets are an impressive 21-12 against the spread in the first half of games, and are set as 7.5-point underdogs in this matchup.

The Bucks are 17-14-1 against the spread in the first half of games, but asking them to cover that many points is a tall order. Brooklyn has a first-half net rating of just -1.5 this season, which ranks 16th in the NBA.

I’ll take the points early as I don’t love either side with such a lopsided lead throughout the game.

Choice: Networks 1H +7.5 (-110)

Odds are updated periodically and are subject to change.

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