The NBA play-in tournament begins today with the Western Conference matchups between the No. 8 Lakers and No. 7 Pelicans and the No. 10 Warriors vs. the No. 9 Kings. We're going in the prop direction for tonight on the hardwood.

Pair these play-in player props

CJ McCollum 20+ points

The Lakers have allowed the second-most points per game to point guards this season, and in waltzes CJ McCollum, who has tallied 25+ points in seven straight games. The Pelicans scorer is averaging 30.1 points per game during this stretch, making him a guy we're going to have to get a piece of.

We're going to move his line down a tad because he hasn't been too consistent against the Lakers up at this 23.5 number, but he hits 20+ more often than not opposite Los Angeles.

Steph Curry 5+ threes made

The Warriors, and namely Curry, should be able to find some success from long range against Sacramento this evening, as the Kings have allowed opponents to shoot the second-highest percentage from beyond the arc this year.

Curry has chucked up 13+ triples in three of his last four games, netting 5+ in each game, twice going for 6+. He's hit this line in nine of his past 14 meetings with Sacramento, and the Kings are fresh off allowing nine threes to the aforementioned McCollum.

As long as Curry maintains his volume, he should hit this number.

Together, these two prop lines comes in at a solid +109 price on FanDuel, which will do the trick for us tonight. Enjoy the action, it's great to be into playoff mode.

In the news ...

Caitlin Clark selected first overall by Indiana Fever — In the least surprising news of the day, it was former Iowa star Caitlin Clark topping the WNBA draft on Monday, going first to the Indiana Fever. Clark will join 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year, last year's number one selection Aliyah Boston, to form a promising core for the Fever. Indiana is +2000 to win it all this year, with the season starting in mid-May.

Islanders clinch playoff spot — The New York Islanders are rolling, and their strong play over the last month and a half has clinched them the third spot in the Metropolitan Division, locking them in to a first-round series with the Carolina Hurricanes. There's one playoff spot up for grabs, with Washington currently owning the final spot thanks to a 2-0 win yesterday. A win by the Caps today will clinch a spot, and they're +130 to beat the Flyers, another team fighting for that last spot, on the road tonight. Detroit and Pittsburgh are still alive as well as the NHL regular season winds down.

Bucks to be without Giannis Antetokounmpo to start series with Pacers — It has been confirmed that Milwaukee will be without star Giannis Antetokounmpo to begin their playoff first round series with the Indiana Pacers. Antetokounmpo is dealing with a calf injury that kept him out of the final three games of the regular season, and reports suggest the Bucks are hopeful to get their most important player back before this series is up. The Pacers are +110 to win this series if you think they can take the first few games and never look back.

Today's Bark Bets is written by Griffin Carroll. Follow him on Substack: griffybets.substack.com.