Player props are predictions about individual player performance — will a player score 25+ points, record 2+ assists, or hit a home run? They are the spiciest picks on PredictVS: harder to get right than game outcomes, but worth significantly more points when you do.

Most people treat player props like lottery tickets. Pick a name, guess a number, hope for the best. That approach will crush your accuracy over time. Here is a framework for making smarter player prop picks across every sport on the platform.

The Three Questions

Before making any player prop pick, ask yourself:

What is this player's baseline? — Their season average for this stat.
What is the matchup? — Is the opponent good or bad at defending this stat?
Are there any situational factors? — Minutes changes, injuries to teammates, back-to-backs, home vs away.

If you cannot answer at least two of these three questions, skip the prop. You do not have enough information to make a meaningful prediction.

NBA Player Props

Basketball props are the most popular on PredictVS, and for good reason — the stats are predictable enough to have a real edge.

Points: Look at pace of play. A fast-paced game (both teams in the top 10 for pace) means more possessions and more scoring opportunities. A slow grind between two defensive teams compresses everyone's numbers.
Rebounds: Center and power forward props are more reliable than guard rebounds. Also check if a team is missing a key rebounder — that redistributes boards to other players.
Assists: Point guard assists are heavily matchup-dependent. Teams that force turnovers and play disruptive defense suppress assist numbers.
Combo props (points + rebounds + assists): These are harder to project precisely but the thresholds are usually generous. Focus on high-usage stars who stuff the stat sheet.

NHL Player Props

Hockey is lower-scoring and more random than basketball, which makes player props trickier. A few edges to look for:

Goals: Look at shot volume and power play time. A player averaging 3.5 shots per game with top power play minutes has more opportunities to score than a player averaging 2 shots.
Assists: Playmakers on the top power play unit are the safest assist props. Five-on-five assists are much harder to predict.
Goalie props: Save count props correlate with the opposing team's shot volume. If a goalie faces a team that averages 35 shots per game, the over on saves is worth a look.

MLB Player Props

Baseball is a sport of matchups more than any other. The pitcher-batter dynamic drives everything.

Strikeouts (pitcher): This is the most predictable MLB player prop. Look at the pitcher's K rate and the opposing team's strikeout rate. A high-K pitcher against a high-K team is about as close to a lock as baseball gets.
Hits (batter): Lefty-righty splits matter enormously. Check how a batter performs against the handedness of the starting pitcher.
Home runs: These are inherently volatile. Ballpark factors help — a game at Coors Field or Yankee Stadium has more HR potential than one at Oracle Park.

MLS Player Props

Soccer player props on PredictVS typically focus on goals and assists. The key factor is expected minutes. A forward who plays 90 minutes has far more goal-scoring opportunities than one who comes off the bench at minute 60.

Goals: Look at shots per 90 minutes and expected goals (xG). Forwards on attacking teams in home games are the best targets.
Assists: Central midfielders and attacking fullbacks who take set pieces are the most reliable assist candidates.

Common Player Prop Mistakes

Picking based on name recognition: Star players do not always have the best prop value. Sometimes a role player in a great matchup is the smarter pick.
Ignoring the threshold: A player averaging 22 points with a prop line of 24.5 is a very different bet than the same player with a line of 19.5. The threshold matters as much as the player.
Overweighting one big game: A player who dropped 40 points last night does not automatically clear 25 tonight. Regression to the mean is real.

Building a Prop Strategy

Start small. Pick one sport and one prop type you feel comfortable with — maybe NBA points or MLB strikeouts. Track your accuracy in your personal analytics over a few weeks. Once you are consistently above 50% in that category, expand to another prop type or sport.

The goal is not to pick every prop on every game. The goal is to pick the props where you actually have an edge — and skip the rest.