If you’re looking to have some fun this basketball season, NBA DFS on FanDuel has you covered.
With NBA DFS, you can put your hoops knowledge to the test and ride with players you think will go off in a given night.
To help you along the way, we’ve got a bunch of tools here at FanDuel Research. Specifically, our NBA DFS projections update throughout the day to reflect current news.
On top of all that, we’ll come at you each day with this NBA DFS primer, which breaks down some of the day’s top plays at each position.
Let’s dive into today’s main slate on FanDuel.
Betting lines via the NBA odds at FanDuel Sportsbook. Projections and betting odds may change after this article is published. All injury news comes from the NBA’s official injury report.
NBA DFS Picks for Today
Guards
Top Priorities
Ja Morant ($8,300)
No team on the slate has a higher implied team total than the Memphis Grizzlies (127.0), which could allow Ja Morant to do what he does best.
Morant’s five-digit upside still flashes occasionally from this loaded Memphis hierarchy, topping 44 FanDuel points (FDP) in three of his last seven. He’s maintained a team-best 30.8% usage rate among qualifying players in this period.
Don’t let season-long matchup numbers from the San Antonio Spurs fool you. Without Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio has allowed the 10th-most FDP per game to opposing point guards (50.1) over their last 15 tilts.
FanDuel Research’s NBA DFS projections expect 40.4 FDP from Morant tonight, awarding him the third-best value score at guard. It’s not a great day to spend here, but Ja could go nuts if the Spurs keep pace.
Fred VanVleet ($6,800)
He’s back.
As mentioned in today’s best NBA bets, Fred VanVleet‘s return to the Houston Rockets‘ lineup is great news for them as a team. It’s just not ideal for their other players in DFS.
Can we accept Freddy will be a full-go in his return to action? I think so. At 35.5 minutes per game this year, VanVleet normally occupies one of the heaviest roles in the league, and he’s completely unlisted on the injury report.
He’ll have the benefit today of facing a Sacramento Kings squad — further and further removed from Mike Brown — that has slipped to 21st in defensive rating (DRTG) over its last 10 games.
At a conservative 33.0-minute projection, VanVleet is still FanDuel Research’s best play at guard with 34.4 expected FDP.
Others to Consider
Stephen Curry ($8,900)
There’s no doubt Stephen Curry has caught fire. He lit up a stingy Orlando Magic defense for 56 points in his last start. This matchup is just brutal, though. The Philadelphia 76ers are 27th in pace, and they’ve got an improved 114.6 DRTG in games where Andre Drummond has replaced Joel Embiid.
Devin Vassell ($6,100)
Without Wemby, we are back to the “everyone at risk” status in San Antonio, but a monster Devin Vassell game is one of San Antonio’s paths to keeping up with the Grizzlies. He’s played 30-plus minutes in five of the last six games decided by less than 15 points but is at extreme risk in blowouts.
Wings
Top Priorities
Tobias Harris ($6,200)
Small forward is a tough scene on this five-gamer — especially if Jimmy Butler (ankle) can’t go.
We’ll break the glass in the case of this emergency with Tobias Harris. Tobi is often (always?) a favorite of the projections, but he’d topped 30 minutes in five straight before Friday’s collapse — by the whole team — against the Denver Nuggets.
He’ll be in a good position to get back on the horse against a Brooklyn Nets squad that’s 23rd in DRTG (114.8). They allow the 12th-most points and most assists per game to opposing small forwards despite a bottom-five pace.
Harris is projected for 31.8 FDP on Saturday.
Keldon Johnson ($5,300)
The downside of Victor Wembanyama’s emergence has been the reduction of Keldon Johnson. Johnson’s picked up right where he left off with Wemby, unfortunately, done for the year.
Against a brutal Houston defense, Johnson crawled the Spurs back into Wednesday’s game with 22 points, 5 rebounds, and 33.0 FDP. That came in 29 minutes off the bench as the sixth man.
Buckets will be needed against Memphis, and it’ll help him to dodge some of the Grizz’s elite defenders with the second unit. Overall, Memphis has allowed the third-most FDP per game to small forwards as a product of pace, though.
If San Antonio hangs tight, many of their top options should come through. Johnson’s value salary could be a way to access their leading scorer.
Others to Consider
Kyle Kuzma ($6,500)
Kyle Kuzma has smashed this salary with 37-plus FDP in three of his last six, and he’ll continue to log heavy minutes with Bobby Portis (suspension) sidelined. He’ll likely slide to the four often today in small-ball lineups against the Dallas Mavericks.
Klay Thompson ($5,500)
The Milwaukee Bucks‘ key weakness is their three-point D, letting up the fifth-most three-point attempts per game (39.1) this season. That’s elite news for Klay Thompson, who has topped 25 FDP in five of his last seven for the shorthanded Mavs.
Bigs
Top Priorities
Giannis Antetokounmpo ($11,400)
We’ll see a ton of Giannis Antetokounmpo as a small-ball center today considering Dallas…doesn’t really have one.
Antetokounmpo has put forth a minimum of 23 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists in his last three contests, and this Mavericks team doesn’t profile to stop him. They’ve allowed the most paint points (61.7) and second-chance points (18.1) per game in the NBA across their last seven contests without Anthony Davis (abdomen).
Giannis averages 75.3 FDP per 36 minutes during floor situations without Bobby Portis and Brook Lopez. This shift tends to make him one of the best fantasy basketball options we’ve ever seen.
The real concern for him might be competitiveness of the opponent to keep up, but a 3.5-point spread on FanDuel Sportsbook implies some hope that Dallas can hang.
Moses Brown ($4,800)
If Dallas has an option at center, it’s veteran Moses Brown.
He’s the current attempt at a solution to the aforementioned problem in the paint. Brown logged 30 minutes in Dallas’ last contest, posting 20 points, 11 rebounds, and 48.2 FDP against a Charlotte Hornets squad with plenty of size.
Foul concerns opposite Giannis are more than fair, but Brown’s value salary stands out. This only continues his trend from when he last saw at least 30 games in a season, posting 46.5 FDP per 36 minutes with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2022-23.
Out of necessity, Brown is a starting center, and his salary will be much higher than this if that stays the case.
Others to Consider
Alperen Sengun ($8,700)
Averaging 50.3 FDP per 36 minutes this year, Alperen Sengun is the one non-VanVleet option on the Rockets that still has a path to a ceiling with the point guard back. He’s actually posted a higher usage rate with FVV on the floor (27.9%) than off it (26.3%).
Draymond Green ($6,600)
The Golden State Warriors are extremely undersized, which has boosted Draymond Green‘s rebounding to 7.0 per game over his last four. The Sixers are a brick factory (52.6 eFG%), which should help even further.
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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author’s advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.