Main Slate Breakdown for NBA DFS 1/18:
Jan 14, 2024; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis (10) drives for the basket against Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) in the fourth quarter at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Welcome to another year of the DFS Army NBA Full Court Press! Members had a ton of success using the Full Court Press along with various articles and tools that DFS Army provides last season, so we are glad to be back with another year of the all-inclusive article. You have to start your research somewhere, and oftentimes going position by position and breaking down every matchup and its key players is the first step in our process. My name is Mike aka @MadnessDFS on Twitter (X), make sure to give me a follow as I’ll occasionally make updates to the advice in the article. But, you’ll mostly find me in our VIP coaching forums where I provide detailed lineup maneuvers and answer all lineup questions. With that said, let’s get it started!
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Before I get started, I need to shoutout a few huge VIP Member wins – “Phamacist” took 1st place in the $300k Fadeway contest which netted him $100k while “da_banditz” grabbed 1st place on FanDuel as well winning $10k- congrats guys!
NBA DFS Point Guard Plays:
Spend up: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (DraftKings $10.2k; FanDuel $11.0k)
Shai has come down to Earth over his last two games against the two Los Angeles teams but gets an elite bounce-back matchup against the Jazz in this one. He had a great game against Utah earlier this season with 51 DraftKings points in just 27 minutes. Utah is allowing the 5th most fantasy points per game to opposing point guards on the season. It’s a short slate without a ton of superstars, SGA is going to look like a top raw option and feels slightly underpriced.
Mid-range: Immanuel Quickley (DraftKings $7.0k; FanDuel $7.6k)
Quickley feels fairly sneaky at this price tag, the Raptors traded Pascal Siakam yesterday and will continue to be without Jakob Poeltl with an injury. He shot poorly last night but was still able to have a productive night and could have had a massive night if the Heat could keep the game close. He’s only been with the team for a little over two weeks, but in an 89-minute sample size with Siakam and Poeltl off of the court, he has a 26.7% usage rate and 1.3 fantasy points per minute.
Value: Gary Trent Jr. (DraftKings $4.3k; FanDuel $4.7k)
I ended up with way more Trent Jr. than I was planning on having last night but sometimes you get lucky! He was great, although I would not expect him to shoot 89% again from three-point range tonight. It does feel like we’re chasing a little bit, but the price tag is right, so I have no issue going right back to the well. With Siakam and Poeltl out there are minutes available for him to grab and this guy can score and score in a hurry. He’s averaging 26.5 DraftKings points per game in two games against the Bulls this season.
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NBA DFS Shooting Guard Plays:
Spend up: Anthony Edwards (DraftKings $8.4k; FanDuel $9.3k)
At first glance it looks like Edwards has struggled in this matchup in two games, but, he had 42.3 fantasy points in their first matchup and only played 4 minutes in their second matchup, so we can throw that right out the window! He has at least 45 DraftKings points in back-to-back games and this matchup looks great as the Grizzlies continue to be banged up. It’s a nice pace-up spot for the Wolves as well, so the ceiling is certainly there for Edwards who will look great on this slate.
Mid-range: RJ Barrett (DraftKings $6.6k; FanDuel $6.8k)
Barrett is another guy I had more exposure to last night that I was expecting to get to, but it’s a similar story to Quickley, with Pascal Siakam and Jakob Poeltl out there is going to be extra usage and opportunity available for the rest of this lineup. I don’t love the matchup against a slow-paced Bulls team, but in a 126-minute sample of Siakam and Poeltl off of the court, since being traded to the Raptors, he has a 26.5% usage rate and 1.19 fantasy points per minute.
Value: Luke Kennard (DraftKings $5.3k; FanDuel $4.8k)
There isn’t a ton of true cheap value at the SG position unless you want to move Gary Trent Jr. over, which is certainly viable. That said, I think we get a solid price tag on Kennard in this one and think he makes sense as an option on a short slate. He’s playing big minutes with Ja Morant, Marcus Smart, and Derrick Rose out and has produced nicely. It’s not the best matchup against a good defensive team, but he has a 16.4% usage rate and 0.86 fantasy points per minute with Smart and Morant off of the court this season.
NBA DFS Small Forward Plays:
Spend up: Lauri Markkanen (DraftKings $8.3k; FanDuel $9.1k)
It’s a sneaky tough matchup against a Thunder team that has played good defense this season but I love the form Markkanen has been in averaging 48.9 DraftKings points per game over his last five games. He’s also going to the free-throw line a ton, he has double-digit free-throw attempts in three of his last four games which are just free opportunities at fantasy poitns with the clock off. He has SF/PF eligibility on both DraftKings and FanDuel which makes it easier to get him into lineups as well, very solid option in all formats.
Mid-range: Zach LaVine (DraftKings $7.1k; FanDuel $7.5k)
LaVine has returned to the starting lineup over the last few games and is playing massive minutes. It’s always difficult to determine which of these four main guys for the Bulls between LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic, and Coby White will have the big game on any given night but LaVine is the cheapest of the three “stars” (not including Coby White), so I like going right back to him here. If we take a look at the Research Station below, he has the most 8x consistency at this price tag of these main guys as well at 8.7%.
Value: Patrick Williams (DraftKings $3.7k; FanDuel $4.7k)
When there isn’t a ton of great value on the slate I tend to chase minutes and Williams projects for the most minutes at the position under $4.3k and right there with Harrison Barnes who is at 30 minutes. Williams is coming off of a nice game last time out against the Warriors. He does come in as questionable, however, so make sure to keep an eye on the Breaking News Feed for updates as we get closer to lock. He’s another guy with SF/PF eligibility.
NBA DFS Power Forward Plays:
Spend up: Julius Randle (DraftKings $8.8k; FanDuel $9.0k)
Julius Randle is going to look like one of the better raw options on the slate tonight considering this matchup. The Wizards play extremely fast and don’t play any sort of defense. Randle is averaging 52 DraftKings points per game in two games against the Wizards this season. Washington ranks 6th in fantasy points per game allowed to opposing power forwards and allows the most points per game to oppose centers which Randle isn’t shy about going into the paint.
Mid-range: Karl-Anthony Towns (DraftKings $8.0k; FanDuel $8.4k)
Towns has been in a lot better form over the last week/week and a half after a bit of a cold streak. He’s playing big minutes and the matchup looks great against the Grizzlies. He may have to deal with Jaren Jackson Jr. at times, but I don’t pay a whole lot of attention to 1v1 defense in today’s basketball. He brings some nice PF/C eligibility as well which makes roster construction easier. He’s right behind Edwards, second on the team in usage at 27.1%, his price tag is slowly creeping up but he looks good in all formats on a short slate.
Value: Kelly Olynyk (DraftKings $4.1k; FanDuel $5.1k)
Value isn’t great at PF unless you want to bring Patrick Williams over who we talked about at SF, which is certainly viable. That said, I think Kelly Olynyk makes at least some sense if you’re looking to MME and need a punt option. He brings PF/C eligibility and has always been a nice per-minute option. He’s floating around 15-20 minutes as of late but averaging 23.2 DraftKings points per game over his last five games. If he can get hot from three, there’s certainly a ceiling on the right night.
NBA DFS Center Plays:
Spend up: Domantas Sabonis (DraftKings $10.0k; FanDuel $10.3k)
Sabonis has been playing out of his mind as of late, he has a triple-double in three of his last five games and is averaging 57.9 DraftKings points per game over his last five games. He also gets an elite matchup against the fastest-paced team in the league Indy, they’re also not playing any sort of defense this season… not to mention, REVENGE GAME! He’s right up there with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as a top raw option on the slate.
Mid-range: Chet Holmgren (DraftKings $7.8k; FanDuel $8.1k)
Chet had a rough go of it last game against the Clippers but is someone I don’t mind going back to in this one in a good matchup against Utah. He had 34.5 DraftKings points in this matchup earlier this season, but similar to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, he didn’t play many minutes with just 25, so he could have been on his way to a big game. It’s kind of no-man’s land in terms of his price tag, so I expect he gets overlooked and provides some nice leverage here.
Value: Marvin Bagley III (DraftKings $4.0k; FanDuel $5.0k)
Bagley was traded to the Wizards earlier this week and should make his debut here, probably as the starting center with Daniel Gafford injured. At this price tag, he’s going to be a no-brainer on this slate averaging right around a fantasy point per minute, and had a 21.5% usage rate with the Pistons. This Wizards team has even fewer options than the Pistons team did, so I expect Bagley to get a good run and see plenty of opportunities in this one.
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