DFS NBA Lineups for January 23, 2017 at Draftkings.com & Fanduel.com
Each day that there’s a good slate of DFS NBA games, we’ll give you the game totals, spreads, and pertinent injury news for NBA daily fantasy, as well as some players that we’re considering for our lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.
We have nine games on the main NBA slate tonight with DraftKings hosting a $4 buy-in GPP with a $1 million dollar guarantee and $150,000 to first place. Be sure and monitor any of the injury news that breaks throughout the day, as value plays can arise in a moments notice.
PLAYERS RULED OUT
Chris Paul (thumb)
Blake Griffin (knee)
Rudy Gay (Achilles)
Pau Gasol (finger)
Tony Parker (foot)
Josh Richarson (foot)
Rodney Hood (knee)
INJURY NEWS TO MONITOR
Anthony Davis (quad)
Steven Adams (concussion)
Ryan Anderson (illness)
Jeremy Lin (hamstring)
Jeremy Lamb (foot)
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (shoulder)
NBA GAME SPREADS, TOTALS & START TIME FOR TODAY’S GAMES
Wizards @ Hornets -4.5 (7:00p): 213.5
Spurs -11 @ Nets (7:30p): 217.5
Clippers @ Hawks -6.5 (7:30p): 205
Warriors -11.5 @ Heat (7:30p): 217
Kings @ Pistons -5 (7:30p): 203
Rockets -5.5 @ Bucks (8:00p): 222.5
Cavs -6.5 @ Pelicans (8:00p): 217
Knicks @ Pacers -5.5 (8:00p): 218
Thunder @ Jazz -5.5 (9:00p): 204
Best NBA Picks for January 23, 2017
James Harden ($12.1k DraftKings, $11.9k FanDuel)
Russell Westbrook is the most obvious option to rival Harden as an elite play on this full slate, but his possible production is far more volatile in a tough matchup at Utah with the Thunder at risk of another blowout loss. The Rockets are coming off a blowout win in Memphis in which Harden still met value with 29 ‘real’ points and 62 DK points (55.2 FD points) despite going just 7-of-9 from the floor. He should be challenged more with Houston on the road tonight at a Bucks team that is capable of matching points (highest game total on the slate), but struggles defensively and coughs up the fifth-most FPPG (39.7) to opposing SGs this season.
Giannis Antetokounmpo ($10.6k DraftKings, $10.8k FanDuel)
When you talk about the Bucks matching points with the high-powered Rockets offense, you’re talking about The Greek Freak going off once again. He’s been relatively quiet over his last two appearances, but still produced a double-double in two road losses. Tonight, he returns home, where he’s averaging 24.2 PPG, 4.3 STL/BLK per game and 51.4 DK PPG on the season. Antetokounmpo carried the Bucks offense with 32 points, 11 boards, and 6 assists against this team in Houston last Wednesday, and in a home game, there’s little reason to think he won’t meet or exceed that level of production in a closer game tonight. It is worth noting that Giannis is back to being only PG eligible on DK tonight and his $10,600 price tag is only $900 cheaper than Westbrook, and a full $1300 more expensive than John Wall who projects similarly with only a slightly lower ceiling.
Rudy Gobert ($7.3k DraftKings, $8.1k FanDuel)
You might want to pivot onto Hassan Whiteside ($7.7k on DK) or DeAndre Jordan ($7.9k on DK) if it turns out that Thunder center Steven Adams (concussion) will return to action tonight, but if he’s still inactive, OKC should remain very vulnerable down low. The Thunder coughed up a massive line (19 points, 15 rebounds) to DeAndre Jordan before losing the battle on the boards to a Warriors team without a center and they’ll be essentially helpless to stop Gobert if Adams is replaced by Domantas Sabonis or Jerami Grant in the SLU tonight. The Stifle Tower is coming off a 20-20 game of his own against the Mavericks and he’s been a double-double machine lately, which gives him a great floor/ceiling combination on DraftKings.
Mid Tier DFS NBA Picks
David Lee ($5.5k DraftKings, $5.1k FanDuel)
Lee came through as a value play with another double double on Saturday night and he’s only slightly more expensive on each main DFS site ahead of a much more appealing matchup. The Spurs should dismantle a Nets team that gives up the most PPG (114.9) in the NBA while rankings 29th in defensive rebounding and 26th in total rebounding this year. Lee is in much better shape as he looks to resurrect his career and he’s playing well on both ends, so there’s less risk of him getting “Popped” for a different PF while Pau Gasol (finger) is out over the next couple of months.
Austin Rivers ($5.9k DraftKings, $5.4k FanDuel)
Rivers is more of a risky option than teammate Raymond Felton ($5.7k, $4.9k) and not as much of a bargain on FanDuel, but he has a bit more upside since he’s now being tasked with leading the Clippers first unit with Chris Paul (thumb) out indefinitely. Felton came off the bench in a blowout loss at Denver on Saturday, so he logged more minutes in that lopsided affair, but Rivers was more productive over his 26 minutes. He should see plenty of usage tonight with Blake Griffin (knee) doubtful to return and CP3 out, while the Hawks happen to give up the fourth-most FPPG (45.34) to opposing PGs this season.
Bargain Tier DFS NBA Picks
Joe Ingles ($4.8k DraftKings, $3.9k FanDuel)
DraftKings is making the proper adjustment to Ingles’ price tag, but he’s still a fantastic bargain on FanDuel and will be worth a look for salary relief on that site tonight. Rodney Hood (knee) is expected to miss another few games for Utah and Ingles has been great as his replacement with 25 points, 15 assists and 8 steals over 3 appearances. He’s logged at least 33 minutes in each of those games and his defensive prowess should keep him on the floor against the tonight, while he could find more of a scoring rhythm against a Thunder team that gives up the third-most PPG (21.27) to opposing SFs this season.
Sam Dekker ($4.2k DraftKings, $4.3k FanDuel)
While Ryan Anderson (illness) has a good chance to return to action tonight for the Rockets, he’s been so sick and Dekker has been so good while he’s been out, that it’s hard to imagine the rookie disappearing from Houston’s rotation. The Wisconsin product dropped a career-high 30 points with Anderson out on Saturday and he’s been flashing potential in Mike D’Antoni’s freewheeling offense for weeks now. Anderson is unlikely to play heavy minutes in his return and that would open the door for Dekker to log at least 25 minutes for a fifth straight game and likely meet value.
Dejounte Murray ($4.1k DraftKings, $3.8k FanDuel)
With Tony Parker (foot) expected to miss another game for the Spurs tonight, Murray should get a chance to start after a strong performance against the world champion Cavs on Saturday. The late first-round pick appears to be another gem unearthed by the Spurs savvy organization, as he’s stepped right in for Parker and combined to produce 38 points on 14-of-21 FG shooting. That is just ridiculously efficient for a rookie. Tonight he would draw the best matchup imaginable for a point guard against the Nets 30th-ranked scoring defense and he should be able to exceed value once again.
If, Then Player
Look for the Warriors to potentially rest a member of their Big 4 after playing 3 games over the last 5 days ahead of tonight’s road contest at Miami.
