DraftKings Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Wednesday 1/29/20

With six games to choose from on tonight's NBA slate, let's take a look at how to utilize the DFS possibilities.

Here are some of the top plays and sleepers on DraftKings. As always, good luck.

Point Guard

Kyrie Irving ($9,100) -- Irving was one of the many players across the league impacted by Kobe's passing, and he missed the Brooklyn Nets' game versus the New York Knicks after hearing the news. Irving dominated the Pistons in his last game, posting 45 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds in an overtime win. Irving made 15 shots on 30 attempts, 5 for 12 from deep, and a perfect 10 for 10 from the free-throw line. He's averaged 22.5 points, 6 assists, and 4.5 rebounds in his four home games since the new year started. The Pistons don't allow many three-point attempts (30.1) or makes (11.1) -- both ranking inside the top-five, but their opponents are hitting at the fifth-highest rate in the league (36.9%). If Irving's three-ball is hitting like it has in his past five games (45.1%), then he should be in for a big night in memory of his former Team USA teammate.

Russell Westbrook ($10,400) -- After sitting out for a night of rest, the Houston Rockets earned a rather surprising win over the Utah Jazz. Westbrook is refreshed and ready to take on the Portland Trail Blazers with the help of Eric Gordon ($7,300). If you read my piece on Monday and took Gordon, then you most likely won some money after that 70-point fantasy night. Westbrook could have a similar outing -- maybe not scoring 50 points, but combining for 50 points, rebounds, and assists tonight is certainly feasible. This is Westbrook's first game since the Kobe news broke, and being a former Olympic teammate of Bryant's, he's one of the few players that embody the Mamba Mentality. He's averaging 31.9 points, 8.3 assists, and 8.3 rebounds in January (nine games), and ranks tenth in points (26.0) and eighth in assists per game (8.3) on the season. Westbrook is projected by numberFire to lead the league in assists tonight with 7.7, and be among the league leaders with 24.9 points and 7.4 rebounds.

Shooting Guard

Derrick Rose ($7,600) -- Rose sat out Wednesday against the Cleveland Cavaliers, so his 12-game streak of scoring 20 points is still alive. He and Kyrie Irving ($9,100) dueled it out already on Saturday, with both players leading their team in scoring. Rose scored 27 while Irving scored 45, and I like both players to have successful nights versus each other once again. Rose's Sixth Man of the Year campaign continues to grow, despite a lack of team success. The Nets rank 13th in defensive rating (107.9) and 10th in pace factor (102.2) this season. If Irving and the Nets control the pace, I expect Rose and the Detroit Pistons to put up points and make it a fight.

C.J. McCollum ($6,900) -- McCollum was efficient in his first game back from injury, recording 28 points, 5 assists, and 6 made threes on 9 attempts. He finished the game 11 for 21 from the field (52.4%), though he didn't attempt a single free-throw against the Indiana Pacers. Tonight, the Rockets are in town, and they're allowing the fourth-most three-point attempts per game (35.7). The Rockets have allowed 11.3 made three-pointers over the last three games on 34 attempts per game (33.2%). The Trail Blazers are hitting 36.6% of the three-pointers (9th) and are 10th in made triples, at 12.4 per game. McCollum may be in for a big night shooting the ball. numberFire's model projects him to record 21.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.9 made three-pointers.

Small Forward

Bojan Bogdanovic ($6,000) -- Bogdanovic scored his ninth 30-point game of the season in an upset loss to the Rockets on Monday night. He continued his red-hot streak from beyond the arc, nailing 7 of 13 three-point attempts versus Houston. He's now hit three or more three-pointers in 8 of his last 11 games and is averaging 23 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in seven road games in 2020. San Antonio ranks 22nd in opponent three-point percentage (36.3%), 25th in three-pointers made (12.8), and 26th in three-pointers allowed (35.2). Bogdanovic is likely to have himself another strong three-point night tonight. Bogdanovic is one of the projected leaders among three-point shooters, according to numberFire's model. The sharp-shooter is projected to make 3.2 triples to go with 20.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 1.9 assists tonight.

Buddy Hield ($7,100) -- Hield has come off the bench in the last two games and played much better for the Sacramento Kings. Hield recorded a season-high 42 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists on 14 for 24 field goal shooting, and 9 for 14 from deep (64.3%) in the overtime comeback win versus Minnesota on Monday. In the game prior, he recorded 21 points, tying a season-high of 63 points in a two-game stretch. The past two games are his only 50% or better shooting performances in January. The Kings are at home tonight, and Hield averages 20.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game in 21 home games this season. Their opponent, the Oklahoma City Thunder, are ranked 22nd in opponent field goal attempts (90.4), and Hield ranks 20th among league-leaders with 17.6 field goal attempts per game.

Power Forward

Carmelo Anthony ($5,900) -- Melo recorded 18 points and 12 rebounds versus the Rockets in their January 15th meeting on 7 for 10 shooting. That was the first time playing them since they released, and he had one of his best games of the season. Melo has averaged a near double-double in his past three games with 14.6 points and 9.3 rebounds. The Blazers have averaged 131 points over those three contests and are currently tied-10th in offensive rating (111.0). The Rockets currently allow their opponents to grab 46.2 rebounds per game, score 114.3 points per game, and hoist 35.7 three-point attempts and 92.5 field goal attempts per game. The Blazers won the first game 117-107, but I expect it to be a higher scoring game in the second meeting, and Melo to continue his impressive rebounding stretch.

Thaddeus Young ($5,300) -- Young's role has increased with all the injuries the Chicago Bulls have dealt with, but the veteran has played 28 minutes or more in four of his last five games. Young has played 48 games off the bench for Chicago this season but started in the last three games for the Bulls since Lauri Markkanen was announced out. He's averaging 11.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2 assists on 50% shooting in his last three games as the starting power forward. Young spent 2016 to 2019 in Indiana and averaged career-highs as a Pacer in his last season with 12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.7 assists. numberFire's model projects Young to record 13.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.2 assists against his former team.

Center

Jaren Jackson Jr. ($6,400) -- Jackson has played well over the last three games for the Memphis Grizzlies -- recording 19.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.6 blocks per game over those contests. Versus the Denver Nuggets yesterday, Jackson recorded a career-high seven blocked shots to go along with 10 points a huge win for Memphis -- their third straight. Tonight, the Grizzlies are in Madison Square Garden, taking on a Knicks squad that lost last night to Charlotte. The Knicks have allowed 120.6 points per game on the second night of back-to-backs. Jackson Jr. is projected to record 18.9 points and 6 rebounds tonight in New York, according to numberFire's model.

Domantas Sabonis ($9,400) -- Sabonis is averaging 22.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, 7.6 assists, and 53.4 fantasy points over his last three games for the Pacers. He is 13th in the league with a 53.7% shooting percentage and is steadily climbing the player efficiency rankings to 34th (20.92). Chicago is allowing 48 points per game in the paint (16th), and hold a defensive rebounding percentage of 72.7% (18th). Sabonis is projected to total 18.4 points and 13.1 rebounds versus the Bulls tonight with Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter Jr. still out. Luke Kornet and Thaddeus Young will man the middle versus Sabonis -- and that's certainly a matchup he can take advantage of.

Vaughn Dalzell is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Vaughn also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username vdalzell. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.