FanDuel Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Sunday 1/16/22
The NBA scene changes on a week-to-week, day-to-day, and -- depending on injury news -- even a minute-to-minute basis, making every slate a unique one that requires an ever-changing approach.
With so much changing so quickly, we're here with plenty of tools to help you out. We have daily projections, a matchup heat map, a lineup optimizer, and a bunch of other great resources to help give you an edge.
Daily fantasy NBA is very reliant on opportunity, so you'll need to make sure that you're up-to-date with key injuries. Our projections update up until tip-off to reflect current news, and we also have player news updates. The projected numbers referenced below may change throughout the day.
We'll be coming at you with this primer every day, breaking down a few of the day's top plays at each position. The main slate starts at 6 p.m. EST.
Guards
De'Aaron Fox, PG, (FanDuel Salary: $8,000) - It's a three-game slate, and one game -- Sacramento Kings-Houston Rockets -- realllllly stands out from the pack. It holds a 240.5-point over/under, which is best on the slate by 16.5 points, and the spread is only 5.5. Both teams are in the top four in pace and bottom four in defensive efficiency. The Kings -- who won 126-114 when these two tangled on Friday -- and Rockets carry the slate's top two implied totals. I'll be loading up on this game, and so will everyone else. Fox is a great way to get in on the fun as Houston has allowed 51.4 FanDuel points per game to point guards, the most in the league. We project him for 40.4 FanDuel points, which amounts to 5.05 per $1,000.
Jordan Poole, PG/SG, $4,900 - Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are out for the Golden State Warriors, which makes Poole a money play. With those two off the floor this season, Poole owns a 32.1% usage rate and scores 0.95 FanDuel points per minute, according to RotoGrinders' CourtIQ. He's going to be a chalk play, but he should be chalk worth swallowing against the Minnesota Timberwolves, a team that plays at the third-fastest pace. I'd rather take the chalk with him than Andrew Wiggins ($5,800). Our algorithm has Poole scoring 30.6 FanDuel points (6.24 per $1,000) and rates him as the slate's best overall point-per-dollar option.
Others to Consider: Donovan Mitchell ($8,400), Tyrese Haliburton ($7,700), Jalen Green ($4,700)
Wings
Christian Wood, SF/PF, $7,300 - Wood is going to be incredibly popular as part of the juicy Kings-Rockets game. He could go nuts. We peg him to produce 39.4 FanDuel points (5.39 per $1,000). He's finished with 42.6 and 43.7 FanDuel points in his last two games, with the 42.6-point showing coming against Sacramento. I prefer using Wood at power forward to leave center open for Nikola Jokic.
Jae'Sean Tate, SF/PF, $5,800 and Kevin Porter Jr., PG/SF, $5,800 - Tate and Kevin Porter Jr. ($5,800) aren't going to fly under the radar by any means, but they probably won't see as huge of a draft percentage as Fox and Wood do. Both are capable of having a good night and get a boost from the game environment. Tate just ripped off 49.0 FanDuel points against the Kings last time out while Porter recorded 40.4. Our model has Tate and Porter projected for 28.1 and 28.8 FanDuel points, respectively.
Others to Consider: Anthony Edwards ($8,200), Andrew Wiggins ($5,800), Richaun Holmes ($5,400), Buddy Hield ($5,100)
Bigs
Nikola Jokic, C, $10,900 - There's enough value on the slate to get to Jokic pretty easily, and I assume a lot of people will do just that. The Joker is taking on a Utah Jazz squad that is expected to have Rudy Gobert back. It's not an easy matchup, but matchups don't matter too much for Jokic, who torched the Los Angeles Lakers for 50.9 FanDuel points in only 28 minutes in a blowout last night. At a projection of 56.4 FanDuel points that is 9.8 points clear of anyone else's on the slate, Jokic is a tough fade.
Karl-Anthony Towns, C, $9,800 - KAT is a pivot off Jokic. Our projections have Towns as the slate's number-two overall play, forecasting him to go for 46.6 FanDuel points. The Warriors rank first in defensive efficiency and have been tough on centers this year, but the absence of Green makes this matchup more palatable. Across his last five games, KAT has scored at least 43.7 FanDuel points in each outing with a spike game of 62.3 points.
Others to Consider: Rudy Gobert ($8,600), Alperen Sengun ($3,800)
