FanDuel Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Sunday 4/10/22

If you're new to daily fantasy basketball -- maybe you started your DFS journey during the MLB or NFL seasons, or maybe basketball is your sport and this will be your first year giving it a shot -- you're in for a treat. 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 basketball is very reliant on a player's 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, we have player news updates, and the FanDuel Scout app will send push notifications for pressing updates regarding your players.

We'll also be coming at you with this primer every day, breaking down a few of the day's top plays at each position.

Let's break down today's main slate on FanDuel.

Guards

Luka Doncic ($11,600) - In an attempt to win the third overall playoff seed in the Western Conference, the Dallas Mavericks will likely utilize their normal rotation against a Spurs' team ranked 17th in defensive rating and third among the slate in pace. Even at his highest salary point all season, Doncic is an ideal option in all formats as numberFire's top ranked player with a 59.1 FanDuel point projection.

Donovan Mitchell ($8,200) - Utah is another motivated squad playing for playoff seeding, as they attempt to lock down the fifth playoff seat against a leaky Portland Trail Blazers' team ranked last in defensive rating. In their two previous meetings, Mitchell found easy success versus Portland, averaging 23.0 real-life points on 16.0 shot attempts.

Jordan Poole ($8,000) / Klay Thompson ($7,100) - The Golden State Warriors will attempt to keep the Mavericks from the third seed with a potential win against a Pelicans' team that has already locked down home court advantage for the play-in tournament. Both members of Golden State's backcourt are high usage players with Stephen Curry off the floor, with Poole averaging 0.52 shot attempts and a 30.7% usage rate in 1286.4 minutes and Thompson producing 0.71 real-life points and 0.61 field goat attempts in 419.4 minutes sample size.

Immanuel Quickley ($6,600) - In 339.0 minutes with New York's current inactives, Quickley sees a 0.10 boost to 1.04 FanDuel points and a 27.9% usage rate against a Toronto unit allowing 42.3 FanDuel points to point guards per game this season.

De'Anthony Melton ($5,100) - The Memphis Grizzlies guard will play a lead offensive role after his team ruled out Ja Morant, Tyus Jones, Dillon Brooks, and two other starters. In 1637.5 minutes this season, Melton has been a productive player, recording 1.07 FanDuel points per minute and a 20.9% usage rate.

Vit Krejci ($4,700) / Zavier Simpson ($5,300) - Both Thunder guards are worth mentioning considering their recent workload in their past three games. During this span, Krejci is averaging 0.84 FanDuel points in 88.0 minutes while Simpson's mark stands at 0.69 in a 128.8 sample size.

Jose Alvarado ($4,000) - Alvarado is another guard that should see major run with a short-handed roster for Sunday's season finale. Despite a difficult matchup against a Golden State team seventh in FanDuel points allowed to his position this season, the 23-year old sees a 0.11 increase to 1.15 FanDuel points in 256.2 minutes with today's injuries.

Troy Brown ($3,500) - At FanDuel's minimum salary, Brown is another value option to consider, averaging 0.90 FanDuel points and a 20.4% usage rate in a 80.7 minute sample size. The 22-year old has a clear path for extended minutes against a Minnesota team ranked last in points allowed in their last three contests.

Forwards

Jayson Tatum ($9,400) - The Boston Celtics are expected to play their starters for an opportunity to win the second playoff seat in the Eastern Conference. In 1261.0 minutes with Boston's current injuries, Tatum sees a sneaky 0.04 boost to 1.28 FanDuel points and a 32.4% usage rate.

Jaylen Hoard ($7,700) - Oklahoma City's young forward has taken an offensive leap in his last three starts, averaging 0.57 real-life points and 0.44 field goal attempts per minute. The Thunder will have an underrated chance against a Clippers' team unlikely to play any of their top rotation players.

Obi Toppin ($7,500) - In his last four starts, Toppin has recently been a bright spot for his struggling team, recording 0.64 real-life points, 0.14 rebounds, and a 22.6% usage rate per minute. Despite three recent blowouts, the Knicks' forward is still averaging 36.8 minutes.

Talen Horton-Tucker ($6,700) - After a 56.0 fantasy performance last week, Horton-Tucker's FanDuel salary has skyrocketed 59.2% to by far the highest point this season. In 73.8 minutes with Los Angeles' current inactives, the Lakers' guard is averaging an elite 1.37 FanDuel points and 0.62 shot attempts per minute.

Draymond Green ($6,300) - Golden State's versatile forward has been in form since March 30th, recording 1.20 FanDuel points, 0.29 rebounds, and 0.23 assists per minute.

Chuma Okeke ($5,400) - Despite inconsistent minutes, Okeke is on track for an elevated role after the Magic ruled out three of their normal starters. In 64.9 minutes with today's injuries, the Magic forwad ranks third among his team with a 1.13 FanDuel point average mostly due to a 5.5% boost in his assist rate.

Xavier Tillman ($4,300): Memphis' 23-year old man records 1.06 FanDuel points and a 19.5% usage rate in 236.1 minutes with Memphis' current inactives.

Centers

Joel Embiid ($11,800): At his highest salary this season, Philadelphia's star center still has a mouth-watering opportunity to provide return against a Pistons' unit ranked 22nd in points allowed inside and 28th in points allowed in their last three games.

Rudy Gobert (8,600): Gobert's FanDuel salary has moved down 2.2% despite averaging 37.4 FanDuel points in his last two appearances. "The Stifle Tower" is an easy candidate for a double-double against a Portland team ranked 25th in FanDuel points allowed to centers this season and down to their last true big man with Reggie Perry.

Willy Hernangomez ($5,500): In 182.3 minutes with Jonas Valanciunas, Brandon Ingram, Devonte' Graham, and today's other injuries, Hernangomez sees a noticeable 0.16 spike to 1.38 FanDuel points and a 20.3% usage rate.

JaVale McGee ($4,000): Another elite value play, recording 1.28 FanDuel points and 0.40 rebounds per minutes with today's massive amount of injuries.

Naz Reid ($3,500): KAT's potential replacement is active when on the court, producing 0.53 real-life points, 0.26 rebounds, and 0.06 blocks per minute.