NBA Daily Fantasy Picks: DraftKings + FanDuel Ownership Projections

For Friday night there is a full 10-game slate on tap. Below are some of my favorite NBA daily fantasy picks for both FanDuel and DraftKings based on Awesemo’s grades and values.

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NBA Daily Fantasy Picks: Awesemo Grades | March 19

Center: Robert Williams

DraftKings Grades: C, Values: C

FanDuel Grades: C, Values: A

For the third game in a row, the Celtics will be without Tristan Thompson due the NBA’s health-and-safety protocol. This opens the door for Williams and Daniel Theis to see expanded roles. He may come off the bench, but Williams has been the more productive player in this situation. Including a career-high 48 DraftKings points Wednesday night against the Cavaliers, Williams is producing 35.1 DraftKings points per game when Thompson has been inactive. Williams has seen over 20 minutes every time Thompson has been out of the lineup, and he got all the way up to 26.4 minutes Wednesday night. This set a new season high and is also the second-most playing time Williams has received during his NBA career.

This a very encouraging sign that Brad Stevens is finally starting to realize Williams needs more minutes, and if Williams can get near 25 minutes again tonight, which is likely, we should see a huge stat line from him. Since the beginning of the month, Williams has been insanely productive, with 1.62 DraftKings points per minute, and this is a dream spot for him against the Kings. Combine that this defense ranks dead last in defensive efficiency and is allowing a league-high 53.2 points in the paint per game; Williams honestly couldn’t ask for a better matchup. This contest’s total is a slate-high 233 points as of early Friday, and Williams shouldn’t be highly owned considering his elevated price tags on both DraftKings and FanDuel.

Projected NBA DFS ownership projection: DraftKings 5.9%, FanDuel 4.5%

[MARCHMADNESS]

Shooting Guard: Jordan Poole

DraftKings Grades: C, Values: A

FanDuel Grades: C, Values: A

The Warriors have one of the most crowded injury reports of the 20 teams playing tonight. Due to the NBA’s health-and-safety protocol, Eric Paschall and James Wiseman will miss their second straight contest, and Stephen Curry (doubtful, tailbone) and Kelly Oubre (doubtful, foot) aren’t expected to be available. This automatically makes most of the Warriors scrubs viable plays, but Poole is without question my favorite of the group. He has seen a solid role off the bench since being recalled from the G-League a few weeks ago, with 22.5 minutes per game in the Warriors’ last five. After their starting five, this is the most playing time on the team during this stretch, and Poole has translated this to 27.7 DraftKings points per game.

With Golden State down three starters, we have to expect Poole to be one of the main beneficiaries. There is a decent possibility he will enter the starting lineup, but even if that isn’t the case, Poole should be in the 25- to 30-minute range Friday against the Grizzlies no matter if the game is close or not (Memphis -8.5). In the 47 minutes he has played without Curry and Oubre since being called up from the G-League, Poole has led the Warriors with a team-high 1.35 DraftKings points per minute.

Projected NBA DFS ownership projection: DraftKings 27.3%, FanDuel 9.3%

Center: Nikola Jokic

DraftKings Grades: A, Values: B

FanDuel Grades: A, Values: B

We should see a vintage performance from Jokic tonight. He has topped 60 DraftKings points in two of his first four starts since the All-Star break, and Friday night presents a beautiful matchup against the Bulls. Chicago is a middle-of-the-pack defense as a whole (15th in efficiency), but they are very vulnerable in the paint. Wendell Carter and Lauri Markkanen have both struggled mightily on the defensive end this season, and from a fantasy perspective the Bulls are surrendering the third-most DraftKings points per game to opposing centers. Just a few weeks ago, Jokic faced this Bulls’ team and went off for 77 DraftKings points, which is his second-largest fantasy output of the season.

Jokic should feast on this soft frontcourt again tonight. To put a final cherry on top, he will be on his home court where he is contributing 3.0 more DraftKings points per game this season compared to when he is on the road. With so much cheap value at our disposal tonight, rostering two studs is an easy task. A high number of my lineups will consist of Jokic paired with Luka Doncic, who is facing a terrible Portland defense (29th in efficiency) that is on the second night of a back-to-back.

Projected NBA DFS ownership projection: DraftKings 21.0%, FanDuel 19.2%

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Point Guard: Delon Wright

DraftKings Grades: B, Values: B

FanDuel Grades: B, Values: A

On Wednesday night Wright was 2 assists shy of a triple-double, recording 45.5 DraftKings points across 37.4 minutes in the 116-112 victory over the Raptors. The huge increase to his playing time was a product of Wayne Ellington (groin), Rodney McGruder (elbow), Hamidou Diallo (groin) and Killian Hayes (hip) all being inactive, and these four players have already been ruled out for the second straight contest.

This creates a clear path for Wright to get near 40 minutes tonight against the Rockets in a game that has the tightest spread of the slate (Houston -1.5). By a wide margin Houston has yielded the most DraftKings point to opposing point guards in the league over their past 10 games, and Wright is a great option for both cash games and GPPs.

Projected NBA DFS ownership projection: DraftKings 15.0%, FanDuel 18.9%

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