NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings + FanDuel Expert Lineup Building Strategy

NBA DFS action on Monday, Jan. 18, locks at 7:30 p.m. EST with a four-game main slate. Before you lock in your NBA DFS picks and favorite lineups on DraftKings, FanDuel, Yahoo and SuperDraft, make sure to check out Awesemo’s daily fantasy basketball rankings and projections. Let’s dig into some NBA DFS picks, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, Christian Wood and more.

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NBA DFS Picks: Key Building Blocks | Jan. 18

Christian Wood: Houston Rockets at Chicago Bulls

DraftKings $8,900, FanDuel $9,800, Yahoo $37
Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 29.5%, FanDuel 22.5% Yahoo 37.4%

Today there is wall-to-wall basketball beginning in the afternoon and going into the main slate at 7:30 p.m. EST. We have a host of premier options as well as enough value plays for a stars-and-scrubs roster construction. Just outside of the marquee names is Christian Wood, who should be a focal point of our main lineups. We will not be alone in this endeavor, but this is a cherry matchup for Houston.

Wood has been outstanding this season and is averaging 23.2 points, 10.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.5 combined blocks/steals. While we should see the recently acquired Victor Oladipo making his Rockets debut, John Wall has already been ruled out for a third straight game with knee soreness. DeMarcus Cousins will be back after missing the last game with his own sore knee, but that will not impact Wood because Cousins is only dancing for 17-18 minutes per game.

Chicago has the fourth-worst defensive efficiency, allowing 112.0 points per 100 possessions. They also play at the third-fastest pace with 106.9 possessions per 48 minutes. Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter are not equipped to deal with Wood.

Giannis Antetokounmpo: Milwaukee Bucks vs. Brooklyn Nets

DraftKings $10,400, FanDuel $11,300, Yahoo $51
Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 22.5%, FanDuel 16.5% Yahoo 22.8%

The price tag for the reigning two-time NBA MVP on DraftKings is laughable. On FanDuel and Yahoo it is appropriate. This is going to be a must-see game, as Kyrie Irving is expected to join Kevin Durant and James Harden for the first time tonight. Giannis Antetokounmpo has led the Bucks to a 9-4 record, but they are not distancing themselves in the Eastern Conference as four other teams are within 1.5 games, including tonight’s foe.

In five of his games this season, Giannis has played fewer than 30 minutes, all of which were in blowouts (five wins, one loss). In the six games he has played 30-plus minutes, he is averaging 34.1 minutes, 31.3 points, 10.7 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.5 combined blocks/steals. Tonight Milwaukee is favored by 2.5 points in what should be a spirited affair.

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NBA DFS Picks: Good Value

Jae’Sean Tate: Houston Rockets at Chicago Bulls

DraftKings $5,100, FanDuel $5,000, Yahoo $12
Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 7.1%, FanDuel 6.5% Yahoo 20.4%

It has been a long and winding path for Jae’Sean Tate, who was undrafted after four years at Ohio State. He spend the last two years playing in Antwerp and Sydney before getting a chance with the Rockets. Things are in flux with the Rockets, and that along with their nice matchup on the short four-game main slate have us digging in a little deeper on their revamped rotation. As mentioned above Wall is out, but we should see Oladipo debuting with his new team. Danuel House is currently in the health-and-safety protocol, so there is a good chance we will see Tate draw a third straight start.

The sites are not quite sure what to do with his position, as he is a point guard on Yahoo, a power forward on DraftKings and a small forward on FanDuel. Standing 6-foot-4, Tate is more of a wing, but he is a capable ball handler. In his two starts he is averaging 29.5 minutes with 10.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 2.5 blocks. As with the rest of his teammates, this is a good matchup tonight, and I actually prefer him over our next guy below.

NBA DFS Picks: Risky Value and Strategy

Eric Gordon: Houston Rockets at Chicago Bulls

DraftKings $5,200, FanDuel $5,200, Yahoo $14
Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 40.9%, FanDuel 33.4% Yahoo 42.4%

The price is definitely appealing for Eric Gordon across the board, and he knocks out one of the pesky small forward spots on FanDuel. Lock him in for your cash games and don’t look back. However, in tournaments this is a different story. Gordon has missed the last two games with a lower leg injury, and when he has been playing, he has not been particularly impressive. In his last four games, he has topped 25 fantasy points only once. That was a game in which he played a season-high 33 minutes and had 15 field goal attempts.

Gordon’s fantasy production is entirely dependent on scoring, which can be a rollercoaster for a player with a 42.5% career field goal percentage. Do we really want our fortunes hinging on a 32-year-old shooting guard who has not averaged more than 26.0 FanDuel points per game over the last nine seasons?

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Yahoo Daily Fantasy Basketball Discount Dandies

Willie Cauley-Stein: DAL at TOR- $11
Eric Gordon: HOU at CHI – $14
Norman Powell: TOR vs. DAL – $11

SuperDraft Daily Fantasy Basketball Picks

Christian Wood: HOU at CHI – 1.30x multiplier
Coby White: CHI vs. HOU – 1.60x multiplier
Eric Gordon: HOU at CHI – 1.70x multiplier

Final Thoughts

There are plenty of value options tonight, but the pricing does not align across every site. Be sure to understand your preferred site’s pricing and scoring systems.

Be sure to into the Awesemo NBA Deeper Dive and Live Before Lock show beginning at 5:30 p.m. EST for all of your up-to-date information and analysis.

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Author

Eric MacPherson

Eric "EMac" MacPherson won the 2007 Fantasy Baseball grand prize (trip for two to the MLB All-Star game) in the Roto format on ESPN. He won again in 2008, this time in the H2H format. As one of the early adopters of daily fantasy sports, EMac has been providing content for baseball and basketball as well as both professional and college football since 2012 for a variety of websites including DraftKings Playbook, FanVice, RotoWorld, Daily Fantasy Bootcamp, and RotoGrinders. He is well into his third decade of fantasy sports and has a wealth of knowledge and experience. Follow him on Twitter @EMacDFS or contact EMac by emailing [email protected].