Coming off an unusually small five-game Friday night slate, we’re back to the madness on Saturday with nine games on the docket. Using Stokastic’s NBA DFS projections, let’s take a deeper dive into the player pool to discuss the top NBA DFS building blocks for both DraftKings and FanDuel. Be sure to check out the Stokastic NBA DFS & Fantasy Basketball home page, where you can find fantasy basketball picks and analysis for each slate of games.
NBA DFS Building Blocks Today: Saturday, January 28
Core Play of the Day — Spencer Dinwiddie: Dallas Mavericks-Utah Jazz
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Point Projections: DraftKings: 44.07 | FanDuel: 41.39
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: DraftKings: 47.30% | FanDuel: 32.20%
- DFS Salary: DraftKings: $7,400 | FanDuel: $8,000
With Mavericks star Luka Doncic out with a sprained left ankle, it should come as absolutely no surprise that Spencer Dinwiddie is our first core building block today. While Dinwiddie is much more solid than spectacular when Doncic is in, he gets a huge boost in nearly every statistical category when Doncic is out, and with Christian Wood also out for Dallas, he isn’t priced for his current role on either DraftKings or FanDuel.
Look no further than Dallas’ last game on Thursday against Phoenix. Doncic went down in the first quarter, and Dinwiddie proceeded to drop 59 DraftKings points in 40 minutes as the Mavericks outlasted the Suns, 99-95. While both DraftKings and FanDuel raised his price to $7,400 and $8,000, respectively, he still projects as one of the top value plays across both sites.
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Core Play of the Day — Dwight Powell: Dallas Mavericks-Utah Jazz
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Point Projections: DraftKings: 29.21 | FanDuel: 29.29
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: DraftKings: 49.70% | FanDuel: 51.50%
- DFS Salary: DraftKings: $3,800 | FanDuel: $4,900
Speaking of players who are usually more solid than spectacular, enter Dwight Powell. The veteran center looks like the top points-per-dollar play on the entire slate. Powell is playing huge minutes right now and with both Christian Wood and Maxi Kleber out for Dallas. He is far too cheap on DraftKings at $3,800 for his current role.
While Powell is a bit more expensive on FanDuel at $4,900, he also offers power forward eligibility there, which more than makes up for the price discrepancy between the sites. In good form right now averaging 32.7 DraftKings points over the past two games, Powell is the prototypical cog in our machine on a slate with plenty of good spend-up options.
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Houston Rockets-Detroit Pistons
In what looks like the potential game of the night for NBA DFS purposes, there is a ton to like on both Houston and Detroit tonight. As the two teams that are fighting the hardest to obtain the services of Victor Wembenyana, it’s probably wise to expect the unexpected as Houston travels to Detroit.
Starting with Houston, Alperen Sengun remains an elite play on pretty much every slate. More than solid on DraftKings at $8,800, Sengun looks like arguably the top overall play on FanDuel at $8,400. With Jalen Green joining Kevin Porter Jr. on the Rockets sideline tonight, Sengun should have the ball in his hands even more than usual this evening, and in a fantastic spot against Detroit, there’s a ton to like about him in all formats. With Green out, players like Jae’Sean Tate and TyTy Washington Jr. are in play for tournaments, but beware that Houston has plenty of bodies to throw out there, making it risky to trust any of them.
On the Detroit side, Alec Burks drew the start last time out, and if he’s starting again, he emerges as one of the top points-per-dollar plays on the slate at $4,500 on DraftKings. Saddiq Bey has seen his price stabilize at $5,700 on DraftKings, and the former Villanova star is paying that tag off in spades right now. Bey is averaging 38.2 DraftKings points over the past six games, and in a smash spot against the Rockets, he remains an intriguing play in both cash games and GPPs. Be sure to pay attention to Detroit’s starting lineup, as that will affect who to target from the Pistons.
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