Monday, Jan. 10, kicks off the week with a seven-game main-slate beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET. Let’s look at the player pool and discuss the top NBA DFS picks for DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo lineups. Do not forget to head over to the Awesemo NBA DFS home page for more great written daily fantasy basketball content.
NBA DFS Picks: Building Blocks, Monday, Jan. 10
Yahoo Play of the Day — Nikola Jokic: Denver Nuggets at Oklahoma City Thunder
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 57.18 | DraftKings: 59.3
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 28% | FanDuel 34.9% | DraftKings 21.2%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $56 | FanDuel $11,500 | DraftKings $12,000
Tonight should be a fun one, as there are quite a few robust fantasy options available in the player pool along with a plethora of value plays. Giannis Antetokounmpo is at the top of the list both from a salary and a projected points perspective. Milwaukee continues to be somewhat shorthanded with Jrue Holiday nursing an ankle injury and Grayson Allen and George Hill in the health and safety protocol. Donte DiVincenzo should be available, and there is a chance that Pat Connaughton will return after spending a week on the COVID-reserve list.
Charlotte and Milwaukee are playing at the second- and third-fastest paces in the league over the last two weeks, and this game has an implied total of 236.5 points, with the visiting Bucks favored by a bucket. Since the beginning of last season, when Antetokounmpo is on the court without Holiday he sees an uptick in his production to 1.62 Yahoo points per minute.
Jusuf Nurkic: Portland Trail Blazers vs. Brooklyn Nets
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 40.31 | DraftKings: 41.35
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 35.6% | FanDuel 19.6% | DraftKings 35.3%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $27 | FanDuel $7,400 | DraftKings $7,000
Norman Powell and Larry Nance Jr. are in the health and safety protocol, and C.J. McCollum does not have a timetable for his return either. Finally, Damian Lillard has been ruled out for the next two weeks to give his core/abdominal injury time to heal. In the four games he has played since missing nearly two weeks with COVID, Jusuf Nurkic has truly been The Bosnian Beast. In these games he is averaging 32.3 minutes, 13.5 field goal attempts, 15.8 points, 13.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 2.6 combined blocks/steals. Anything less than 40 fantasy points tonight would be a disappointment.
Kyrie Irving: Brooklyn Nets at Portland Trail Blazers
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 38.53 | DraftKings: 38.03
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 36% | FanDuel 22.8% | DraftKings 3.9%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $27 | FanDuel $7,800 | DraftKings $8,800
Since this game is being played outside of New York, Kyrie Irving will be available. In his debut on Wednesday he logged 32 minutes, 22 points and 41.6 Yahoo points. Gamers should not miss out on this opportunity with his absurdly low $27 Yahoo salary. He should be in the mix for 40 fantasy points, and there is always a chance that Kevin Durant or James Harden will get the night off, with Portland being double-digit underdogs at home and playing on a back-to-back with a thinned-out roster.
Philadelphia 76ers at Houston Rockets.
Tyrese Maxey and Paul Reed are in the health and safety protocol, and Shake Milton is out for a couple more days while dealing with a back injury. That will open up opportunities for Seth Curry and Furkan Korkmaz as the de facto facilitators. Joel Embiid is also an adept passer when he needs to be, which gives his fantasy floor a boost, as does a matchup against a hapless Rockets frontcourt. Tobias Harris and Matisse Thybulle are also in play, with Thybulle being particularly interesting on Yahoo at the $10 minimum salary and getting 3 fantasy points for blocks and steals. If for some reason Embiid were to get a night off, Harris would become a core play and Andre Drummond would be a pivot away from Nurkic at the same salary.
Houston is without Alperen Sengun and Armani Brooks, though most everyone else is back. That makes them neutral plays on the main late, but their seven-deep rotation becomes viable as mix-and-match options on the evening sub-slate.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS picks for the Monday, Jan. 10 Slate
Tonight five of the games tip off in the first hour, and then there is a two-hour gap until the twin-bill nightcap beginning at 10 p.m. ET. Keep in mind that salaries and scoring formats differ across the various fantasy sites, and a slam-dunk play on Yahoo may be a below-average NBA DFS pick on DraftKings or FanDuel.
