Friday, Feb. 4, wraps up the work week with a nine-game NBA slate tipping off at 7 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: DraftKings, FanDuel & Yahoo Building Blocks Today | Friday, Feb. 4
Yahoo Play of the Day — Kyrie Irving: Brooklyn Nets at Utah Jazz
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 48.2 | DraftKings: 50.47
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 54.4% | FanDuel 32.6% | DraftKings 17.7%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $36 | FanDuel $9,500 | DraftKings $10,300
Tonight the Nets will be without James Harden (hamstring), LaMarcus Aldridge (ankle) and Kevin Durant. Utah is getting Donovan Mitchell (concussion) back, but Rudy Gobert is still out. In the most recent stretch without Gobert anchoring the defense, Utah has been in the bottom third of the league in defensive rating, allowing 115.8 points per 100 possessions. Since returning to action in road games, Kyrie Irving is averaging 1.40 fantasy points per minute in 101 minutes without Harden and Durant on the court.
Nikola Vucevic: Chicago Bulls at Indiana Pacers
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 43.69 | DraftKings: 44.71
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 25.8% | FanDuel 15.4% | DraftKings 15.0%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $36 | FanDuel $8,700 | DraftKings $9,400
Tonight is a back-to-back for Chicago after it lost an overtime game last night 127-120 in Toronto. It is also the third game in four nights, and Nikola Vucevic has played 39 and 35 in the prior two games. Both Zach LaVine (back) and Coby White (groin) are questionable after playing last night. If either is out tonight, Vucevic moves from a strong play to one of the best center options for Friday. Vucevic has topped 40 fantasy points in 10 of his last 12, while averaging 34.5 minutes and 16.6 field goal attempts with a 51.8% success rate. This has resulted in 20.2 points, 12.4 rebounds, four assists and 2.2 combined blocks and steals. Both Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis are out for the near future, and Isaiah Jackson is also out tonight. There simply is nobody on the roster who can guard Vucevic, and if Goga Bitadze manages to return, at best he will pester Vucevic until he burns through his six fouls in 20 minutes or less.
The NBA player props market for Ayo Dosunmu tonight is one to exploit against the Pacers if either LaVine or White is out. He has averaged 9.3 assists in his last three games and has at least eight in each appearance. Currently his assist prop is over/under 5.5. Keep an eye out for news updates as well as how the prop line moves on OddsShopper.
Brandon Goodwin: Cleveland Cavaliers at Charlotte Hornets
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 23.75 | DraftKings: 24.74
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 44.6% | FanDuel 22.7% | DraftKings 32.7%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $10 | FanDuel $4.500 | DraftKings $4.100
Tonight Brandon Goodwin should remain in the starting lineup in place of Darius Garland. Rajon Rondo is the only other point guard on the roster, and it is clear that the offense grinds to a halt when Cedi Osman is in charge of running the show. For those diving into the DFS pool the first time this week for some Friday fun, do not overlook Rondo as a premier discount dandy tonight.
Portland Trail Blazers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
It will take a couple of days for the Robert Covington and Norman Powell for Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow and Keon Johnson trade to become official. Portland had to do something, with Nassir Little (shoulder) out for the season and Damian Lillard (core) slated to miss at least another six weeks, if he even returns to action this season. Larry Nance Jr. (knee) may return tonight, but he has missed the last month, so it is hard to believe he would see more than 20 to 24 minutes whenever he does come back. Cody Zeller (knee) is out for the next two months recovering from surgery, and Trendon Watford (ankle) is questionable, which really opens things up for the remaining ambulatory Blazers.
Jusuf Nurkic, C.J. McCollum and Anfernee Simons are core plays on the main slate and near must-haves on the late slate. Dennis Smith Jr. and Ben McLemore are not particularly fun to roster, but they could see north of 34 minutes tonight for the suddenly shorthanded Trail Blazers.
Oklahoma City will be without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (ankle) for the next three weeks, while Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Roby will miss tonight’s action with their own ankle issues. Somehow the Thunder snuck away with an overtime victory in Dallas on Wednesday, and they also dispatched Portland on Monday in Oklahoma City. Luguentz Dort has led the team in scoring in the last three games, while rookie Josh Giddey has led the team twice in rebounds and twice in assists during this stretch. This is the duo to target, along with Tre Mann, who should see 36 to 37 minutes as the only true point guard on the squad who is healthy right now.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS picks for the Friday, Feb. 4 Slate
Tonight there are games tipping of at five different times, including a twin-bill doubleheader West Coast nightcap. 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.
