Sunday, Jan. 5 give us a post-NFL lock main slate for all the big daily fantasy sites. Before you lock in your NBA DFS lineups and NBA DFS picks on DraftKings, FanDuel, Yahoo and FantasyDraft, make sure to check out check out Awesemo’s NBA DFS rankings and projections. Let’s dig into some NBA DFS Picks, including Deandre Ayton, Clevland value plays and more.
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Don’t forget to check out the NBA Live Before Lock featuring Fast Eddie Fear with Your Ol’ Pal EMac as they break down the NBA DFS slate.
Tune in tonight at 5 p.m. ET.
NBA DFS Picks: Prime Time Players
Deandre Ayton: Phoenix Suns vs. Memphis Grizzlies
DraftKings $6,900, FanDuel $7,500, Yahoo $27 Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 33.2%, FanDuel 27.2% Yahoo Fantasy 38.6%
On our four-game slate, we already have plentiful value with news that Kevin Love is not playing on the back-to-back in what would also be his third game in four days. Deandre Ayton missed 25 games with a suspension and then five with a sprained ankle suffered in his return. In his last three games, Ayton played 20.1 minutes off the bench and then 31.5 and 37.4 back in the starting lineup.
Memphis amazingly knocked off the Clippers 140-114 in Los Angeles on Saturday afternoon and they should be riding high in this back-to-back. Over their last 15 games, the Grizzlies are allowing 112.7 points per 100 possessions which is the fourth worst in the league behind only Washington, Detroit and Cleveland. They are also playing the third-fastest during this stretch with the 16th overall rebound rate.
There should be plenty of opportunities for Ayton in this one and he is a strong play to flirt with the 40-fantasy-point plateau tonight. Additionally he ranks as a fringe top-10 raw points projection in all formats.
NBA DFS Picks: Good Value
Collin Sexton: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Minnesota Timberwolves
DraftKings $5,700, FanDuel $5,100, Yahoo $20 Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 35.5%, FanDuel 48.0% Yahoo Fantasy 31.1%
With Kevin Love resting tonight and Larry Nance Jr. out until mid-January, there are plenty of available minutes and fantasy opportunities for the remaining Cavaliers. If you go to Twitter, you can find video of Love literally walking on defense with his back to the ball as well as yelling at teammates to give him the ball on offense. These are not good times in Cleveland.
Over his last nine games, Collin Sexton has topped 20 points seven times, recording 19 and zero in the other two. While most of his fantasy production is dependent on scoring, he chips in a little with some rebounds, assists and steals. This is a good matchup with Minnesota currently listing Karl Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Noah Vonleh, Jeff Teague and Treveon Graham questionable. Towns has missed nine games with a knee injury and Wiggins the last four with an illness.
John Henson: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Minnesota Timberwolves
DraftKings $3,400, FanDuel $3,600, Yahoo $10 Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 22.2%, FanDuel 27.7% Yahoo Fantasy 12.1%
There is a chance that Tristan Thompson is also out today but regardless, we can go to John Henson at a near minimum price point across the board. It is hard to believe that this is Henson’s eighth season but various injuries curtailed many of them while he was with Milwaukee. Over his career, he averages a fantasy point per minute and he has 30-fantasy-point upside in this matchup with the extra run available to him.
NBA DFS Picks: Risky Value
Kevin Porter Jr.: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Minnesota Timberwolves
Because of all of the many other options on his team, I am not nearly as high as I would have been if Kevin Porter Jr. had played last night on our nine-game slate. He was away for personal reasons but should be back in action on Sunday. In addition to the Cavs detailed above, I would prefer to go with Darius Garland or Cedi Osman before getting to Porter tonight. Garland has a more established role as the co-facilitator and Osman has more experience.
Heck, while I am at it, I would even roll with De’Anthony Melton in a “remember me” game at a similar price point.
FantasyCruncher Tip of the Day
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With the incredibly user-friendly FantasyCruncher, we can take our lineup construction to the next level.
There are a lot of nifty hidden features within FantasyCruncher. Here is a sorting trick that you may not be aware of.
If you right click on a check mark at the top of a roster, the following command menu will appear.
This can be helpful if you are sorting lineups in FantasyCruncher. You can choose or eliminate those at the top or bottom quickly based on projected ownership, points, etc.
Final Thoughts
We have a ton of moving parts with 10 teams in action. Be sure to tune into the Live Before Lock show featuring Fast Eddie Fear on YouTube, Twitch and Periscope beginning at 5 p.m. EST for all of the up-to-date information.
As always, you can reach out to me in Awesemo.com Premium Slack or on Twitter @EMacDFS if you have any NBA DFS questions about DraftKings, FanDuel, Yahoo or FantasyDraft.
Good Luck NBA DFS Gamers! ~ EMac
If you haven’t signed up for Yahoo Fantasy DFS, click this link and use the promo code Awesemo when making your first deposit and you will be eligible for $30 of free play, which Yahoo will match through the first $30 of your deposit (this bonus will be received in Yahoo Sports Rewards Points, aka YSRP which can be used to enter any paid contest immediately).
