Friday, Jan. 24 wraps up the work week with a 10-game 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 Domatas Sabonis, Dewayne Dedmon and more.
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Don’t forget to check out the NBA Strategy Show featuring Josh Engleman and Dave “Loughy” Loughran as they break down the NBA DFS slate and give out their thoughts on injury news and other NBA DFS analysis.
Also, be sure to read Chris Spags’ Switch and Hedge for more NBA DFS picks and analysis.
NBA DFS Picks: Prime Time Players
Domantas Sabonis: Indiana Pacers at Golden State Warriors
DraftKings $8,600, FanDuel $8,400, Yahoo $35 Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 11.6%, FanDuel 14.7% Yahoo Fantasy 27.4%
Malcolm Brogdon is out for this game with a concussion. I was surprised that Domantas Sabonis really only sees about a 10% bump in his per minute fantasy production when Brogdon is off the court. Over 707.5 minutes without the former Brogdon, Sabonis has compiled a 24.3% usage with 1.25 fantasy points per minute. This is a good matchup for the Pacers as Golden State has allowed 111.1 points per 100 possessions over the last month which is in the bottom third of the league. During this stretch, the Warriors are also playing at a top-10 pace.
At this reasonable price point, we can easily work in a top-shelf option at another position which makes Sabonis an excellent building block in our cash games.
NBA DFS Picks: Good Value
T.J. McConnell and Aaron Holiday: Indiana Pacers at Golden State Warriors
McConnell: DraftKings $4,900, FanDuel $4,200, Yahoo $13 Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 7.6%, FanDuel 12.5% Yahoo Fantasy 10.8%
Holiday: DraftKings $4,500, FanDuel $3,800, Yahoo $10 Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings 14.2%, FanDuel 13.1% Yahoo Fantasy 13.2%
We should see Aaron Holiday rejoin the starting lineup with Malcolm Brogdon out with a concussion. While I would prefer to not have both of these players on my main roster, that is more of a function with 20 teams taking the court tonight and providing other value plays that will be revealed throughout the day as news breaks. On the later slate, I would have no issues with this duo in the same lineup.
My slight preference is towards T.J. McConnell, but there is a 10% price break across the board for Holiday that should keep things close.
Yahoo Fantasy Discount Dandies
Shabazz Napier at HOU – $13
Monte Morris at NOP – $12
Willie Cauley-Stein vs. IND – $11
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NBA DFS Picks: Risky Value
Dewayne Dedmon: Sacramento Kings at Chicago Bulls
DraftKings $4,600, FanDuel $3,900, Yahoo $10 Ownership Rating (preliminary run): DraftKings TBA%, FanDuel TBA% Yahoo Fantasy TBA%
It has already been announced that Marvin Bagley III will be out on Friday and it would make a lot of sense for offseason acquisition Dewayne Dedmon to draw another start in his stead. Again Detroit (without Andre Drummond) on Wednesday, the former Atlanta pivot had a double-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds and two assists in 31.1 minutes. Over his last two seasons with the Hawks, Dedmon averaged just over a fantasy point per minute. This season in sporadic duty with the Kings, he is averaging 0.83 fantasy points per minute. Let’s split the difference and project him for 0.9 in this matchup, making him an excellent discount dandy on Friday, if he starts. Those are the key words.
What kind of risk are we talking about here?
This is an 8 p.m. EST tip-off so we may or may not have news regarding Dedmon’s starting status. Since Jan. 7, Bagley and Richaun Holmes have both been out in the same game three times. The first time was on Jan. 7 with Harry Giles drawing the start and sharing the 48 minutes at center with Dedmon, who got 31.6 and Giles the other 16.4. This game was in Phoenix, who gave heavy minutes to both Deandre Ayton and Aron Baynes.
The second time was the next game on Jan. 10 when Giles again drew the start against Milwaukee with Dedmon backing him up for 4.7 minutes in the first quarter and 6.8 minutes in the third quarter. The Bucks played a combination of the Robin and Brook Lopez for just over 30 minutes.
Dedmon is reasonably nimble for a center and he has developed a 3-point shot, but who knows what coach Luke Walton is going to do. Dedmon signed a three-year, $41 million dollar deal this off-season and is unhappy with his current situation. This would be the perfect time to start showcasing Dedmon, though considering general manager Vlade Divac is also involved, there is no plan.
As long as Dedmon is starting, he is worth the risk. Just remember what happened last night with Boban Marjanovic getting a DNP.
NBA DFS Picks: SuperDraft
Deandre Ayton: Phoenix Suns at San Antonio Spurs – 1.45x multiplier
Nemanja Bjelica: Sacramento Kings at Chicago Bulls- 1.4x multiplier
Zion Williamson: New Orleans Pelicans vs. Denver Nuggetts – 2.0x multiplier
Our standout SuperDraft recommendations for today are Deandre Ayton who rolled up 25 points and 12 rebounds in this same matchup two games ago. Nemanja Bjelica should be locked in for 30-32 minutes and 12-15 field goal attempts with Marvin Bagley III and Richaun Holmes out of the picture. Then, of course, there is Zion Williamson, who started a little slow in his regular season debut, but finished strong.
If you haven’t signed up for SuperDraft DFS, click this link and use the promo code Awesemo when making your first deposit of at least $100 and you will be eligible for $20 of free play. That will be provided in SuperDraft Cash which can be used to enter any paid contest immediately.
Final Thoughts
We are waiting on a tremendous amount of injury news that will of course shape the slate accordingly.
Be sure to tune in to the Deeper Dive/Live Before Lock shows on YouTube, Twitch and Periscope beginning at 5 p.m. EST tonight 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 SuperDraft DFS, click this link and use the promo code Awesemo when making your first deposit of at least $100 and you will be eligible for $20 of free play. It will be provided in SuperDraft Cash which can be used to enter any paid contest immediately.