Friday, Dec. 3, wraps of the week with a nifty nine-game slate. 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, Friday, Dec. 3
Yahoo Play of the Day — Stephen Curry: Golden State Warriors vs. Phoenix Suns
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 45.62 | DraftKings: 48.37
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 7.0% | FanDuel 6.1% | DraftKings 1.3%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $48 | FanDuel $10,800 | DraftKings $11,900
Tonight there will be plenty of bargains available, which will make it rather easy to work in two if not three superstars. This matchup also took place on Tuesday, with Phoenix taking care of business 104-96 and holding Stephen Curry to a season-low 22.6 Yahoo points. Curry made only 4 of 24 field goal attempts for a measly 12 points. This is a back-to-back for the Suns, who dispatched the Pistons 114-103. This game has bumped the Battle for Los Angeles as Friday’s featured ESPN game. Phoenix is on an 18-game winning streak, and Curry, Draymond Green and company want another chance to knock down the Suns.
Curry is posting numbers that rival his 2015 MVP season, which is impressive given that he is now 33 years old. He is averaging 1.42 Yahoo points per minute, which is the second best of his career. With 20.3 field goal attempts per game, including an eye-popping 13.1 from beyond the arc, he is a threat to drop 40 points in any game.
Luka Doncic: Dallas Mavericks vs. New Orleans Pelicans
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 50.37 | DraftKings: 54.09
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 25.4% | FanDuel 31.3% | DraftKings 16.9%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $49 | FanDuel $10,500 | DraftKings $11,800
This afternoon Kristaps Porzingis was downgraded to doubtful with a sore knee, and giving him the night off makes since Dallas hosts Memphis tomorrow. It is important to understand that Luka Doncic does not see a change in his per-minute fantasy production with or without Porzingis on the court. Since the beginning of last season it has been a steady 1.46 Yahoo points with Porzingis and 1.47 without. There is a change in his overall usage, with an increase from 35.4% to 36.9%, and though his field goal percentage drops, he sees more shot attempts and has a bump in his rebounding rates as well. While Doncic likely has a safer floor than Curry, they have similar upside, and Curry is likely to be on one-third of rosters compared to Doncic.
According to the Awesemo Boom/Bust tool, Doncic has the highest ceiling on the slate at 61.5 points and is showing up in the optimal lineup almost 15% of the time. Be sure to check out Terry McBride’s NBA DFS Optimizer Lineup Picks & Optimal Leverage Plays for more of the best NBA tips in the industry.
Joel Embiid: Philadelphia 76ers
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 44.46 | DraftKings: 45.66
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 3.2% | FanDuel 4.9% | DraftKings 4.9%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $47 | FanDuel $10,200 | DraftKings $10,500
Since returning from his bout with COVID Joel Embiid has played 45, 30 and 33 minutes, with the most recent game being in Boston on Wednesday. Philadelphia does not play again until Monday, so do not worry about any minutes restrictions tonight. Typically it is best to be judicious when choosing centers on Yahoo because they generally have the best point-per-dollar projections and only two can be on a roster. With bargain options at literally every position tonight, Embiid is more than playable and is trending to be on less than 5% of all rosters tonight.
Yahoo Daily Fantasy Basketball Discount Dandies
Orlando Magic at Houston Rockets
Orlando surprised Denver on Wednesday, earning a 108-103 road victory to end their seven-game skid. Houston has a chance to make it five in a row tonight after they started the season 1-16, including a 15-game losing streak. Both of these teams play fast with little regard for defense, and they are each missing rotational players.
Cole Anthony, Franz Wagner, Wendell Carter Jr. and Mohamed Bamba are all outstanding mid-tier options for the Magic, and Gary Harris Jr. is at the minimum salary on Yahoo and has scored 23 or more Yahoo points in four of his last five games. The Rockets counter with a minimum-salary Garrison Mathews, and if Kevin Porter Jr. is unable to play, Armoni Brooks will slide into the lead point guard role at the minimum salary. Jae’Sean Tate is coming off a career-best performance, though keep in mind Christian Wood left that game after playing only seven minutes. Both are in play tonight, as Wood is not expected to be hampered at all by what was a minor ankle sprain.
Dallas Mavericks vs. New Orleans Pelicans
Maxi Kleber and Jalen Brunson are the direct beneficiaries if Porzingis is out as expected tonight. Even without Porzingis, Dallas is almost a double-digit home favorite against New Orleans. The Pelicans have the worst defensive efficiency in the league, allowing 111.6 points per 100 possessions. Kleber will likely draw the start and should be in the 28- to 30-minute range, and he has scored close to a fantasy point per minute in similar situations. Brunson will likely see a minutes boost via the trickledown effect, but more importantly is that he should inherit enough of field goal attempts vacated by Porzingis to be a threat for 18 to 20 points and, even better, 35 to 40 Yahoo points.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS picks for the Friday, Dec. 3 Slate
There are several questionable players who may be ruled out tonight, which will shift the landscape once again. Be sure to monitor the starting lineups for Miami, Indiana, Washington, Minnesota and New Orleans. 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.
