Sunday winds down the weekend with a six-game featured slate, locking at 6:00 p.m. ET tipoff on FanDuel. while DraftKings is electing to begin their contests at 7:30 p.m. ET with the five remaining games. There are several options in the player pool worth analyzing to find the top NBA DFS building blocks and NBA DFS picks. De’Aaron Fox, Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic and the Portland Trail Blazers look like the key tournament options. Let’s dig into the NBA DFS picks and core plays.
NBA DFS Picks & Building Blocks Today: Sunday, November 19
Core Play of the Day — De’Aaron Fox: Sacramento Kings at Dallas Mavericks
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Point Projections: DraftKings: 50.68 | FanDuel: 49.61
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: DraftKings: 18.1% | FanDuel: 12.9%
- DFS Salary: DraftKings: $9,300 | FanDuel: $9,800
This is a lofty salary for De’Aaron Fox, but the soon-to-be 26-year-old has certainly earned it. On Friday, Fox authored a masterpiece against the Spurs in San Antonio. In 40.7 minutes, he tallied 43 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, one block and one steal. In his six healthy games, the former Kentucky Wildcat is averaging 36.8 minutes and 22.7 field goal attempts, with a 50.7% success rate. This has culminated in 32.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 6.0 assists, and 2.2 combined blocks and steals.
Dallas had a rough 132-125 loss in Milwaukee last night, ceding 43 points in the final frame, which more than erased the Mavericks’ 10-point lead. On the season, the Mavs are allowing 118.2 points per 100 possessions, which is the fifth-worst defensive efficiency in the league. They are also averaging 102.3 possessions per 48 minutes, which is the fifth-fastest pace and a far cry from their 96.1 average last year, which was a league low.
This game has a 243.5 projected point total, which bodes well for Domantas Sabonis and Keegan Murray on DraftKings. There is a chance that Kevin Huerter (finger) will be out tonight, so that would boost Malik Monk on both sites. Kyrie Irving is a strong play on both FanDuel {$8,500) and DraftKings ($8,800); he played 34 minutes last night, so should be in line for a similar role tonight.
Luka Doncic just missed out on a triple-double, with 35 points, nine rebounds and nine assists in 35 minutes of run. He is expected to be a full-go tonight, though at his lofty salary, he is more of a luxury option than a must-play.
Portland Trail Blazers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
Looking at the 1 p.m. ET projections, the Blazers are going to be well represented in tournaments tonight, as five of the six most popular players on DraftKings are from Portland. On FanDuel, Jerami Grant and Shaedon Sharpe are the two most popular options, coming in on nearly half of all lineups. FanDuel has the 6 p.m. ET game between the Nuggets and Cavaliers, which has a few Cleveland players ahead of the next Trail Blazer options.
This is a back-to-back for Oklahoma City and the third game in four days. Last night the Thunder beat the Warriors in San Francisco 130-123 in overtime. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalin Williams each logged 41 minutes, and rookie Chet Holmgren played 37 while scoring a career-best 36 points, including the game-tying 3-pointer as time expired. Gilgeous-Alexander had 10 of his 40 points to lead the team in the extra period.
It would not be a shock if one of this trio were to get the night off tonight, though that will just open up more minutes for some of the secondary players like Josh Giddey and Isaiah Joe.
Portland continues to be without Malcolm Brogdon, Scoot Henderson and Anfernee Simons, so we can expect Sharpe, Grant and Deandre Ayton to be three of the best fantasy options from the Pacific Northwest. Skylar Mays, Toumani Camara and Jabari Walker are secondary options on the full slate, though they have greater appeal on the late slate.
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Additional NBA Building Blocks Pick — Sports Betting Opportunities
Jusuf Nurkic stands out tonight in his matchup against the Jazz in Utah, with a +240 line on his double-double prop. NBA Bet Pro currently has him projected for 25.2 minutes, 11.05 points and 8.59 rebounds. The “True Odds” (how OddsShopper measures the potential expected ROI of a given wager) are +246, which indicates that this bet has a slightly negative ROI at just under -2%. Though, it is still a reasonable risk/reward scenario.
Nurkic has just three double-doubles in his 12 games, so it is key to look at the matchups when considering the 29-year-old for wagers. In this same scenario on Friday, he had 15 points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes, but now he has been at the Salt Lake City elevation for another 48 hours. One other hidden item is that Nurkic has three other games of nine rebounds, so he is very much live to reach the double-double milestone tonight, particularly if he is on the court for closer to 28 to 30 minutes.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS Picks & Building Blocks Today
Be ready for Sunday shenanigans, as the injury reporting tends to be more lax when all eyes are on the NBA and there is usually at least one major surprise. For those looking to expand their avenues beyond DFS, but do not have legalized sports wagering in their state — be sure to check out a the latest fantasy prop site in Vivid Picks – new users, use this link receive a $300 first deposit match AND your first play is secured for up to $25 in Vivid credit if it loses.
