NBA DFS Picks & Building Blocks Today: Hawks, Pelicans and Bulls! (Nov. 22)

Saturday welcomes the weekend with the NBA action tipping off at 7:00 p.m. ET on DraftKings and FanDuel. Let’s dive into the best NBA DFS picks today, including Jalen Johnson, Derik Queen, Josh Giddey and other fun decision points. These picks are based on the latest available data. For real-time lineup updates, check out our NBA DFS Starting Lineups Page.

NBA DFS Picks Today – Building Blocks: Saturday, November 22

NBA DFS Picks Today: Building Blocks

Trae Young (knee) will be out for at least another 10 days and Onyeka Okongwu is questionable with an ankle issue. In the 10 games that Johnson has played since Young was sidelined, he is averaging 35.0 minutes and 14.8 field goal attempts, with a stellar 58.1% success rate and a 63.9% eFG. This has resulted in 23.0 points, 10.7 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 2.2 stocks (combined steals and blocks).

Johnson has notched 45-plus fantasy points in each of the last six games, with highs of 92 on DraftKings and 88.6 on FanDuel. New Orleans lost in Dallas last night, with the Mavericks eking out a 118-115 victory. Currently the Hawks are 8.5-point road favorites in the Big Easy, with Jordan Poole still sidelined and both Zion Williamson (rest) and backup pivot-man Karlo Matkovic (calf) doubtful, having missed the last two games.

Kristaps Porzingis returned to action on Thursday, after missing three games with knee soreness, logging 29.1 minutes, which was his second-highest mark of the season. The Unicorn is averaging around 1.3 fantasy points per minute this season and he could flirt with the 40 fantasy point plateau with a little efficiency in his favor, against the thinned out Pelicans.

Rookie Derik Queen had a TREMENDOUS pass last night, going behind the back with a lead pass to Trey Murphy III from the top of the arc on a fast break. Definitely check out the link to the official New Orleans social media account if you have not seen the highlight. The 20-year-old joined the first five four games ago and in his last two starts, both with Williamson playing, he has averaged 31.0 minutes and 17.5 field goal attempts with a 57.1% conversion rate, leading to 25.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 2.5 stocks.

While he and Zion are competing for the same touches on the same parts of the court, considering that both are excellent passers, this tandem could actually work out. Yes, it is a two-game sample size, but very encouraging, considering tonight will be only the 17th game of Queen’s NBA journey. Over the last two games, interim head coach James Borrego has staggered the duo nicely, with each player getting around 10 to 14 minutes, without the other on the court, joining forces with the starting and closing units.

Dyson Daniels is an interesting tournament option in this “Remember Me?!” spot and he is going to make life difficult for point guards Jeremiah Fears and Jose Alvarado. Nickeil Alexander-Walker has shown 40 fantasy point upside, taking on more of a scoring role while Young has been out.

Rounding out the Pelicans, Murphy can be considered a core play, with Fears, Alvarado, Herbert Jones and Saddiq Bey roster fillers.

👉 Check Out the FREE Expert Picks »

The Free Picks on Tails are your shortcuts to smarter DFS plays AND bets … no signup, no strings. Here you will find a bunch of expert picks, Sims data, DFS strategy and more, updated daily.

Giddey played only 31 minutes, so he should be good to go against Washington tonight, it was just a little weird to see how things played out. Coby White was held out of Fridays’ game, with the intention of having him available tonight. He has played in only two games thus far, working his way back from a calf injury that kept him out of Chicago’s first 11 contests. He logged 30.3 and 27.5 minutes, so will likely be around that run again.

Vucevic should be fresh and ready to dismantle the Washington frontcourt, even if Alexandre Sarr (toe) and veteran Marvin Bagley III (hip) are available after missing Friday’s game. It is unlikely that Khris Middleton plays on the back-to-back, which frees up around 26 minutes, which will be sprinkled amongst Corey Kispert, Tre Johnson and Cam Whitmore, with any of this trio able to benefit, if they are producing on the court. If he reprises that role tonight, we can begrudgingly go back to him on DraftKings ($3,500), though it is a far tougher click on FanDuel with

Tristan Vukcevic was dreadful last night, ending up as the starting center with Sarr and Bagley out. Vucevic, Jalen Duren, Myles Turner and Zach Edey the other center-only options that would be aced out of rosters. Oh and that would also preclude gamers from rostering Nikola Jokic, which of course is never fun.

Tre Jones and Isaac Okoro are questionable for Chicago, with Dalen Terry doubtful. Washington also has a lot of questionable players, with A.J. Johnson (ankle) joining Sarr, Middleton and Bagley. Fortunately, any breaking news and the vagaries between the DraftKings and FanDuel slates will be discussed on the Stokastic NBA Live Before Lock Shows at 6:00 p.m. ET on YouTube. So tune in for up-to-date expert analysis, key insights and winning strategies to dominate your NBA DFS picks today!

Need help getting started with Stokastic’s NBA DFS Sims? Check out all of these FREE resources before making NBA DFS picks today!

• How to Use NBA DFS Sims: Expert Strategy Guide, Tips & Advice
• How Stokastic Sims Are Better Than and an NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA DFS Sims: Single-Lineup Simulator Is a Lineup-Building Godsend
• NBA DFS Contrarian Strategy: How to Use Stokastic Ownership Projections
• NBA DFS Late Swap Strategy with Stokastic’s NBA DFS Sims
• NBA DFS Leverage & Game Theory: Large Field GPP Strategy

This is a back-to-back for Denver, as well as being the third game in four days and the fourth in the last six. The Nuggets do get a respite, with games on Monday, Friday and Saturday next week. The team has won nine of the last 10 games, though in the tight Western Conference standings, the Jokic and company are three games behind Oklahoma City and only 2.5 games above the Play-In Tournament line.

Aaron Gordon was dealing with a bilateral hamstring issue and he ended up tweaking that early last night, putting his availability in doubt at least the next couple of weeks. Christian Braun (ankle) will be out until at least mid-January, which means more heavy lifting for Jokic and Jamal Murray. Cameron Johnson should finally get a 30 fantasy point game with two of his fellow starters out, though he will still be a low-usage player.

Peyton Watson, Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. should get more opportunities tonight, plus with Denver 10.5-point home favorites, mop-up duty is also in the cards.

Sacramento will be without the services of Domantas Sabonis for the next month. Drew Eubanks will likely start against Sabonis, though he is not particularly appealing from a DFS perspective, given the opportunity cost. In a wild twist, the Stokastic projections have Russell Westbrook a couple fantasy points ahead of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan

Keegan Murray (thumb) is available, though that just makes the frontcourt more nebulous with Precious Achiuwa and Maxime Raynaud backing up the center and forward positions. Dennis Schroeder has lost his starting role to Westbrook and it seems like the organization continues to hate Malik Monk. Why the franchise doesn’t showcase him for trade value continues to be a mystery.

Today’s Top Sports Betting Picks

If you’re serious about winning in NBA DFS, you know the edge comes from having the right tools. The same principle applies to sports betting, and that’s where Portfolio EV shines.

Take a bet like Josh Hart to have more than 10.5 rebounds + assists (RA) tonight. On the surface, it’s a simple play. But behind the scenes, it’s a +EV bet, meaning it’s mathematically profitable based on the best odds available. Portfolio EV finds these +EV bets and allows you to bet them at high volume with just a couple clicks, maximizing your bankroll’s long-term profitability.

Digging into the details on Portfolio EV, Hart is currently listed at -120 on Hard Rock for over 10.5 RA, which is a favorable 4.7% expected ROI when considering the “true odds” of -133. By comparison, most other operators have increased the threshold to 11.5 RA, with several posing -125 or worse lines, leading to a NEGATIVE 11% to 14% expected ROI.

Let Portfolio EV do the heavy lifting, pitting the books against each other and finding the best values from a top-down betting approach.

Follow these 4 simple steps to get Stokastic DFS Sim Tools FREE:

1. Pick a Promo
2. Sign Up & Bet
3. Show Proof
4. Claim Your Tools

It’s that easy! Now you have the best DFS tools in the business.