Daily Fantasy NBA Basketball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster 1/19/15

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This is an enormous, full day slate with a ton of considerations. I'm going to highlight some of the premium plays and then guys you can consider along the way.

Point Guard

Goran Dragic - FD 7000 DK 6800 DFSTR 5600
Isaiah Thomas - FD 5200 DK 5000 DFSTR 5600
Any time a team is playing the Lakers you need to consider anyone from that team tasked with dribbling the ball over the half court line. In this case Dragic and Thomas fit the bill and make for sensational points/ $ plays across the board. Thomas is of course more of a GPP play if he were to see more run in a blowout. But Dragic is a great deal considering the Lakers allow 25% more scoring than league average and 17% more assists to opposing point guards. If even if those numbers are insanely noisy, they're still significantly worse than anyone else in the league. I'm consistently targeting this position against LA.

Brian Roberts - FD 3500 DK 4200
He was a per minute disaster the other night in getting the start for Kemba Walker. It wasn't pretty. But it looks like Kemba will sit again and I'm going back to Roberts. The minutes were there and the Hornets don't have anyone else to turn to. He's still a minimum-priced player who should see 30 minutes. That's all you know and if I get the word that Walker is definitely out again I won't hesitate to play Roberts again.

Mo Williams - FD 6300 DK 6300
His price has climbed thanks to some higher ownership nights as well as one epic performance. He is wasn't great against Denver the other night, but he's still playing insane minutes for Minny and has a nice matchup against Brian Roberts and a weaker Charlotte squad. The scoring can be there on the right nights and he's dishing out enough assists the keep the floor higher. He's still a value even with the price climb.

John Wall - FD 8700 DK 9300
While the Sixers have actually done an okay job controlling opposing point guard scoring, they struggle just defending opposing teams in general and the PG capitalizes in both rebounding and assists. The Sixers' pace of game is still among the fastest in the league while their defensive efficiency is middle of the pack. That means we can target a bunch of Wizards, Wall included, on the volume alone.

Consider Beno Udrih if Conley sits again. Also consider Derrick Rose who's playing at a high level right now. And finally Chris Paul should see some opportunities against the Celtics.

 

Shooting Guard

Tyreke Evans - FD 7400 DK 8400
It kind of doesn't matter what position he plays in this one: the Knicks blow defending everyone so Evans is in a good spot. He plays a hybrid even with with a full Pelican squad and if Holiday's out again he'll control the point. Again: the Knicks are just horrendous. They can't defend at all and are turnover machines. I'm content playing Evans if Jrue is back and will definitely have him in if he's running things again.

Eric Bledsoe - FD 8200 DK 8600 DFSTR 7300
The Lakers aren't playing at the same pace they were early in the season, but are still getting it up and down the court (and mostly just getting shots up quick) to combine with just being an abomination on defense. I definitely want to have exposure to the Phoenix guards in this one, Bledsoe being one of the main guys even considering the elevated price tag. He's able to capitalize on sloppier teams averaging 1.5 steals per game and does enough across the stat line to keep the floor higher for cash games.

Bradley Beal - FD 6400 DK 6300
He doesn't crush it in either rebounding or assists (even for the position) but he does throw in enough steals on the right night to go along with the scoring. The rebounds are there from time to time, but be aware that he has some no-shows that can crush you. Has a solid matchup against the Sixers who allow worse than league average scoring to opposing shooting guards. On the early slate he's a solid value.

Wesley Matthews - FD 5700 DK 5600 DFSTR
The Kings are well below average defending the two and Matthews has a nice floor simply because of the amount of run he gets on any every given night. If the scoring isn't there you are in big trouble, so keep that in mind.

Eric Gordon - FD 4900 DK 5300
The minutes are back in abundance and the Knicks stink. Have no problem pairing him and Tyreke together in cash games. He's been remarkably consistent at these prices.

Consider Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and
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Small Forward

This is a very tough position today.
Andrew Wiggins - FD 7700 DK 7300
I'm not sure Wiggins has tons of upside at this price today considering Charlotte doesn't allow a ton of production to opposing shooting guards. But the DFS SF landscape is pretty garbage today and Wiggins has the benefit of minutes to go with being one of his team's primary scorers. Again, our system is a little bear-ish on the guy because it really dislikes the matchup. But Wiggins gets a slight nod for the minutes.

Jeff Green - FD 5500 DK 4900
Though he isn't starting for the Grizzlies, they are still running him out there for about thirty minutes a game. Granted that slight minutes bump has come with Conley out of the lineup. But the role they have him in has him getting up more than 10 shots per game and if he's scoring then this price is easy to pay. Now, he is scoring dependent because the rest of his game doesn't lend itself to a well-rounded fantasy line. But he's coming very cheap after the trade and run is still there as the Grizzlies primary scoring option off the bench.

DeMarre Carroll - FD 5400 DK 5100
I'm very hesitant to get any big money into this position today because the options are really limited from a value perspective. Carroll has a solid matchup against Kyle Singler and the Pistons who allow worse than league average scoring and rebounding to the opposing small forward. Carroll can put up super solid numbers when he's given some space has the skill set that allows him ways to pitch in across the stat line.

Consider cheaper Phlly SFs and Suns SFs as well. None of them are safe by any means. But they are cheap. Also, consider Rudy Gay if Boogie sits again though I'm not over the moon about getting bigger money in on the guy.

 

Power Forward

Pau Gasol - FD 9300 DK 9500 DFSTR 7800
Taj Gibson - FD 5300 DK 5800 DFSTR 5300
With Noah out these two have been playing but-so minutes. Like really crazy, 40 minutes per game type of run. Thibs is content to run his dudes into the ground and doesn't seem to care whether it's right or wrong. It's fine by me though. I love the floor it provides each at their respective prices and Taj is especially enticing in terms of value. He hasn't completely blown away his prices but he's actually shot under his career averages and still been more than serviceable. He could easily crush in the right scenario. The game against the Cavs could provide that as they've had issues with front court guys all season (Mozgov might help some, but not tons). I'd be fine putting these guys together in cash games.

Blake Griffin - FD 10000 DK 9800
The Celtics has a real bad problem when it comes to defending opposing power forwards. Their problem is that they don't really do it at all. They allow worse than league average production in every single fantasy category thanks to a combination of lack of size and high volume style of play. That's a fantastic combo for a guy like Blake who can get out in the open floor against them and also work them inside and out in the halfcourt game.

Paul Millsap - FD 8200 DK 8400
The Pistons seem greatly improved as a team since jettisoning Josh Smith, but they have still spent much of the year struggling to defend the low posts. Athletic big men can get to the rim against them and score. Millsap is just that kind of player. He's most likely more of a cash game guy in this scenario as he doesn't always blow it out of the box. That being said, our system has him at a high multiplier even with the more expensive salaries.

J.J. Hickson - FD 4700 DK 5000
Even projected at only 25 minutes, and against a great Warriors' squad, Hickson has a solid floor at his prices even if Brian Shaw decides to roll more Faried tonight. If Hickson get up closer to 30 minutes for whatever reason then he is easily paying this.

Consider Tristan Thompson if he's playing for Love again tonight. Also consider Jared Sullinger as well as Nene Hilario in a GPP.

 

Center

Marcin Gortat - FD 5900 DK 5900
His price has really come down over the short term thanks to some variable minutes and lack of production. You are in a great place to buy him today as he's in the lower mid tier of salaries against a Philly squad allowing worse than league average production in every category to opposing centers. Gortat is a fantastic value on his slate and will most likely be a high percentage start. It's the right move as he doesn't even need full run to pay this price. In the off chance that Philly keeps it close then he will crush it.

Alex Len - FD 5300 DK 4800 DFSTR 4000
He's playing consistent minutes for the Suns right now. At as consistent minutes as one needs to get money in good against the Lakers. He's posted double digit boards in his last four games and pitched in enough scoring and blocks to make me feel safe playing the guy. The blocks are very much a real thing as he's averaging about 3 a game over the last couple of weeks.

Strongly consider Demarcus Cousins if he is back in the lineup tonight. Chris Kaman is also a value who looks a lot better if Boogie isn't around. And finally Zaza Pachulia is still in play with Sanders out.
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