We’ll get the ball rolling on a new week of NBA DFS with a modest four-game Monday slate! Let’s make it a great week and hone in on some top DFS plays and prop bets!

Written By: Ryan Humphries on Twitter & LineStar chat @Ryan_Humphries

Straight Locks🔒 | NBA Props w/ Shannon & Tyler!

DFS Main Slate Rundown 📰

Time to get set for another week of NBA DFS action with a little four-piece slate waiting on deck this evening! Despite the small slate, there is a decent selection of stud players available at the top of DFS pricing. The mid-range feels a bit lacking but the value range is set up fairly well thanks to a number of injury absences on the board. Let’s crush it -- best of luck!

Today’s Key Injuries:

Pistons: B. Bogdanovic - OUT, J. Ivey - OUT, I. Stewart - Questionable, J. Duren - OUT, N. Noel - OUT

Hornets: PJ Washington - Doubtful

Heat: T. Herro - Questionable, K. Love - Probable, K. Lowry - OUT, N. Jovic - OUT

76ers: D. Dedmon - OUT

Celtics: J. Brown - OUT, D. White - Probable

Knicks: None

Magic: J. Isaac - OUT

Pelicans: Z. Williamson - OUT, L. Nance Jr. - OUT

Main Slate Match-Ups w/ Game Totals & Point Spreads

Top DraftKings & FanDuel DFS Plays

Note: NBA position designations are never going to perfectly align between the major DFS sites. For the purposes of these newsletters, positional designations will default to DraftKings.

💫 = Favorite Play

Point Guards/Shooting Guards to Consider 🏀

💫PG LaMelo Ball, CHA | DK: $10.3k, FD: $10.3k | vs. DET | Cash & GPP

Given the value available on this small slate, it’s going to be fairly easy to fit LaMelo Ball into lineups tonight. His $10,300 salary on both sites makes him the highest-priced guard on the slate but it still leaves plenty of meat on the bone for value. Ball has gone for at least 62.5 DKFP in three of his past four games and the likely absence of PJ Washington (foot/doubtful) has led to a non-insignificant +2.49% usage bump for Ball this season. The Hornets lead the slate with a 120.8 implied point total as they draw a premium match-up against the Pistons, who rank 29th in defensive efficiency. He’ll be chalky as hell tonight, but LaMelo Ball makes a ton of sense as a spend-up target on this slate.

SG Josh Richarson, NOP | DK: $5.4k, FD: $6.2k | vs. ORL | Cash & GPP

Josh Richardson is beginning to settle into a solid role with his new team after being sent over from San Antonio ahead of the trade deadline earlier this month. He has started the last two games for New Orleans and most recently logged 34 minutes despite a 22-point blowout loss to the Knicks on Saturday. He’s scoring right around a fantasy point per minute lately and he’ll be facing a middling Magic defense. Richardson has been a strong source of the two premium DFS stats -- steals and blocks. In four games played with the Pelicans (29.0 Min. Gm), Richardson has accumulated 14 steals and three blocks (4.25 STL+BLK/Gm). The Magic rank among the bottom 10 in both opponent steals and opponent blocks allowed per game. He’ll be a better bargain on DraftKings at $5,400 but he’s certainly playable on FanDuel at $6,200 as well. Mid-30s minutes should lead to a safe DFS floor from Richardson this evening!

💫SG Alec Burks, DET | DK: $3.5k, FD: $5k | @ CHA | DK Preferred

The Pistons are the most shorthanded team on this slate as they’ll be without three, possibly four, of their day-to-day starters. Bojan Bogdanovic, Jaden Ivey, and Jalen Duren are all out while Isaiah Stewart is listed as questionable with a hip injury. And, of course, that list isn’t including the would-be starting PG Cade Cunningham, who is out for the season and hasn’t played since Nov. 9th. So there are ample rotation minutes to go around, particularly in the Pistons' backcourt. Alec Burks is a candidate to slide into the starting lineup, but even if he continues to play off the bench, he should be able to find 25-30 minutes of action tonight. Given his 1.02 FPPM average this season combined with a match-up with a fast-paced Hornets team that doesn’t specialize in defense whatsoever, that makes him a prime value target on DraftKings at $3,500 -- more of a GPP play at $5,000 on FanDuel.

Other Guards to Consider:

PG Jalen Brunson, NYK | DK: $8.5k, FD: $8.4k | vs. BOS | GPP Preferred

💫PG/SG Terry Rozier, CHA | DK: $6.8k, FD: $7.5k | vs. DET | GPP Preferred

PG Malcolm Brogdon, BOS | DK: $5.7k, FD: $6.3k | @ NYK | GPP Preferred

💫PG/SG Derrick White, BOS | DK: $5.5k, FD: $6.9k | @ NYK | DK Preferred

PG Killian Hayes, DET | DK: $4.6k, FD: $5.4k | @ CHA | Cash & GPP

Small Forwards/Power Forwards to Consider 🏀

PF Julius Randle, NYK | DK: $9.3k, FD: $9.5k | vs. BOS | GPP Preferred

If you’re spending up on a forward tonight, the “safer” route would be to roll with Jayson Tatum, whose already massive usage sees a solid +3.31% bump with Jaylen Brown (personal/out) off the floor. Julius Randle makes for a worthy pivot from Tatum if you’re trying to go against the grain a bit. Randle is a near lock to secure 40+ FP on any given night and while his huge ceiling games have not been as commonplace as they were in late December into January, he is coming off of a monstrous 46-point performance (58.5 DKFP) two games ago against the Wizards. This game owns the slowest combined pace on the slate but it also boasts the closest spread with the Knicks being slight +2.5-point home underdogs. The last game played between these two teams went into overtime so we can expect another tightly contested showdown in Madison Square Garden tonight. If Jalen Brunson has another passive scoring night, Randle may very well take over and drop another massive offensive performance.

💫SF/PF Gordon Hayward, CHA | DK: $6k, FD: $6.2k | vs. DET | Cash & GPP

As mentioned in the intro, the mid-range is lacking many standout DFS options this evening but Gordon Hayward is one player we can look to target on this four-game slate. He hasn’t had a spectacular season by any means and multiple lengthy injury stints have kept him sidelined for a good chunk of 2022-23 games. However, he has upped his production to 1.21 FPPM over the Hornets’ last five games. That is largely due to a pair of outlier performances (49.75 DKFP vs. ATL, 58.25 DKFP @ MIN) but he has scored at least 27.25 DKFP during that five-game stretch. With PJ Washington likely out of the lineup for a second consecutive game, we can feel safer about Hayward’s floor. He leads the Hornets with a team-high +3% usage bump and +7.17 FP (per 48 min.) average with Washington off the court this season. Kelly Oubre Jr. is also likely to be on some sort of minutes limit while playing off of the bench. LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier should be the top two offensive options tonight, but Hayward may be a not-so-distant third.

💫SF/SG Hamidou Diallo, DET | DK: $3.6k, FD: $5.1k | @ CHA | DK Preferred

We’ll go back to the Pistons for another value play. Some guys are going to have to pick up some offensive slack that is left behind by guys like Bojan Bogdanovic, Jaden Ivey, and Jalen Duren (all out). When those players have been off the court this season (including Cade Cunningham), Diallo has taken on a team-high +4.3% usage increase and +9.96 FP (per 48 min.) average. He already plays a key role off of the Pistons’ bench but generally only plays around 16-20 minutes a night. If he can push for mid-20s minutes, he’ll be an excellent value target on DraftKings and a worthy GPP target on FanDuel.

Other Forwards to Consider:

💫SF/PF Jayson Tatum, BOS | DK: $10.2k, FD: $11k | @ NYK | Cash & GPP

SF Brandon Ingram, NOP | DK: $8k, FD: $8.2k | vs. ORL | Cash & GPP

PF/C Kevin Love, MIA | DK: $5.4k, FD: $5.6k | @ PHI | GPP Preferred

💫PF/C James Wiseman, DET | DK: $3.7k, FD: $4.8k | @ CHA | DK Preferred

PF/C Bol Bol, ORL | DK: $3.1k, FD: $4.3k | @ NOP | DK Preferred

Centers to Consider 🏀

C Joel Embiid, PHI | DK: $11k, FD: $12k | vs. MIA | GPP Preferred

It’s a terrible match-up against a very leisurely-paced Miami squad (28th in pace) who ranks 1st against opposing centers over their last 20 games. So, despite popping off for 60.5+ DKFP in five of his last six games, Joel Embiid is going to be a touch risky tonight. However, most folks will avoid him in favor of spending up on other studs like LaMelo Ball or Jayson Tatum, so that makes Embiid a prime GPP target at depressed ownership (by four-game slate standards).

💫C Guillermo Hernangomez, NOP | DK: $3.6k, FD: $4.6k | vs. ORL | GPP Preferred

There are some safer center options listed below but with Larry Nane Jr. (ankle) taking a seat tonight, Willy Hernangomez should see some decent run at backup center. He’s an absolute fantasy point-per-minute monster, averaging 1.31 FPPM on the season and an eye-popping 1.92 FPPM over his last five games played. Larry Nance Jr. last sat out on Feb. 15th against the Lakers and, in only 17 minutes played, Hernangomez posted a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double (28.75 DKFP) and when Nance left the game early on Saturday, Hernangomez needed just 11 minutes to notch a 25.0 DKFP score. Even if he doesn’t crack 20 minutes tonight, he’ll carry some significant GPP appeal given his ultra-efficient per-minute upside.

Other Centers to Consider:

C Jonas Valanciunas, NOP | DK: $6.4k, FD: $6.1k | vs. ORL | GPP Preferred

💫C Mark Williams, CHA | DK: $5.9k, FD: $6.6k | vs. DET | Cash & GPP

💫C Mitchell Robinson, NYK | DK: $5.2k, FD: $6.5k | vs. BOS | DK Preferred

💫C Marvin Bagley III, DET | DK; $4.5k, FD: $4.9k | @ CHA | Cash & GPP

NBA Player Props 📊

Player Prop or Bet | Odds | Unit Bet Size

Mitchell Robinson OVER 16.5 Points/Rebounds/Assists | -115 (Caesars) | 2.0 Units

Josh Richardson OVER 1.5 Steals | +114 (Caesars) | 2.0 Units

PrizePicks Power Play ⚡

Here is a two-pick “Power Play” I’m liking for today's NBA action over on PrizePicks! Nothing is ever a guarantee to hit but I put my own money on these bets so I don't just lightly throw these out there without believing they'll cash! If it hits, it will return 3x the wager.

Mitchell Robinson MORE than 22.5 Fantasy Score

Terry Rozier MORE than 1.5 BLKS + STLS

🆕 Props AI 🆕

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Speaking of props, put the Props AI tool to use by signing up for PrizePicks (Promo code: BETFULLY) or Underdog (Promo code: LINESTAR). You'll receive a 100% match on first deposits up to $100 PLUS a free two-month subscription to LineStar Premium. Many people may not realize that you can legally place prop bets in most states using UnderDog (or PrizePicks) – it’s called Pick'Em, and it’s incredibly easy.

That will wrap us up with today’s “Daily Dribble” edition! Once again, you can find me on Twitter or in LineStar chat @Ryan_Humphries. Good luck everyone!