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

No NBA DFS video today!

🏀Tyler’s NBA (and other sports) prop bets can be found on the LineStar YouTube Shorts page!🏀

DFS Main Slate Rundown 📰

Monday gets us rolling with a modest four-game NBA main slate. Both DraftKings and FanDuel have elected to exclude the two late West Coast games from their respective main slates, which is a bit surprising, especially for FanDuel, as they’ll typically include the late games, particularly on a smaller slate. But we’ll roll with it!

The matchups themselves are fairly underwhelming. Three games feature spreads under six points, but all of those contests come with relatively low totals. The lone high-total game on the slate (UTA at CLE, 249.5 O/U) also carries a sizeable 13.5-point spread, which opens up the potential blowout risk. By four-game slate standards, we’re also dealing with a fairly busy injury report, with several questionable tags that could meaningfully impact rotations.

It’s not the cleanest slate on paper, but we’ll play the hand we’re dealt and see what we can cook up. Best of luck!

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

Today’s Key Injuries 🚑

^{Note: NBA injury reports can be fickle and often update throughout the day. Be sure to stay up-to-date on all injury news leading up to tip-off as the list below may be a bit outdated by the time you’re reading this.}

^{Additional Note: Players who have yet to play this season will be excluded from the injury report, unless they have either a probable, questionable, or doubtful injury designation, with some amount of chance to make their season debut. Injured players who have been out for an extended period of time and/or are not expected to play for a month-plus will also be excluded.}

• Jazz: None

• Cavs: D. Wade – OUT

• 76ers: J. Embiid – Questionable, P. George – Questionable

• Raptors: B. Ingram – Questionable, RJ Barrett – OUT, J. Poeltl – OUT, J. Walter – OUT

• Celtics: J. Brown – DOUBTFUL, S. Hauser – Questionable, J. Minott – OUT

• Pacers: A. Nembhard – Questionable, B. Mathurin – OUT, I. Jackson – OUT

• Nets: C. Thomas – OUT, E. Demin – OUT, Z. Williams – OUT

• Mavs: A. Davis – OUT, PJ Washington – DOUBTFUL, D. Gafford – Questionable, B. Williams – DOUBTFUL, M. Cisse – Questionable

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.

Point Guards/Shooting Guards to Consider 🏀

SG Donovan Mitchell, CLE | DK: $9.4k, FD: $9.6k | vs. UTA

Cleveland draws the clear top game environment on the slate, checking in as 13.5-point home favorites with a slate-high 131.5 implied team total in a matchup carrying an eye-popping 250.5 O/U. Donovan Mitchell is the centerpiece of that Cleveland upside, averaging 31.0 PPG, 34.8% USG%, 52.5 DKFP, and 1.58 FPPM over his last five games. Utah ranks dead last in DEFRTG and is allowing a league-high 127.3 PPG – and both teams in this matchup are top-six in pace – making this an ideal spot for Mitchell to do damage. While the spread suggests blowout risk, the Jazz are relatively healthy and capable of keeping this competitive, which would push Mitchell toward a full workload. On a small slate with limited true spend-up options, Mitchell stands out as one of the top raw-points plays.

PG/SG Derrick White, BOS | DK: $8.4k, FD: $8.3k | at IND

Derrick White stands out as one of the top pay-up options on this four-game slate, especially with Jaylen Brown listed as doubtful. The matchup is a strong one, as Indiana ranks 20th in DEFRTG, plays at a top-10 pace, and is allowing the most FPPG to starting shooting guards over their last 20 games. With Brown off the floor this season, White’s role expands meaningfully, as his USG% jumps 7.5 percentage points, from 22.2% to 29.7%, while his per-minute production rises from 1.04 to 1.26 FPPM. Boston has already beaten the Pacers twice this season by an average margin of 13 points, and White had solid games in both of those contests. Without Brown available tonight, the 5.5-point spread hints at a more competitive game compared to the first two meetings. Dual PG/SG eligibility only adds to White’s appeal on a slate where reliable ceiling options are limited.

PG Tyrese Martin, BKN | DK: $3k, FD: $3.6k | at DAL

Brooklyn is on the second leg of a back-to-back and will be extremely thin in the backcourt, with Cam Thomas, Egor Demin, and Ziaire Williams all ruled out. That should leave Tyrese Martin and Nolan Traore (DK: $3.3k, FD: $3.8k) to split point guard duties, with Martin the more likely candidate to draw the start. He’s averaged a modest 0.85 FPPM on the season, but that figure jumps to 1.01 FPPM with Thomas, Demin, and Williams off the floor. After mostly falling out of the rotation in recent weeks, Martin stepped back into a 21-minute role off the bench last night and responded with 17 points and 28.75 DKFP. Even if he doesn’t reach 30 minutes as a starter, a mid-20s workload should be enough to put him firmly in play at the stone-minimum $3,000 on DraftKings and near-minimum $3,600 on FanDuel. The Nets are also only 4.5-point underdogs this evening, and Dallas has allowed the second-most FPPG to starting point guards over their last 20 games.

Other Guards to Consider

PG Tyrese Maxey, PHI at TOR (Boost if Embiid and/or George are out)

PG Keyonte George, UTA at CLE

PG Andrew Nembhard, IND vs. BOS (Currently questionable)

PG Payton Pritchard, BOS at IND

PG TJ McConnell, IND vs. BOS (Preferred if Nembhard is out)

PG/SG Anfernee Simons, BOS at IND

PG Ryan Nembhard, DAL vs. BKN (Assuming he starts again)

PG Jamal Shead, TOR vs. PHI (Preferred if Ingram is out + Shead starts again)

SG Terance Mann, BKN at DAL

SG/SF Hugo Gonzalez, BOS at IND (Boost if Hauser is out)

PG Nolan Traore, BKN at DAL (Boost if starting)

Small Forwards/Power Forwards to Consider 🏀

SF Michael Porter Jr., BKN | DK: $8.7k, FD: $9.2k | at DAL

Michael Porter Jr. will be in the lineup tonight after sitting out the front end of the back-to-back yesterday, and he continues to operate as the clear focal point of Brooklyn’s offense. Despite the Nets’ struggles, Porter has been extremely dependable from a DFS standpoint, averaging a career-high 25.9 PPG, 7.4 RPG, and 3.4 APG while shooting 49% from the field and just under 40% from three-point range. With Cam Thomas, Egor Demin, and Ziaire Williams off the floor, his usage spikes to a hefty 32.9% USG%, giving him one of the strongest offensive roles on the slate. This matchup also provides the Nets with the largest pace boost on the slate – BKN: 27th in pace, DAL: 5th in pace. Porter already showed his offensive effectiveness in this spot by dropping 34 points on the Mavericks when these teams met a month ago.

SF/PG Cooper Flagg, DAL | DK: $8k, FD: $8.9k | vs. BKN

Cooper Flagg is likely to be one of the most popular forwards on this four-game slate, and the underlying setup makes sense despite the volatility. Dallas’ rotation is back to being thinned out -- Anthony Davis (hand) is set to miss multiple months, while both PJ Washington and Brandon Williams are listed as doubtful, which opens up a clear path for Flagg to take on a leading offensive role. He’s coming off a major dud against Chicago, but we just saw the ceiling one game prior when he exploded for 60 DKFP with a near triple-double against Utah. Brooklyn provides a favorable matchup, ranking 22nd in DEFRTG, and Flagg’s ability to contribute across scoring, rebounding, and playmaking gives him multiple paths to upside. He’s also averaging 2.2 STL+BLK/gm over his last five, which is a nice bonus. On a short slate with limited high-end options, Flagg profiles as a strong tournament play with legitimate slate-breaking potential if the usage consolidates as expected.

PF/C Collin Murray-Boyles, TOR | DK: $5.1k, FD: $5.5k | vs. PHI

You don’t often see the same teams face off in back-to-back nights in the same arena, but that’s exactly what we have here with Toronto hosting Philadelphia again for the second time in as many days. Murray-Boyles just turned in his best game of the season in this same matchup, stuffing the stat sheet for 17 points, 15 rebounds, three assists, three blocks, and three steals – good for 52.8 DKFP while logging a massive 43 minutes. The back-to-back isn’t overly concerning given the rookie’s age, and Toronto remains thin with RJ Barrett and Jakob Poeltl already out, while additional usage could open up again if Brandon Ingram (thumb/questionable) misses a third straight game. We shouldn’t expect a carbon-copy performance, but the ceiling CMB has flashed recently is very real. At unchanged salaries (from yesterday) on both sites, he stands out as one of the stronger value options on the slate if the minutes and role remain elevated.

Other Forwards to Consider

PF Lauri Markkanen, UTA at CLE

PF Scottie Barnes, TOR vs. PHI (Boost if Ingram is out again)

PF/C Evan Mobley, CLE vs. UTA

SF/SG Naji Marshall, DAL vs. BKN

SF Kelly Oubre Jr., PHI at TOR (Boost if Embiid and/or George are out)

PF Noah Clowney, BKN at DAL

SF/SG Sam Merrill, CLE vs. UTA

SF/PF Klay Thompson, DAL vs. BKN

SF Johnny Furphy, IND vs. BOS

SF/PF Sam Hauser, BOS at IND (Currently questionable)

PF Jordan Walsh, BOS at IND (Preferred if Hauser is out)

Centers to Consider 🏀

C Jarrett Allen, CLE | DK: $6.3k, FD: $6.6k | vs. UTA

The center position isn’t in a great spot today, but Jarrett Allen stands out as a viable target in the $6k range. Allen has certainly mixed in his share of dud performances this season, though he’s been in a strong groove of late. He’s posted six straight double-doubles and, over that stretch, is averaging 16.2 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 1.27 FPPM, and 37.6 DKFP/gm. He’s never going to be a high-usage option, but if Cleveland comes close to, or exceeds, its implied team total (131.5), Allen is well-positioned to deliver another double-double. The matchup also checks out, as Utah has ranked 25th in DvP versus starting centers this season. Blowout risk is the main concern, but as noted earlier, I like the Jazz’s chances of keeping this game at least moderately competitive.

C Day’Ron Sharpe, BKN | DK: $4.8k, FD: $5k | at DAL

This shapes up as more of a tournament play, as Sharpe isn’t overly cheap and his minutes remain volatile as long as Nic Claxton is healthy. That said, Sharpe has been elite on a per-minute basis, averaging 1.20 FPPM on the season, and he’s consistently shown he doesn’t need heavy run to pay off. He poured in 33.75 DKFP in just 21 minutes off the bench yesterday. Sharpe is projected for 21.5 minutes again today, and the matchup couldn’t be much better. Dallas could be extremely thin up front, with Anthony Davis out long term, PJ Washington doubtful, Dereck Lively II done for the season, and both Daniel Gafford and Moussa Cisse listed as questionable. That leaves Dwight Powell as the only Mavericks center without an injury designation, and the Mavs have ranked 29th versus backup centers this season.

Other Centers to Consider

C Joel Embiid, PHI at TOR (Currently questionable)

C Jusuf Nurkic, UTA at CLE

C Nic Claxton, BKN at DAL

C Neemias Queta, BOS at IND

C Daniel Gafford, DAL vs. BKN (Currently questionable)

C Moussa Cisse, DAL vs. BKN (Currently questionable – Preferred if Gafford is out)

C Dwight Powell, DAL vs. BKN (Only if both Gafford and Cisse are out)

🔥 Props AI 🔥

In LineStar’s ongoing mission to improve, innovate, and help you reel in some cash, we have rolled out Props AI for NBA – available for LineStar Premium users! This tool can help you find value and mispriced odds on player props from sportsbooks and, more specifically, for PrizePicks, UnderDog Fantasy, and other prop apps/sites!

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