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

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NBA DFS & Props Shows w/ Shannon & Tyler

DFS Main Slate Rundown 📰

It’s been a hot minute since we’ve had a hefty NBA slate lined up but that changes tonight with a nine-game (DraftKings)/11-game (FanDuel) main slate on the board. As has generally been the case for these larger slates, DraftKings will be excluding the two late games (MIA at LAL, BKN at LAC) from their main slate. The injury report is, once again, a complete mess… but we’ve come to expect that at this point. The silver lining is that most of the impactful injured players have already been ruled out for tonight’s action so that alleviates some of the guesswork heading into tonight. Time to lock in! Best of luck!

Today’s Key Injuries

• Knicks: K. Towns - OUT, J. Brunson - Probable, J. Sims - Questionable

• 76ers: J. Embiid - OUT, T. Maxey - Questionable, P. George - Questionable, C. Martin - OUT, A. Drummond - OUT, K. Lowry - OUT, KJ Martin - OUT

• Celtics: None

• Raptors: I. Quickley - OUT

• Hawks: T. Young - OUT, J. Johnson - OUT, D. Hunter - OUT, Z. Risacher - OUT, L. Nance Jr. - OUT

• Bulls: C. White - Questionable, A. Dosunmu - Questionable, L. Ball - Questionable, T. Craig - OUT

• Grizzlies: M. Smart - OUT, V. Williams Jr. - OUT, J. Huff - Probable

• Spurs: J. Sochan - OUT

• Mavs: L. Doncic - OUT, K. Irving - Doubtful, D. Lively II - OUT

• Pelicans: B. Ingram - OUT, Z. Williamson - OUT, D. Murray - Probable, H. Jones - OUT

• Magic: F. Wagner - OUT, J. Suggs - OUT, G. Bitadze - OUT, K. Caldwell-Pope - Questionable, C. Joseph - Questionable, J. Howard - Doubtful, G. Harris - OUT

• Bucks: G. Antetokounmpo - Probable, K. Middleton - Probable, G. Trent Jr. - OUT

• Hornets: T. Mann - OUT

• Jazz: L. Markkanen - OUT, C. Sexton - OUT, J. Collins - OUT, J. Clarkson - OUT, J. Juzang - OUT

• Rockets: J. Smith Jr. - OUT, T. Eason - Doubtful, J. Landale - OUT

• Nuggets: A. Gordon - Questionable

• Warriors: J. Kuminga - OUT, T. Jackson-Davis - Questionable, D. Green - Questionable, K. Anderson - Questionable, B. Podziemski - OUT, G. Payton II - Probable

• Timberwolves: None

• Late Game Injury Report (FanDuel Main Slate Only)

• Heat: B. Adebayo - Questionable, J. Butler - OUT, K. Ware - Probable

• Lakers: A. Davis - Probable, L. James - Probable, D. Finney-Smith - Doubtful

• Nets: C. Thomas - OUT, N. Claxton - Questionable, B. Simmons - OUT, T. Watford - Questionable

• Clippers: None

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.

Point Guards/Shooting Guards to Consider 🏀

PG LaMelo Ball, CHA | DK: $10k, FD: $10.2k | at UTA

With so many value options available to choose from, it’s looking very much like a “stars and scrubs” kinda slate. Getting up to the top [healthy] guard shouldn’t be a problem. Even though the Hornets have been getting healthier, it's still been the LaMelo show in Charlotte. He has missed some time with injuries himself this season but Ball is coming off of back-to-back games against the Suns where he played 35 and 40 minutes while posting usage rates of 35.6% and 30.9%. He notched 66.5 DKFP/65.5 FDFP and 59.5 DKFP/57.7 FDFP in those two games. The Jazz (13th in pace) offer a moderate pace-up boost for the Hornets (22nd in pace). Utah also checks in at 29th in DEFRTG on the season, they rank dead last versus starting PGs L20Games, and they’re very depleted with injuries at the moment. I believe we should go into this slate expecting another 60-ish FP out of Ball tonight.

SG Jalen Green, HOU | DK: $7.1k, FD: $7.5k | at DEN

Jalen Green continued his hot streak with a 42-point, 54.75 DKFP/51.60 FDFP night against the Grizzlies on Monday. He has now averaged 31.6 PPG, 1.34 FPPM, and 47.1 DKFP/45.5 FDFP on a 29.1% USG% over his L5Games. While their starters didn’t have to log full minutes in last night’s blowout over the Mavs, the Nuggets are still on the second leg of a back-to-back. They have also represented an excellent individual match-up for opposing SGs, ranking dead last versus the position L20Games.

PG/SG Vit Krejci, ATL | DK: $4k, FD: $4.4k | at CHI

Krejci has been a nice source of value since recently entering the starting rotation and now he’ll have a chance to operate in an expanded role with Trae Young, Jalen Johnson, De’Andre Hunter, and Zaccharie Risacher all ruled out for this evening’s game. The biggest injury in that group is, of course, Trae Young, who will be out for just the third game this season. Even with Young playing 38 minutes against the Suns last night, Krejci put forth one of his best performances with a 15/5/6 stat line (plus two steals) across 35 minutes -- good for 35.75 DKFP/36.0 FDFP. Both teams in this game rank top three in pace and bottom 10 in DEFRTG, leading to a slate-high 244.5 over/under and a close two-point spread. So with so many possessions to go around and no real defense to speak of, Krejci has an extremely low chance to put up a dud at these price points.

Other Guards to Consider

SG Anthony Edwards, MIN vs. GSW

PG Ja Morant, MEM at SAS

PG Dejounte Murray, NOP vs. DAL

PG Jalen Brunson, NYK at PHI

PG Josh Giddey, CHI vs. ATL

PG/SG Dyson Daniels, ATL at CHI

PG Russell Westbrook, DEN vs. HOU

PG/SG Cole Anthony, ORL at MIL

PG Chris Paul, SAS vs. MEM

PG Keyonte George, UTA vs. CHA (As long as he has no major minute restrictions)

PG/SG Isaiah Collier, UTA vs. CHA

SG/SF Bogdan Bogdanovic, ATL at CHI (Preferred if starting)

PG/SG Stephon Castle, SAS vs. MEM

PG Jose Alvarado, NOP vs. DAL

SG/SF Garrison Mathews, ATL at CHI (Boost if starting)

FanDuel Main Slate Only

PG/SG Tyler Herro, MIA at LAL

SG Max Christie, LAL vs. MIA

Small Forwards/Power Forwards to Consider 🏀

PF PJ Washington, DAL | DK: $7k, FD: $7.2k | at NOP

The Mavs got boatraced from the jump against the Nuggets last night, so the starters all played 30 minutes or less. They’ll have a more winnable match-up tonight, but they’ll have to get it done without the services of Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving (back/doubtful), and Dereck Lively II. With those three players off the floor this season, PJ Washington has taken on a significant +5.6% USG% increase while averaging +9.2 more FP per 32 minutes. The Pelicans will also be thin once again in the frontcourt with Zion Williamson and Herbert Jones both out. The Pels are 30th versus power forward starters L20Games so this could certainly be a spot where Washington pops for a ceiling-type performance.

PF/C Naz Reid, MIN | DK: $5.1k, FD: $5.8k | vs. GSW

Reid’s DFS salaries continue to rise but I still believe there is meat on the bone given how well he has played in recent weeks. He’s been a big part of the Timberwolves’ success which has led to them winning four of their last five games. In that five-game stretch, Reid is averaging 15.6 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 2.4 STL+BLK/gm, and 1.23 FPPM across 26.1 Min/gm. Reid plays a bit of center and a bit of power forward and he draws a strong individual match-up as the Warriors rank 24th versus center reserves and 29th versus power forward reserves L20Games. He has also been more effective at home where he’s averaging 1.09 FPPM on the season (versus 0.97 FPPM in away games).

SF/PF Brice Sensabaugh, UTA | DK: $4.5k, FD: $4.7k | vs. CHA

The Jazz will be without several key starters and role players tonight -- Lauri Markkanen, John Collins, Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, and Johnny Juzang have all been ruled out for this game. It’s a small sample size, but in just over 40 minutes with all of those players off the floor this season, Sensabaugh has handled a major +11.9% USG% increase while averaging +12.1 more FP per 32 minutes. While he may not crack the starting lineup, the absences of Markkanen, Collins, and Juzang open up enough frontcourt minutes for Sensabaugh to potentially end up playing starter-type minutes off of the bench.

Other Forwards to Consider

PF/C Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL vs. ORL

SF/PF Jayson Tatum, BOS at TOR

SF/SG Zach LaVine, CHI vs. ATL

SF/SG Amen Thompson, HOU at DEN

SF/PF Josh Hart, NYK at PHI

PF Miles Bridges, CHA at UTA

SF/SG Trey Murphy III, NOP vs. DAL

PF/C Julius Randle, MIN vs. GSW

SF/SG Devin Vassell, SAS vs. MEM

SF/PF Naji Marshall, DAL at NOP

SF/PF Keldon Johnson, SAS vs. MEM

PF Peyton Watson, DEN vs. HOU (Preferred if A. Gordon is out)

SF/SG Svi Mykhailiuk, UTA vs. CHA

PF/C Jonathan Isaac, ORL at MIL

SF/PF Cam Whitmore, HOU at DEN

PF David Roddy, ATL at CHI

FanDuel Main Slate Only

PF/SF LeBron James, LAL vs. MIA

SF/SG Norman Powell, LAC vs. BKN

PF Nikola Jovic, MIA at LAL

Centers to Consider 🏀

C Onyeka Okongwu, ATL | DK: $4.8k, FD: $5.4k | at CHI

We’ll spotlight a couple of cheap centers today since it’s setting up like a great spot to save some salary. We had Okongwu spotlighted yesterday but I don’t think anyone could have predicted him exploding for a 22-point/21-rebound performance which secured him 52.75 DKFP/50.70 FDFP in just 28 minutes of action. Okongwu is up to 1.31 FPPM L5Games and gets another enticing match-up with the fast-paced Bulls who have allowed a ton of production to opposing centers this season.

C Daniel Gafford, DAL | DK: $4.3k, FD: $4.5k | at NOP

Gafford should make his way back into the starting lineup with Dereck Lively II sidelined with an ankle injury. In his last five games as a starter, Gafford is averaging 14.6 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 2.8 STL+BLK/gm, and 28.9 DKFP/30.5 FDFP per game. The Pelicans have allowed THE most FPPG to starting centers L20Games and they also head in on the tail end of a back-to-back. Gafford will be popular but he should comfortably return value on these mid-$4k price points.

Other Centers to Consider

C Nikola Jokic, DEN vs. HOU

C Victor Wembanyama, SAS vs. MEM

C Kristaps Porzingis, BOS at TOR

C Walker Kessler, UTA vs. CHA

C Mark Williams, CHA at UTA

C Rudy Gobert, MIN vs. GSW

C Clint Capela, ATL at CHI

C Wendell Carter Jr., ORL at MIL

C Jalen Smith, CHI vs. ATL

FanDuel Main Slate Only

C/PF Anthony Davis, LAL vs. MIA

C Ivica Zubac, LAC vs. BKN

C Kel’el Ware, MIA at LAL (Only if B. Adebayo is out)

C Day’Ron Sharpe, BKN at LAC (Preferred if N. Claxton is out)

PrizePicks NBA Power Play of the Day ⚡

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.

No picks from me today but, as usual, Shannon has some great recommendations in the props video posted at the top of this newsletter!

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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!