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

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NBA DFS & Props Shows w/ Shannon & Tyler

NBA DFS & Prop shows will be out later this afternoon! Click the link above to view the latest LineStar YouTube content.

DFS Main Slate Rundown 📰

We will switch gears back to a larger Friday NBA slate -- seven games on the DraftKings main slate and nine games on FanDuel, with the inclusion of the two late games. On a quick note, I was able to get an early jump on this NBA newsletter. But, as we all know, the entire slate can change with one or two significant injury report additions later in the day, so just be aware that the list below could be somewhat outdated by the time you are reading this. For now, I’m not expecting any major updates/additions, but ya just never know when it comes to these NBA players! Alright, with that notice out of the way, let’s get into this thing. Best of luck!

Today’s Key Injuries

• Magic: F. Wagner - OUT, J. Suggs - OUT, G. Bitadze - OUT, J. Howard - OUT, G. Harris - OUT

• Celtics: None

• Timberwolves: D. Divincenzo - OUT

• Knicks: K. Towns - Questionable

• Hornets: B. Miller - Questionable, M. Williams - Probable, T. Mann - OUT, M. Diabate - Questionable, J. Okogie (recently traded to CHA) - Questionable

• Bulls: J. Giddey - Probable, C. White - Probable, A. Dosunmu - Probable, T. Horton-Tucker - Questionable

• Nuggets: N. Jokic - Questionable, J. Murray - Probable, A. Gordon - Questionable

• Heat: None

• Jazz: L. Markkanen - OUT, J. Collins - OUT, W. Kessler - OUT, J. Clarkson - OUT, J. Juzang - OUT, M. Potter - OUT

• Pelicans: B. Ingram - OUT, D. Murray - Probable, Y. Missi - OUT

• Raptors: I. Quickley - OUT, O. Agbaji - Questionable

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

• Thunder: C. Holmgren - OUT, I. Hartenstein - OUT

• Mavericks: L. Doncic - OUT, K. Irving - Questionable, D. Lively II - OUT

Late Game Injury Report (FanDuel Main Slate Only)

• Grizzlies: J. Morant - Questionable, M. Smart - OUT, V. Williams Jr. - OUT

• Spurs: J. Sochan - OUT

• Nets: C. Johnson - Questionable, C. Thomas - OUT, T. Watford - OUT

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

Point Guards/Shooting Guards to Consider 🏀

PG Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC | DK: $10.2k, FD: $11.5k | at DAL

I’m starting to think SGA is the type of guy that holds grudges. At least his play on the court against teams that have previously slighted him seems to support that theory. After the Thunder lost a fairly close game against the Cavs last week, he appeared to be a man on a mission in last night’s re-match en route to dropping 40 points in under 30 minutes of action while sinking 17-of-26 shots and adding eight assists -- his usage rate chimed in at a Herculean 41.4%. Another team SGA has demolished in two previous meetings with this season has been the Dallas Mavs, aka the team that knocked OKC out of the playoffs in last year’s Western Conference semifinals. In the two games versus Dallas this season, Gilgeous-Alexander has averaged 37.5 PPG, 6.5 APG, 5.0 RPG, 4.0 STL+BLK/gm, 1.64 FPPM, and 62.3 DKFP/63.6 FDFP per game. LaMelo Ball (DK: $10.4k, FD: $10.3k) looks to be the popular stud guard play on this slate, and he’s certainly in a great spot versus the Bulls (plus you have the Ball vs. Ball bros narrative). But there is plenty of merit in paying the premium for SGA as well… though, I’d have much more faith in this game not turning into a blowout if Kyrie Irving (back/questionable) is able to suit up.

PG Keyonte George, UTA | DK: $6k, FD: $6.5k | at NOP

Given the amount of injuries that the Jazz are currently dealing with, we will have no choice but to put some attention on the primary healthy Utah players; Lauri Markkanen, John Collins, Walker Kessler, Jordan Clarkson, Johnny Juzang, and Micah Potter will all miss tonight’s contest. Keyonte George recently missed a five-game stretch due to a heel injury, but he wasted no time getting back up to speed upon his return on Wednesday against the Hornets where he posted a 26/4/6 (w/ two steals) stat line across 31 minutes -- good for 46.0 DKFP/44.8 FDFP. He comfortably led the team with a 34.0% USG% in that game… a major uptick from his 23.6% USG% on the season. PG/SG Collin Sexton was also out for that game due to rest purposes, and he will be back in action tonight, but George should still operate as a primary scorer and facilitator this evening. He will draw an excellent match-up versus the Pelicans’ 28th-ranked defense. The Pelicans have also ranked dead last versus starting PGs L20Games. As long as the shorthanded Jazz (+11.5 underdogs) can keep this game close, George should be a strong bet to go for 40+ FP again this evening.

PG Mike Conley, MIN | DK: $3.5k, FD: $4.1k | at NYK

Conley ceded his starting role to Donte DiVincenzo a couple of weeks back. With DiVincenzo now sidelined with a toe injury tonight, Conley would be the most sensible guy to step [back] into the starting rotation. As far as DFS environments go, this game between two bottom-six-paced teams isn’t going to stand out. Conley also isn’t the most attractive DFS asset these days and there is a reason why Minnesota decided to shake up the rotation recently. But he is dirt cheap and brings ample fantasy point per dollar upside to the table. Even if the T-Wolves elect to start someone like Nickeil Alexander-Walker in place of the injured DiVincenzo instead, Conley could still find a way to push for 6x (or better) value off of the bench tonight.

Other Guards to Consider

PG LaMelo Ball, CHA at CHI

SG Anthony Edwards, MIN at NYK

PG Jalen Brunson, NYK vs. MIN (Preferred if K. Towns is out again)

PG Damian Lillard, MIN vs. TOR

PG Dejounte Murray, NOP vs. UTA

PG/SG Jamal Murray, DEN at MIA (Boost if N. Jokic is out)

PG Josh Giddey, CHI vs. CHA

PG/SG Cole Anthony, ORL at BOS

PG Lonzo Ball, CHI vs. CHA

PG/SG Cason Wallace, OKC at DAL

SG/SF Svi Mykhailiuk, UTA at NOP

SG/SF Nickeil Alexander-Walker, MIN at NYK

PG Jose Alvarado, NOP vs. UTA

FanDuel Main Slate Only

PG/SG Austin Reaves, LAL vs. BKN

PG/SG Stephon Castle, SAS vs. MEM

SG Max Christie, LAL vs. BKN

Small Forwards/Power Forwards to Consider 🏀

SF/SG Trey Murphy III, NOP | DK: $7.8k, FD: $7.9k | vs. UTA

Trey Murphy has been a steady presence in a Pelicans’ offense that continues to play without Brandon Ingram and still has a fairly short leash placed on Zion Williamson’s minutes. Zion has been outstanding on a per-minute basis across the three games he has played since returning from a long injury layoff, but until he starts to crack the 30-minute threshold, he’s a tough sell at his high-end $8k salaries. But, getting back to Murphy, he heads in averaging 25.0 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 3.8 APG, and 2.8 STL+BLK/gm over his L5Games. He’s scoring 1.30 FPPM and 46.3 DKFP/46.3 FDFP per game in that span while logging 35.6 Min/gm. And it hasn’t been a major factor whether he has played with or without Zion Williamson on the floor -- he has seen a slight -2.2% USG% decrease with Zion on the floor, but a slight +1.6 FP per 32-minute increase in those same splits. All of that being said, the Pelicans are tied with the Bucks for the slate lead in implied team total (120.8 points) and New Orleans should have no major issues scoring on a depleted Jazz lineup that heads in ranking 29th in DEFRTG on the season. Murphy’s DFS price points continue to creep up but he still makes plenty of sense at a sub-$8k salary on both sites.

SF/SG Khris Middleton, MIL | DK: $4.9k, FD: $5.6k | vs. TOR

I’m always hesitant to place much faith in a player who missed extensive time to begin the season, but it has now been seven weeks since Middleton made his season debut and he has only missed three total games within that stretch. The Bucks are rightfully playing it safe by limiting the oft-injured Middleton to mid-20s minutes, and the team announced earlier this month that he would be playing exclusively off of the bench until further notice, but his DFS salaries have finally dipped to a point where he makes for an intriguing play. Middleton has averaged a respectable 1.15 FPPM over his 16 games played and, since he does come in off the bench, he’s not spending as much time sharing the floor (and usage) with the top dogs, Giannis and Dame Lillard, though one of those guys are typically on the floor at the same time alongside him, but generally not both. It’s also a strong spot for Middleton versus the Raptors, who have ranked 29th versus reserve small forwards L20Games. Slotting Middleton into lineups won’t be without its risks, but I could certainly see him having a strong performance tonight even without playing huge minutes.

PF/C Kyle Filipowski, UTA | DK: $4.2k, FD: $4.1k | at NOP

Filipowski stands to be the favorite to land the starting power forward gig for Utah tonight. Filipowski, who was the 32nd overall pick in this year’s draft, has not played more than 30 minutes in a game this season, but that’s about where his minutes range projects tonight given the lack of healthy bodies in the Jazz frontcourt. He hasn’t quite been an FPPM player in his rookie campaign, averaging a modest but respectable 0.90 FPPM on the season. But he should find some success against the Pelicans based on their 28th DEFRTG ranking, and they also check in at 30th versus starting power forwards L20Games. Consensus projections have Filipowski close to 30 FP, and that’s about the result I’d expect him to end up with tonight, which would clearly represent some great value if he meets those expectations.

Other Forwards to Consider

PF/C Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL vs. TOR

SF/SG Zach LaVine, CHI vs. CHA

SF/PF Josh Hart, NYK vs. MIN (Boost if K. Towns is out)

PF Miles Bridges, CHA at CHI (Boost if B. Miller is out)

PF/C Julius Randle, MIN at NYK

PF/C Naz Reid, MIN at NYK

SF/PF Brice Sensabaugh, UTA at NOP

SF/SG Luguentz Dort, OKC at DAL

PF/C Jonathan Isaac, ORL at BOS

PF/C Chris Boucher, TOR at MIL

FanDuel Main Slate Only

SF/SG Desmond Bane, MEM at SAS

SF/PF Keldon Johnson, SAS vs. MEM

Centers to Consider 🏀

C Mark Williams, CHA | DK: $6.8k, FD: $7.2k | at CHI

The kiddie gloves (read: workload restrictions) appear to be off of Mark Williams -- for one, the Hornets traded backup center Nick Richards to the Suns earlier this week; for two, Williams played a season-high 36 minutes in the Hornets’ previous game versus the Jazz, in which he supplied a monster 31-point, 13-rebound performance while procuring 57.75 DKFP/58.60 FDFP. Williams has been incredible from a per-minute standpoint this season, averaging a sturdy 1.45 FPPM. But now that he isn’t facing any sizable minutes restrictions, we’re seeing the type of ceiling the third-year big man has. That said, I don’t believe we can expect mid-30s minutes out of him every night moving forward, but it should be a more routine occurrence. The Bulls also rank 29th versus starting centers this season and Williams dropped 49.0 DKFP/51.4 FDFP across 31 minutes on Chicago back on December 30th. The upside alone is worth some shares here.

C Drew Eubanks, UTA | DK: $4.1k, FD: $4.2k | at NOP

You probably could have guessed who the value center was going to be today. Drew Eubanks is in line to start in place of the injured (well, “resting”) Walker Kessler this evening. He was in as a starter five days ago and put up a valiant 8/9/2 stat line with three blocks across 31 minutes -- good for 27.75 DKFP/29.80 FDFP. Eubanks has been a hair under an FPPM player this season and he should be in line for 28-32 minutes tonight versus a Pels team that has allowed the 2nd most FPPG to starting centers L20Games. Jaylin Williams burned plenty of folks who ate the cheap center chalk yesterday (myself included), but Eubanks is more of a known quantity and there simply are not many other “big man options” available for the Jazz tonight.

Other Centers to Consider

C Nikola Jokic, DEN at MIA (Currently questionable)

C Kristaps Porzingis, BOS vs. ORL

C Jakob Poeltl, TOR at MIL

C Daniel Gafford, DAL vs. OKC

C Brook Lopez, MIL vs. TOR

C Wendell Carter Jr., ORL at BOS

C Kel’el Ware, MIA vs. DEN

C Jalen Smith, CHI vs. CHA

C Daniel Theis, NOP vs. UTA (Yves Missi was ruled out as I was typing this)

FanDuel Main Slate Only

C/PF Victor Wembanyama, SAS vs. MEM

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.

Drew Eubanks MORE than 24.5 Fantasy Score

Julius Randle MORE than 14.5 Field Goals Attempted

🔥 Props AI 🔥

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Speaking of props, put the Props AI tool to use by signing up for PrizePicks (Promo code: LINESTAR) or Underdog (Promo code: LINESTAR). You'll receive a 100% match on first deposits up to $100 PLUS a free 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!