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

_{Terms: Must be 18+ (some states may require 21+) and be present in an eligible state; if you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling, and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER.}

NBA DFS & Props Shows w/ Tyler Wiemann

DFS Main Slate Rundown 📰

As Tuesdays often go in the NBA, we have a smaller set of games in front of us this evening. DraftKings, with its continued aversion to including late games on its main slates, will only feature four games, while the FanDuel main slate will include all six matchups. The four earliest games appear to be fairly even matchups, with each of those games having a spread under five points, as well as three games with a total north of 233 points. The two nightcap games should be entertaining as well, even with some larger spreads posted in those matchups. As always, keep an eye out for updated injury news, as there are a few impactful names with “questionable” designations this evening! 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 Be sure to stay up-to-date on all injury news leading up to tip-off as the list below may be a bit outdated by the time you’re reading this.}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.}

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

• Raptors: J. Poeltl - Questionable

• 76ers: D. Barlow - OUT, (Jared McCain will also be making his season debut)

• Bulls: A. Dosunmu - Questionable

• Magic: None

• Hawks: T. Young - OUT

• Hornets: L. Ball - OUT, B. Miller - OUT

• Pelicans: Z. Williamson - OUT, Y. Missi - Questionable

Late Game Injury Report (FanDuel Main Slate Only)

• Suns: D. Brooks - OUT, R. Dunn - Probable, I. Livers - Questionable

• Warriors: J. Butler - Questionable, A. Horford - OUT

• Thunder: A. Mitchell - Questionable, L. Dort - Questionable, Jay. Williams - Questionable

• Clippers: K. Leonard - Questionable (not injured, but LAC is deciding whether to play him on a B2B or not), B. Beal - Questionable (same deal as Kawhi)

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 Tyrese Maxey, PHI | DK: $9.9k, FD: $9.9k | at CHI

With star center Joel Embiid having his playing time limited to 20-25 minutes up to this point, Tyrese Maxey has been posting MVP-caliber numbers. He is pouring in 33.7 PPG, 9.0 APG, 4.8 RPG, and 2.0 BLK+STL/gm. The minutes have also been massive, with Maxey averaging 42.5 Min/gm -- the 76ers have only played one OT game, and he has played at least 39 minutes in all five games that have ended in regulation. Before having his potential Rookie of the Year campaign shortened last season due to injury, Jared McCain is set to make his season debut tonight. I would not expect McCain’s presence to eat into Maxey’s workload all too much, especially since McCain will almost certainly be under some significant minutes restrictions as he works his way back into game shape. Maxey is still going to put up his shots while being the primary facilitator for this offense. The matchup is also very appealing, as the Bulls (9th in pace) will provide a solid pace-up boost for the 76ers (21st in pace). This game features both the highest total (239.5) and closest spread (PHI +1.5) on the evening.

SG Dyson Daniels, ATL | DK: $6.6k, FD: $7.2k | vs. ORL

Daniels got off to a slow start this season, but it’s no surprise that his best two games thus far have come in the last two contests, which the Hawks have played without the services of Trae Young (out again tonight). In those games, Daniels has posted 36.5 DKFP/40.30 FDFP (at CLE) and 43.75 DKFP/45.80 FDFP (at IND). Daniels has increased his FPPM from a paltry 0.68 with Young on the court to a much more respectable 0.93 with him off the court. Daniels was the NBA’s steals leader a season ago (3.0 STL/gm), and he’s off to another strong start in that category, averaging 2.6 STL/gm this season. Now that he is taking on some extra usage with Young sidelined, he’s able to put together much stronger overall stat lines. The matchup may not look great on paper, as Orlando is 11th in DEFRTG. However, the Magic have been playing at the 5th-fastest pace, while the Hawks have ranked 10th in pace. So we should see plenty of possessions in this game. The Magic have also quietly ranked 29th versus starting SGs, so it’s a strong individual matchup for Daniels tonight.

PG Jeremiah Fears, NOP | DK: $4.7k, FD: $4.9k | vs. CHA

Fears was moved into the Pelicans’ starting lineup four games ago, and after a quiet first start, the rookie has quickly found his footing. Over his last three, he’s averaged 33.6 DKFP per game while carrying a 24.8% usage rate and logging 28.3 minutes per night -- both third-highest marks on the team. His DFS salaries have not caught up to his current role or production, and he draws a great matchup against a Hornets squad that ranks 26th in DEFRTG. Fears’ upside only increases if Zion Williamson (questionable/hamstring) sits out. With Zion off the floor this season, Fears’ usage jumps 4.3 percentage points to a team-high 28.1% USG%.

Update: Zion will be out tonight and is expected to miss the next 7-10 days with a hamstring strain.

Other Guards to Consider

PG Josh Giddey, CHI vs. PHI

SG Trey Murphy III, NOP vs. CHA

PG/SG Collin Sexton, CHA at NOP

PG Ryan Rollins, MIL at TOR

PG/SF Nickeil Alexander-Walker, ATL vs. ORL

PG Tre Jones, CHI vs. PHI (Preferred if Dosunmu is out again)

SG Sion James, CHA at NOP (As long as he’s starting again)

PG KJ Simpson, CHA at NOP

FanDuel Main Slate Only

PG Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC at LAC

PG/SG Devin Booker, PHX at GSW

PG/SG James Harden, LAC vs. OKC (Preferred if Kawhi sits out the B2B)

PG/SG Cason Wallace, OKC at LAC (Boost if Mitchell and/or Dort are out)

SG Isaiah Joe, OKC at LAC (Boost if Mitchell and/or Dort are out)

SG/SF Alex Caruso, OKC at LAC (Preferred if Mitchell and/or Dort are out)

Small Forwards/Power Forwards to Consider 🏀

PF Paolo Banchero, ORL | DK: $9.3k, FD: $9k | at ATL

Banchero has been humming to the tune of 1.51 FPPM over his last five games while averaging 25.6 PPG, 9.6 RPG, 5.2 APG, and 2.4 BLK+STL/gm on a 29.3% USG% in that stretch. Some blowouts have capped his ceiling a bit in some of these recent games, but he’s been able to return quality value regardless, and the game versus the Hawks tonight has a close 3.5-point spread in favor of the Magic. The Hawks have ranked a subpar 19th versus starting PFs L5Games, and they’re also allowing 52.9 PPG in the paint this season -- Banchero has taken roughly 65% of his shots around the rim. I’d expect another big double-double out of Banchero tonight in a game that, as previously mentioned, should have plenty of possessions with both teams ranking top-10 in pace.

PF Scottie Barnes, TOR | DK: $8.2k, FD: $8.3k | vs. MIL

Barnes has popped for some huge games this season, and yet his DFS salaries have hardly budged. He has scored at least 48.25 DKFP/49.0 FDFP in 4-of-7 games and most recently went for a season-high 60.0 DKFP/61.4 FDFP against the Grizzlies on Sunday. Overall, he’s averaging an excellent 1.32 FPPM this year. His range of outcomes can be pretty wide, but it’s tough to ignore him at these low-$8k price points, given his penchant for returning 6x (or better) value. Barnes had a down game in a loss to the Bucks back on Oct. 24th, but Milwaukee heads into this game on the second leg of a back-to-back, and the Raptors find themselves as 3.5-point home favorites tonight. If they end up with the ‘W’ this evening, Barnes will be a major reason for that victory.

SF/SG Kon Knueppel, CHA | DK: $5.5k, FD: $4.9k | at NOP

With Brandon Miller’s continued absence and LaMelo Ball (ankle/out) missing his first game of the season on Sunday, Knueppel stepped up big in the blowout win over the Jazz, pouring in 24 points, six boards, five assists, and a steal across 35 minutes, resulting in 43.0 DKFP/41.7 FDFP. Knueppel took on a solid, but unremarkable, 19.5% USG% in that game. But that still resulted in 17 shot attempts. His usage has risen to 21.5% with Ball off the floor this season. He should once again fill in as a primary scorer tonight with rock-solid peripheral numbers. And the matchup doesn’t get much better as the Pelicans check in at 29th in DEFRTG and rank 20th versus starting SFs.

Other Forwards to Consider

PF Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIL at TOR

PF Jalen Johnson, ATL vs. ORL

PF Miles Bridges, CHA at NOP

SF Brandon Ingram, TOR vs. MIL

PF/C Collin Murray-Boyles, TOR vs. MIL (Only if Poeltl is out again)

SF/PF Saddiq Bey, NOP vs. CHA (Additional boost if Missi is out)

SF/PF Tristan da Silva, ORL at ATL

SF/PF Patrick Williams, CHI vs. PHI

FanDuel Main Slate Only

SF/PF Jonathan Kuminga, GSW vs. PHX (Boost if Butler is out)

PF/C John Collins, LAC vs. OKC (Only if Kawhi and Beal sit)

SF/PF Derrick Jones, LAC vs. OKC (Preferred if Kawhi is out)

Centers to Consider 🏀

C Nikola Vucevic, CHI | DK: $7.9k, FD: $7.8k | vs. PHI

It’s tough to knock a sub-$8k Vucevic with the way he has been playing to start this season, scoring at least 44.0 DKFP/39.8 FDFP in 4-of-6 games. Vuc is putting up a stout 1.39 FPPM on the season while easily averaging a double-double (19.3 PPG, 12.3 RPG). He’s mostly been doing this in tougher matchups, which this one shouldn’t be. Embiid is, of course, still on a minutes limit, and the 76ers are currently 23rd in DvP versus starting centers. The Bulls have a team total north of 120 points, and this game features the highest total on the slate (239.5), so there is plenty to like about Vucevic in this spot if you’re spending up at center today.

C Moussa Diabate, CHA | DK: $3.9k, FD: $4.4k | at NOP

Diabate has been very productive as the Hornets’ backup center. He is averaging a steady 1.18 FPPM and has eclipsed at least 23.0 DKFP/23.3 FDFP in 5-of-7 games. Diabate most recently posted a 17-point, 12-rebound double-double in just 22 minutes against the Jazz on Sunday, earning himself 35.5 DKFP/34.4 FDFP. As long as he gets to around 20 minutes again tonight, he’ll be a strong value option in a great spot versus the Pelicans’ awful defense that ranks 22nd versus backup centers. The Pelicans have also allowed the 5th-most PPG in the paint (55.3) and have the second-lowest Rebounding% (45.9%). Needless to say, opposing centers have been thriving against them this season.

Other Centers to Consider

C Kristaps Porzingis, ATL vs. ORL

C Myles Turner, MIL at TOR

C Wendell Carter Jr., ORL at ATL

C Ryan Kalkbrenner, CHA at NOP

C Jalen Smith, CHI vs. PHI

C Kevon Looney, NOP vs. CHA (Boost if Missi is out)

FanDuel Main Slate Only

C Ivica Zubac, LAC vs. OKC

C Quinten Post, GSW vs. PHX (Only if he’s starting)

🔥 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!