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Let's play some weekend NBA DFS! Saturdays and Sundays are usually days that I try to take a bit of a break from covering the NBA, but I'm stepping in for my homeboy Kyle Ringstad with some NBA DFS picks for you today and putting on my DFS tout hat for a bit.
I am going to focus only on the 5-game main slate for both sites that tips at 8:00 PM EST, so you won't find any info here about the afternoon games here!
Here are my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel and DraftKings on 12/17/22. Keep an eye on RotoBaller’s NBA injury news and also our full NBA injury report today to stay up to date before lineups are locked.
DraftKings and FanDuel Guards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Ja Morant @ OKC (FD: $10,700, DK: $10,600)
It's a quirky little slate tonight and the pricing on FanDuel makes it tougher to fit studs into your builds. But if you're able to afford to spend up on one guy tonight, it should probably be Morant.
He's playing at such a high level right now and his Memphis Grizzlies are starting to look like contenders in the West. He just triple-doubled against the Bucks in his last game in only 26 minutes as the Grizzlies blew out Giannis and company. His assists are up in a big way as he has now posted four straight double-digit assist totals and he continues to score with ease.
OKC is playing their second game in two nights and they like to push the pace. Memphis just beat them last week 123-102 and Morant had an easy 66 DK points in only 30 minutes in that one. His rebounding and passing this year are really increasing his floor every night and he's not nearly as scoring-dependent as he used to be as a fantasy player.
Donovan Mitchell vs. DAL (FD: $8,900, DK: $8,900)
As a Cavs fan, I can tell you that I have much more of an appreciation for Spider Mitchell than I did before this season. This guy is carrying the Cavs right now and I am so glad they made the deal for him and also glad that Lauri Markannen is getting a chance to flourish in Utah, too.
Mitchell just dropped 41 points on the Pacers last night, bringing the Cavs back from an 8-point deficit at halftime and he's been so vital to the Cavs' early season success. He took over as the alpha dog in the first six games while Garland was out and with Darius struggling quite a bit with his shot lately, Mitchell has continued to be the top scorer on a nightly basis for Cleveland.
At nearly 30 points a game, Mitchell is up near the top of the leaders in scoring this season, which is not something I expected with Garland having such a huge season last year. The Cavs take on the Mavs here for the second time in four days and Donovan went for 34 actual points (47 DK points) in Cleveland's win on Wednesday. He just feels underpriced considering his really consistent output and I won't be surprised if he torches the Mavs again as he did often when he was with Utah.
Malik Beasley @ MIL (FD: $5,200, DK: $5,900)
The Jazz have been one of the best stories in the league so far and Beasley is making the most of his opportunity with Utah after coming over from Minnesota in the Gobert trade this offseason. He's mainly been coming off the bench as doing what he does best - scoring the basketball. Right now, Utah is without their other bench guard Collin Sexton and they need all the scoring they can get from the rest of their second unit. Beasley usually leads the reserves in minutes and can push up over 30 minutes a night at times. He's a guy who is a volume shooter and can be a bit streaky but is the kind of high-usage player we are looking for in DFS.
We get to see if Utah can keep their hot streak going tonight against the Bucks, who are coming off a beat down from Memphis and likely ready to take it out on someone. Milwaukee can be vulnerable to three-point shooters, however, which is another reason why I like Beasley here.
Also consider: Jalen Green (FD: $7,500, DK: $9,700), Grayson Allen (FD: $4,300, DK: $4,300)
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DraftKings and FanDuel Forwards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Zion Williamson @ PHO (FD: $10,100, DK: $10,000)
It's Zion's world and we are all just living in it! It's been great for the Pelicans and the NBA in general to see a healthy Zion Williamson this year and he's quickly erasing any lingering doubts that he can be a superstar in this league. He still has some areas he needs to develop of course, but he's also still very young. He's on just an insane tear right now, with 50 or more DK points in 8 of his last 11 games. He put up 50 DK points in both of the Pelicans' wins against Phoenix last weekend and with Deandre Ayton out of the lineup again, I don't see anyone on Phoenix's roster who has the size or athleticism to hold him in check (Ayton really doesn't either, to be honest). You're paying a premium here, but like Morant, you're getting an excellent floor with a 60+ point ceiling, too.
Jabari Smith Jr. vs. POR (FD: $5,900, DK: $5,600)
One game that I really like for DFS is the Portland-Houston game, but most of the pieces we want are really priced up on both sites. One guy who feels underpriced compared to his recent play is rookie Jabari Smith Jr. You can get the talented big man for less than 6k on both sites. He's averaging over 30 DK points per game over his last five games thanks to some solid scoring and rebounding numbers. His length and athleticism is a real problem for opposing power forwards and he's able to stretch the floor and knock down three-point shots in addition to having some solid moves in the paint. Portland played last night and isn't a very good defensive team, meaning I want some Houston pieces here with Smith being the most affordable one at a position that is fairly thin on this slate.
Josh Okogie vs. NOP (FD: $5,300, DK: $4,100)
Okogie stands out as badly mispriced on DraftKings and very appropriately priced on FanDuel so keep that in mind. Okogie is coming off the bench for Phoenix and giving the Suns some really quality minutes of late. Phoenix has been struggling with injuries and even though Chris Paul and Torrey Craig are back, their main scorer and passer on the second unit, Cameron Payne, is out tonight. I would expect Okogie to continue to get some decent minutes tonight with Landry Shamet also filling in for Payne, too. He's a little bit boom-bust, but one look at his game log shows you that he has popped off for some big games over the last two weeks and he's producing at around a 1.0 FPPM rate.
Also consider: Larry Nance Jr. (FD: $5,800, DK: $4,700), Pat Connaughton (FD: $3,900, DK: $3,400)
DraftKings and FanDuel Centers - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Jock Landale vs. NOP (FD: $5,200, DK: $3,900)
Jock is my dude! I was all over him last time out while the masses targeted the starter Bismack Biyombo instead! Landale is a better basketball player and fantasy producer than Biyombo and should win the minutes battle between the two most nights. He's still a nice value over on DraftKings, while FanDuel was quick to price him up tonight after he smashed against the Clippers on Thursday.
He's an excellent per-minute producer, so we don't really need more than 20 minutes or so from him to expect 20+ DK points. I played him on FanDuel at $4200 on Thursday and he was like 5% owned on a 4-game slate. I would guess he's going to be lightly rostered there again, and I think he's a solid tourney option there as a result.
Also consider: Walker Kessler (FD: $6,100, DK: $5,000)
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