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Today's DraftKings college basketball DFS lineup picks for 1/3/24. Mike Marteny's CBB daily fantasy advice and lineup sleepers to help you win on DraftKings.
The new year started off with some big scores yesterday since UConn and Purdue cruised and a few value plays hit big. Let's see if we can keep it going today. We have another 10-gamer on tap! Seton Hall and Providence get started in the Ocean State a little earlier than everyone else, but at least it wasn't exiled from the slate!
The regular window gives us Rutgers in Columbus to take on the Buckeyes. The Bees head to Tallahassee to take on the Seminoles. Louisville is in Charlottesville to take on the Hoos. Clemson heads to Miami to take on the Canes. Xavier is in Philly to take on Villanova. Indiana heads to Lincoln to take on Nebraska. The Pack head to Indiana to take on Notre Dame. We have some left-coast flavor with Stanford in Pauley Pavillion to take on UCLA. We end across town with Cal taking on USC.
In this article, I will provide you with my daily fantasy college basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 1/3/24, starting at 6:30 pm Eastern. I’ll provide multiple player suggestions at guard and forward, aiming to highlight one option at the salary scale's high, middle, and lower end. Good luck, RotoBallers.
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DraftKings CBB DFS Guards
Devin Carter, Providence ($8,900)
Carter is a volume scorer who also crashes the boards better than most guards. His 7.9 rebounds per game is 10 DraftKings points right there. Add in the 17 points from the scoring average, and you have a floor of 27 points before you add in any more peripherals. Carter has scored more than 20 points in the first two Big East games for the Friars. He's making a lot of shots, so he's taking more. That's great for us DFS players.
Matthew Cleveland, Miami (FL) ($7,200)
The Florida State transfer has scored in double figures in every game but the Kentucky game and has at least nine rebounds in three straight games. That's not going to happen against the size of Clemson, but Cleveland's scoring provides a safe and stable floor. Cleveland still plays a lot of minutes even in blowouts, so he's safer than most Miami options. Cleveland has played at least 24 minutes in every game this season.
Ticket Gaines, Providence ($5,900)
The transfer from George Mason has only played three games this season, but he has 45 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, five steals, and five blocks while playing all but 15 minutes total in those games. Gaines is a big part of this Providence team right now. This price is ridiculously low, making Gaines a value play that can be used in every lineup.
Hakim Hart, Villanova ($4,400)
It took the Maryland transfer a bit to get acclimated back in his home city, but Hart is finally doing what he did in College Park for Villanova. The Wildcats run about nine deep, which could limit Hart's minutes some. I don't mind since he has scored 50 points in the last four games and has topped 20 DraftKings points in five straight games. He's an excellent value play right now, albeit with limited upside.
Also consider: Jaylon Tyson, California ($9,000); Joseph Girard III, Clemson ($7,900); Bruce Thornton, Ohio State ($7,400); Brice Williams, Nebraska ($7,100); Primo Spears, Florida State ($6,900); J.R. Konieczny, Notre Dame ($6,500); Trey Galloway, Indiana ($6,000); Kanaan Carlyle, Stanford ($5,700); Al-Amir Dawes, Seton Hall ($5,100); Derek Simpson, Rutgers ($4,600); C.J. Wilcher, Nebraska ($3,700)
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DraftKings CBB DFS Forwards
Baye Ndongo, Georgia Tech ($7,800)
There are some good options up top at forward, but none of them feel like slam-dunks for the price. Norchad Omier is the closest one, but that's not a great matchup against Clemson. I'll gladly drop down to Ndongo, at least in GPPs. Ndongo still gets into foul trouble at times and can be inconsistent (like the UMass game out in Honolulu), but he only missed three shots in three games out on Honolulu. Add that to his 28 rebounds on the islands, and Ndongo is outplaying his price point right now. I can't say that for any of the options in front of him.
Adem Bona, UCLA ($7,100)
The Bruins have patiently waited for Bona to put together games like he did to close out 2023. Bona racked up 29 points, 18 rebounds, four steals, eight blocks, and an assist in the two games in Oregon to close out the 2023 calendar year. Scouts have gushed about Bona's abilities for the last two years or so, but this is the first time we have really seen him put two strong games together like that. I don't know that I'm fully ready to buy in yet, but Bona is cheap enough in a good matchup that he can make a difference in our lineups if his strong play continues.
Maxime Raynaud, Stanford ($6,700)
Raynaud has spent some quality time in foul trouble against the Arizona schools, but he still racked up 15 points and 15 boards in 25 minutes against Arizona State. He held his own against Arizona's massive bigs and turned in another game over 20 DraftKings points. He hasn't been under that total in any game this season and has topped 25 in four straight games now. If he can stay on the court longer against UCLA, there is a lot of potential here.
Payton Sparks, Indiana ($3,800)
There is a caveat attached to this one. Sparks started in place of Kel'el Ware last week against Kennesaw State since Ware came down with COVID. If Ware is out again, Sparks is a lock. He only played 14 minutes, but he racked up 10 points and eight rebounds. There's a chance that the Hoosiers use Sparks in short bursts off the bench spelling Ware tonight, but he's a huge risk if he doesn't start.
Also consider: PJ Hall, Clemson ($9,800); Malik Reneau, Indiana ($8,400); Juwan Gary, Nebraska ($7,700); Abou Ousmane, Xavier ($7,400); Mackenzie Mgbako, Indiana ($6,500); Josiah Allick, Nebraska ($5,800); Mawot Mag, Rutgers ($5,300); Ben Middlebrooks, North Carolina State ($4,500); Grant Newell, California ($3,500)
