RADIO
The NBA is back! After a great opening night in which the Celtics blew away the Knicks and the Lakers held on to beat the Timberwolves, we get our first monster slate of the season with 10 games on tap for Wednesday night.
It'll be our first look at these teams in live action that matters and should be an exciting night to watch and enjoy some great fantasy basketball. The spotlight games on national TV are the Bucks visiting the Sixers followed by the Suns taking on the Clippers, but those aren't the only exciting matchups to check out. The highest over/under on the board comes from what should be high-tempo matchups between the Pistons and the Pacers in Detroit and the Rockets and the Hornets in Houston. There are so many strong plays to consider from those games, so let's jump right into my top plays.
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 10/23/24. Remember to monitor NBA injury news and our awesome NBA injuries report tool, as the slate can completely change before lineups lock at 7 p.m. EST on DraftKings.
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DraftKings NBA DFS Core Picks
Tyrese Maxey, PHI – PG ($9,000)
While the 76ers spent a lot of time and effort upgrading their roster this offseason, the first game of the season may not feel like it. Most of the offensive workload will still fall on Maxey, who will get all the work he can handle with Joel Embiid (knee) and Paul George (knee) both sidelined for the opener.
Last season without Embiid on the floor, Maxey's usage rate increased by over three percentage points to a team-high 31.7% usage rate, and he produced 1.19 DraftKings points per minute. In the 32 games that Maxey played with Embiid out last year, he averaged 42.6 DraftKings points on 26.4 points and 5.5 assists in 38.2 minutes per game. After getting his big payday this offseason, Maxey will be the man on Opening Night, and he should post a top stat line. The fact that he's only the sixth-most expensive point guard to build around makes him an even stronger option.
Alperen Sengun, HOU – C ($8,600)
I'm expecting huge things from Sengun this season, and he starts with a soft matchup against the Hornets. In his last 25 games last year, he averaged 44.6 DraftKings points per game on 20.3 points and 10.0 rebounds per contest.
OFFICIAL - The Houston Rockets today announced they have signed center Alperen Sengun to a contract extension.
📝 More info: https://t.co/qubgDcVUae pic.twitter.com/XPylVkl5kj
— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) October 22, 2024
Earlier this week, he agreed to a five-year, $185 million rookie extension, and he should be ready to start the season with a big game against the Hornets, who have been a great matchup for opposing bigs the last few seasons and usually play with enough pace to be an extremely fantasy-friendly matchup to attack.
Jonathan Kuminga, GS – PF ($6,500)
Kuminga is an option I like in the midrange on this slate since he'll be asked to step into a much more prominent role for the Warriors this year after the departure of Klay Thompson, who makes his Mavs' debut Thursday. Kuminga showed a lot of potential last year despite an inconsistent role at times.
He produced career highs across the board with 16.1 points, 4.8 boards and 2.2 assists over 74 regular-season games. He showed even more potential than those averages and averaged 32.7 DraftKings points per game over his final 35 games of the regular season. He's expected to step into the starting five in this favorable matchup against Portland and will look to build on his strong preseason.
DraftKings NBA DFS Value Picks
Gradey Dick, TOR – SG/SF ($4,700)
Dick is expected to start alongside Immanuel Quickley ($7,200) in the backcourt, and both should carry plenty of the workload in the Toronto offense. For Wednesday, Bruce Brown (knee) is out while Kelly Olynyk (back) and RJ Barrett (shoulder) are doubtful.
RJ Barrett, Kelly Olynyk, Bruce Brown & Ja'Kobe Walter officially listed OUT for the Raptors matchup w/ the Cavs on Wed
📈 Gradey Dick, Ochai Agbaji, Davion Mitchell, Bruno Fernando, Chris Boucher
Dick should be grabbed right now https://t.co/C9Uz7xfGvI#FantasyBasketball pic.twitter.com/sofd1WfZoj
— NBA Fantasy Bible (@NBAFantasyBible) October 22, 2024
Dick had 27 points to lead the team in one of his preseason games and has shown the ability to fill in around his scoring with good rebounds and assist production as well as a few steals. While he isn't as much of a bargain as the other value plays highlighted here, he does bring a very high ceiling for a play under $5,000.
Jabari Walker, POR – PF ($3,300)
Walker seems to be one of the most mispriced players coming into the first big slate of the year. He's available for barely more than the minimum but should play a prominent role in the Portland frontcourt. The 22-year-old didn't play much his rookie year but averaged 23.6 minutes per game last year, producing 8.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 21.0 DraftKings points per game in 72 contests.
He started 23 of those games and should have plenty of minutes off the bench in the frontcourt to start this season with Shaedon Sharpe (shoulder) and Robert Williams III (hamstring) on the shelf. He doesn't have to do a ton to be a great value at this salary and offers plenty of salary relief.
Brandon Clarke, MEM – C ($3,700)
Clarke is expected to be the primary backup big man behind rookie Zach Edey ($6,200), so his playing time could fluctuate depending on how the rookie fares from game to game. With Jaren Jackson Jr. (hamstring) already ruled out for Wednesday's game in Utah, Clarke should have a clear path to plenty of minutes to return some nice value under $4,000. He'll be looking to bounce back from last year when he was sidelined most of the season with an Achilles injury and only managed to play six games. He looked solid in the preseason.
Tre Mann, CHA – SG ($3,800)
While value in the backcourt is a little trickier to pinpoint than in the frontcourt on this slate, Mann is a cheap play with a very good ceiling. The 23-year-old had a strong preseason and should be involved in the early part of the season. He could even slip into the starting lineup depending on the status of Josh Green (Achilles, questionable). Mann has shown a solid offensive skill set and contributes assists and defensive production to bring a high floor even if his shot isn't dropping.
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Today's Top NBA DFS Game Stacks
Pacers at Pistons (233.5 total)
The Pistons and Pacers both typically play fast, but aside from the stars. It's a little tricky figuring out how the minutes will shake out in this one. Bennedict Mathurin ($5,200) and Aaron Nesmith ($5,000) can be joined with Pascal Siakam ($8,300) and Tyrese Haliburton ($9,300) to build a solid Pacers core, or you could lean into the Pistons side of this matchup and build around Jalen Duren ($7,300) and Cade Cunningham ($8,600) although neither of those plays comes at much of a discount.
Hornets at Rockets (229.5 total)
The Rockets are one of the hot sleeper teams getting plenty of attention coming into the season and have a great matchup to start with against the Hornets. I mentioned Sengun as one of my favorite plays of the day above, and some potential stacking options I like with him are Amen Thompson ($6,400) and Fred VanVleet ($7,400) along with Cam Whitmore ($4,000) as a value option.
My Favorite NBA DFS Picks for Today
Here is where I leave you with some of my favorites.
- My favorite OVERALL play on the slate: Tyrese Maxey
- My favorite CASH play on the slate: Tyrese Maxey
- My favorite GPP play on the slate: Ja Morant
- My favorite VALUE play: Gradey Dick
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