RADIO
Happy Tuesday, Rotoballers! How are we already four weeks into this NBA season? The Phoenix Suns are proving that their 8-0 bubble record was, in fact, a sign of things to come. Meanwhile, the Brooklyn Nets are showing some growing pains with their two superstars and, tonight, they have a critical early-season, prove-it game against a depleted Philadelphia 76ers unit.
We have six games to choose from this evening, and it should be a high-scoring night with three of the top five pace teams playing on the slate. Those teams are Golden State (107.5), Brooklyn (106.3), and Philadelphia (105.4). Also, the Indiana Pacers versus the Golden State Warriors should be a fun matchup for DFS. As of this writing, that game has the highest O/U (228 points), and both teams project to score at least 110 points. There are some cheap pieces to grab in that matchup and the San Antonio Spurs versus the Oklahoma City Thunder game. Therefore, a stars and scrubs strategy could be viable on Tuesday's smaller slate.
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 1/12/21. You can also check out today's FanDuel lineup picks. With COVID-19 a significant factor globally, remember to monitor injury news as the slate can completely change before line-up lock.
DraftKings DFS Guards
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - PG, OKC vs. SA ($8,000)
SGA took a massive leap in the 2019-20 season to vault him into the territory as a rising star to watch. This year, he seems to be taking another mini-leap forward, and the results are starting to pay off. He's averaging career-highs in points (21.0), assists (6.0), three-pointers made (2.0), and true shooting percentage (58.7%).
The third-year guard is averaging 52.4 DraftKings points per game in his last three contests and takes on the San Antonio Spurs tonight. The Spurs allow the fourth-most PPG this year at 113.1, while also ranking bottom-six in opponent field goal percentage (47.8%) and opponent three-point percentage (40.9%). SGA has an excellent opportunity to make it four 50-point outings in a row tonight against this floundering Spurs defense.
Joe Harris - SG/SF, BKN vs. DEN ($5,400)
I acknowledge that I have a Joe Harris problem. Every time he's on the slate, I can't resist his three-point shooting upside in this Brooklyn offense. That is especially true versus the Denver Nuggets tonight. It's a bottom-10 three-point defense, and Harris has made nine three-pointers over his last three games. The sharpshooter's salary has been hovering in the $5,500-$5,700 range for a few games, and his $5,400 cost is a nice little discount for tonight's slate. In his last three games, the 29-year old is averaging 28.9 DK points and could continue to see a bump if Kyrie Irving (personal) misses another game.
Duncan Robinson - SG, MIA at PHI ($4,800)
Robinson had a rough stretch over the holiday season where he didn't crack 19 DK points in three consecutive matchups. However, he's turned over a new leaf and is averaging 24.9 DK PPG over his last three. The 76ers will be short due to COVID-19 protocols, and their shortened rotation seems to be taking a toll on them after they were blown out 112-94 by the Atlanta Hawks last night. The Hawks made 17 threes on Monday, and that should bode well for Robinson and his three-point shooting mentality. The 26-year old has drained at least four of them in two of his last three contests and has also collected at least four rebounds in four straight games.
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DraftKings DFS Forwards
Domantas Sabonis - PF/C, IND at GS ($9,300)
Sabonis has the extra appeal of being power forward-eligible and is a nice alternative to build your lineup around if you can't get up to Nikola Jokic ($11,000) at the center position. The big man of Lithuanian heritage is averaging 22.2 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 5.8 assists this season while shooting 56.4 percent from the floor. He has a double-double in every game this season and just put up a 28-point, 22-rebound clinic against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. The Warriors allow the second-most rebounds (49.2) to their opposition each night. Sabonis should feast and grab that 11th double-double in 11 games with ease.
Andrew Wiggins - SG/SF, GS vs. IND ($6,300)
If you can afford Wiggins, he's a reliable fantasy option on Tuesday. However, if you can't get there, then you can pivot to Kelly Oubre Jr. (see below). Wiggins is averaging 30.8 FPPG this season and has at least 30 fantasy points in four of his last eight. He started the season with a couple of sub-par performances but has scored at least 15 points in eight straight contests. The No. 1 pick in 2014 is shooting 50 percent since Jan. 3, and that trend should continue against an Indiana defense allowing opponents to make 47.4 percent of their field goals this year. That mark puts them as the eighth-worst defense in that category this season.
Kelly Oubre Jr. - SF/PF, GS vs. IND ($5,300)
After a well-documented terrible start for his new team, Oubre is slowly, but surely, turning the corner as the 2020-21 campaign rolls along. The 25-year old has eclipsed 25 DK points in five of his last eight games and finds other ways to contribute outside the three-point shot. He has at least five rebounds in eight of ten games this season and is averaging 1.3 steals per contest. Indiana is the 22nd-ranked defense versus small forwards through the early part of this season, and Oubre may even sink a couple of three-point shots versus the third-worst three-point defense in the league.
DraftKings DFS Centers
Montrezl Harrell - C, LAL at HOU ($6,000)
Harrell already produced in this exact matchup on Sunday. Against his former team, the 2020 Sixth Man of the Year had 16 points, eight rebounds, a block, and a steal in 23 minutes to produce 29 DK points. His cost has been depressed because of the great options at the center spot on tonight's slate. However, he can still be an excellent option for your lineup tonight because he is averaging 12.9 points and 8.0 rebounds in just 24.2 minutes per game. Anthony Davis is still nursing a hip injury that caused him to miss a game last week, so Harrell could always be in line for a more significant workload if his teammate has to sit again. When that happened against the Bulls on Jan. 8, Harrell came away with his second double-double this season and 37 DK points.
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