NBA DFS Picks For January 9, 2021

As you enjoy a full day and night of back-to-back NFL playoff games it’s time to get those second (or third) screens set up for seven game slate of NBA action tonight. From a bankroll management perspective I do want to warn you though not to let how you fare in the football action impact anything related to how you attack tonight’s NBA slate. Stay consistent and act like a member of the Philadelphia 76ers front office a few years ago as you trust the process. 

For those who have yet to subscribe, what are you waiting for? Until then you will get one free pick to whet your appetite. Tonight we want upside. If you are going to base things on averages so far this season C.J. McCollum ($8,600 DK, $8,800 FD) and Damien Lillard ($9,500 DK, $9,700 FD) are relatively similar. No one will argue that Lillard is the better player but both have substantial value and they are priced fairly. What really sets the two guards apart is the upside (there is that word again) that Lillard brings to the table as he can erupt on any given night. There are some situations where he is worth the additional cost and tonight against the Kings is one of those situations in a game with an over/under of 234.5. In his last game Lillard needed just 29 minutes to score 39 points while grabbing seven rebounds and handing out seven assists and I’m looking for more of the same tonight.    

If there is going to be a lot of offense in a guard dominated game it often makes sense to either target both point guards or take a contrarian stance to save some money. In this case that would lead you to De’Aaron Fox ($8,300 DK, $7,800 FD) but I am keeping my distance tonight. While he is a go to player for Sacramento Fox is averaging just 27 minutes per game so far this season with a rather boring 17.8 points and 4.2 assists. If Fox were playing 35 minutes at that pace I would likely feel better about him but instead I am going back to a target from last night. 

Unfortunately his price continues to increase, not without cause, but Tyrese Haliburton ($5,800 DK, $5,400 FD) is still a better option despite coming off the bench as the rookie is playing 30 minutes a game (which happens to be more than Fox). Haliburton is working on a streak of five straight games in double figures and last night he scored 15 points while handing out eight assists. At 14.3 points and five assists per game along with 2.3 steals (Fox is at 2.2) Hailburton is clearly the better option. 

Since we do have that pesky thing called a salary cap an interesting approach to building a backcourt tonight could involved Haliburton and Luka Doncic ($11,000 DK, $11,600 FD) who offers the most upside on the slate. After a triple-double against Houston that saw him put up 33 points, 16 rebounds, and 11 assists the guard promptly followed that up with 38 points, nine rebounds, and 13 assists. Doncic appears to be rounding into form and he is hard to ignore.

You could also go with another option in Dallas’ backcourt as Tim Hardaway ($5,900 DK, $5,500 FD) has become worthy of our attention. Moving to the bench in a sixth man role has actually worked in the swingman’s favor as it gives him more opportunity to focus on his offensive which is clearly his strength as Hardaway is averaging 18 points per game.

We don’t often think of Andre Drummond ($8,700 DK, $9,200 FD) as an elite player but his DFS performances certainly look that way so far this year. With 19 and 22 points in his last two games Drummond is also showing some offensive upside as the opportunity is there on a rebuilding Cleveland team that is also without Kevin Love. Drummond hasn’t missed a double-double yet this season while averaging 14.8 points and 13.6 rebounds on the season which also gives him a reliable floor. In a similar weight class is Nikola Vucevic ($8,800 DK, $8,800 FD) who gives you more on the scoring side of things (22 points per game) but still averages 10 rebounds.

Scoring 60 points in a game doesn’t happen every day but then Bradley Beal ($9,700 DK, $10,100 FD) followed that up by putting up 41 points against the Celtics. The Washington guard is now averaging 35 points on the season with 5.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists which makes him a very attractive option tonight against Miami in a game that is expected to be high scoring with an over/under of 230.

After being moved into the starting lineup following the season ending injury to Markelle Fultz, Cole Anthony ($5,500 DK, $4,800 FD) came through with 15 points. Scoring hasn’t been much of a problem for the rookie for the most part as in four of his last five games he has averaged 12 points per game (excluding a two-point dud) but we would like to see him improve on his 2.6 assists per game. As he takes a greater role in the offense that should come.

With just six points in his last game Mikal Bridges ($5,700 DK, $5,300 FD) slowed down slightly from his previous offensive pace he has proven to be a capable scoring threat as of late. Bridges is more of a “safe” option as he plays about 35 minutes while also contributing 5.4 rebounds. With Bridges you get a solid floor while his increased role on offense does give him some upside.

Much has been made of the lack of options in Charlotte’s front court but that means P.J. Washington ($5,900 DK, $5,800 FD) plays 28 minutes per game. While he doesn’t anything especially well, Washington does fill the box score with 9.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game and there will be a lot of action tonight as the Hornets take on the Hawks in a game with an over/under of 227.5.

For our value player of the night Maxi Kleber ($4,300 DK, $4,200 FD) is remaining in the starting lineup after playing 36 minutes in his last game. Kleber put up a well-rounded stat line in his last game as he scored nine points while adding eight rebounds and three assists. That is in line with his season average but the forward did play 10 more minutes than his season average so that playing time trend does bode well for future production. And at this price he doesn’t have that high of a hill to climb.