It’s Friday. The National Basketball Association (NBA) has a total of nine games on today’s NBA DFS slate. DraftKings splits the slate, with a seven-game early-window contest, as does FanDuel. As such, we’ll omit the 10:00 p.m. ET game between the L.A. Clippers and L.A. Lakers, as well as the Denver Nuggets and Portland Trail Blazers at 11:00 p.m. ET.
The Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves will square off on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. ET, too, and five of the seven games on our slate have a 7:30 p.m. ET or earlier tip-off time.
Here are our top NBA DFS picks and advice for tonight’s slate.
View the best player prop bets for tonight’s slate with our NBA Prop Bet Cheat Sheet
NBA DraftKings & FanDuel DFS Primer
NBA DFS Core Plays
- DraftKings: $10,500
- FanDuel: $11,300
Jalen Johnson heads into this matchup against the visiting Miami Heat on a roll. In his first game out of the All-Star break, Johnson rolled up 32 points with 10 rebounds, five assists, three steals and a block. He went 9-of-22 from the field and 14-of-16 from the free-throw line.
Johnson gets a crack at the Heat, a team with an opponent rank of 27. He heads into this contest averaging 51.7 fantasy points per game. It’s a tremendous matchup for Johnson. He blew up for 29 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists on February 3rd in Miami in the most recent meeting. That was Johnson’s second triple-double in a three-game span. He has three or more steals in three in a row, too.
- DraftKings: $9,400
- FanDuel: $10,000
Anthony Edwards is back in action after participating for “Team Stripes” in the All-Star festivities in Los Angeles. In his most recent regular-season game, he went for just 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, although he did drop four three-pointers with four rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Edwards has racked up 45 fantasy points per game, so you’re going to get what you pay for more often than not. He is also facing a Mavericks defense that has an opponent rank of 29. The last time he faced the Mavericks, he recorded 20 points, six rebounds, six assists and three steals, while hitting three triples.
- DraftKings: $9,200
- FanDuel: $8,200
We have our forward and our guard above, but we need a center. Bam Adebayo went for 27 points, 14 rebounds, four assists and four blocks in 37 minutes on February 11th in his most recent appearance in New Orleans.
Adebayo has averaged 25 points, 12.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and two blocks per game, with 1.5 made three-pointers per contest, over the past two games. In six February outings, Adebayo is averaging 20.7 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.5 three-pointers. The last time he faced the Hawks, Adebayo recorded 16 points and 14 rebounds.
NBA DFS Cash Game Targets
- DraftKings: $8,400
- FanDuel: $8,400
Julius Randle gets a chance to pick on the defensively-challenged Dallas Mavericks, who roll into the game with an opponent rank of 28. He is good for 41.9 fantasy points per game. At this price range, he averages more points than most players.
Randle posted 41 points on 14-of-24 shooting on February 11th against Portland in the game before the All-Star break. The last time he faced the Mavericks in Dallas on January 28th, he went for 31 points, five rebounds, four assists and a steal.
- DraftKings: $7,300
- FanDuel: $7,400
Andrew Nembhard had a disastrous outing in Washington on Thursday in the first end of the back-to-back, going for just five points on 2-of-7 shooting in 22 minutes, while posting four assists and six turnovers, tying a season high. He also had six miscues on November 19th against the Charlotte Hornets.
The struggles of Nembhard on Thursday crushed DFS players, but his salary takes a tumble, and he is a strong value to bounce back. He is good for 33.9 fantasy points per game, facing a Washington defense with an opponent rank of 31.
- DraftKings: $7,100
- FanDuel: $7,200
Nickeil Alexander-Walker has been a steady contributor on the offensive end this season, and he is enjoying a career season. He averaged just 9.4 points per game in 82 games (10 starts) last season with the Minnesota Timberwolves, his fourth straight season with a single-digit point average.
This season, he is good for 20.1 points per game, which would smash his previous best of 12.8 points per game in 50 games (19 starts) with the New Orleans Pelicans in 2020-21. Alexander-Walker has scored 10+ points in 27 consecutive games, too, so you’re going to get what you paid for.
NBA DFS GPP Targets
- DraftKings: $6,900
- FanDuel: $6,200
You know it’s a theme in this space, but we tend to predominantly roster players with a favorable matchup. That’s not rocket science, but you also need to choose players with upside who are getting the minutes, too.
Jaime Jaquez Jr. is getting plenty of run in South Florida, and he went for 23 points on 10-of-22 shooting in 35 minutes in New Orleans last time out on February 11th. He posted eight rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks. If he can replicate that type of production, it’s going to be a good night.
- DraftKings: $5,400
- FanDuel: $5,600
The Pacers traded for double-double machine Ivica Zubac from the L.A. Clippers. However, an ankle injury has kept him out of head coach Rick Carlisle’s lineup. He admitted over the break that it might be a while before we see Zubac in a Pacers jersey.
Jay Huff and Micah Potter are expected to hold down the fort in Zubac’s stead. The 28-year-old Huff, from the University of Virginia, has made the most of his opportunity at regular playing time, going for 10+ points in four in a row. He scored 15 points and hauled in eight rebounds last time out in 21 minutes in Washington on Thursday.
- DraftKings: $5,600
- FanDuel: $4,800
Bub Carrington is likely to see a bump in playing time, as will Tre Johnson, with Trae Young (knee) still on the shelf. It’s a good time to grab some stock in Carringston, as he is a great value, especially on FanDuel.
Carrington has scored at least 11 points in five of the past six games, and he has three or more assists in five in a row. He also has scored 11+ points in 13 of the previous 15 contests. Carrington won’t roll up giant totals, but he’ll get you double-digit points, a couple of treys and a smattering of assists and rebounds with an occasional steal, too.
NBA DFS Value Plays
- DraftKings: $4,500
- FanDuel: $4,000
Jock Landale has been making the most of his time since landing in Atlanta via trade from Memphis, averaging 10.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 threes per game in the past three outings.
Landale has seen his minutes increase in every game in Atlanta so far, playing 22 minutes last time out in Philadelphia on Thursday, finishing with 10 points, seven rebounds and two three-pointers.
- DraftKings: $4,400
- FanDuel: $4,500
Herbert Jones gets a crack against the Milwaukee Bucks. He is a player who will log at least 30 minutes and has at least seven points in four of the past five outings.
Jones also has at least four rebounds in four of the past five games, too, while picking up at least two steals in three of the past four contests. He won’t wow you in any one area, but he’ll get a smattering of points at a low cost.
- DraftKings: $4,800
- FanDuel: $5,400
Tristan Vukcevic is expected to hold down the fort in the middle with Alex Sarr (hamstring) still on the sidelines. Vukcevic is facing an Indiana defense with an opponent rank of 24, and he should be able to put up another strong total.
In the front end of the back-to-back against the Pacers on Thursday, Vukcevic went for 12 points, five rebounds, two assists, two three-pointers and five steals in just 17 minutes.
