Daily Fantasy NBA Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and DraftPot - 11/19/15

The NBA is back! And honestly, I feel like if never really left us. The Finals seem like yesterday, the off season saw a ton of moves and we are ready to jump back into another season. We'll be bringing you daily picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and more. It's going to be a great season.

If you want access to the winning projections that inform each and every one of these picks, just sign up for a 3-day trial to our database, lineup builder and Google Chrome extension that auto-populates your lineups into FanDuel and DraftKings. First three days on us and then just $15/ month after that which also includes our NFL and NHL Beta projections. What a deal.

First time with NBA? Be sure to read our free NBA Ebook on building lineups, general strategy and more. We've got you completely covered.
Our projection system handles the little bits of pricing and projecting differences. That being said, for this opening slate I think you are very much going to be taking a stars and punts approach.

POINT GUARD

Stephen Curry - FD 11000 DK 10800
Opponent - LAC FD Proj. Pts - 41.89 DK Proj. Pts - 45.25
Our system doesn't love him for these prices actually, though it's probably having some trouble fully accounting for just how inhuman he's been this season. Curry has essentially become the Warriors' point guard and shooting guard this season, taking even more of the offense over in the early going. Steph is Steph and I don't need to extol his virtues anymore than the stats, or the highlights, or the articles or the memes about him already do. He's insane and there isn't anything else to say about it. The question here is whether you can pay for him, and I think that it's close.

Michael Carter-Williams - FD 6600 DK 6000
Opponent - CLE FD Proj. Pts - 32.39 DK Proj. Pts - 33.04
Jerryd Bayless - FD 4400 DK 4800
Opponent - CLE FD Proj. Pts - 19.47 DK Proj. Pts - 20.3
They come at different price points but I think you can consider both of them today. MCW has a lot of stink on him after last game for sure, but he is still a fine play all things considered. Bayless plays a lot of minutes for someone in his price range, though I wouldn't call the run necessarily secure. You are going to need a few mid tier or punt-ish plays on this slate and both of these guys fill the need in certain respects.

Consider Austin Rivers

SHOOTING GUARD

Jamal Crawford - FD 4400 DK 4600
Opponent - GSW FD Proj. Pts - 23.1 DK Proj. Pts - 25.1
He's basically a must start on this slate considering the state of the Clipper's backcourt. They will be without both Redick and CP3 tonight (presumably) and that leaves a lot of ball-handling to Crawford and the aforementioned Rivers. Crawford is the higher upside play without a doubt, though there is of course concern how much LA can even hang in this game. He started the last game against Detroit and took an ungodly 27 shots on his way to a 37/8/6 line against Detroit in 41 minutes. Look for the same amount of run tonight with the depleted Clippers squad. Price isn't close to where it should be considering the opportunity.

Giannis Antetokounmpo - FD 6900 DK 7200
Opponent - CLE FD Proj. Pts - 33.2 DK Proj. Pts - 34.31
On the whole, this is a tough slate. There are some slower, more defensively-minded teams and that always makes for tricky DFS waters. Giannis is a higher floor guy simply because he does so freaking much on the court and plays a ton of minutes. Those two things will make him rather safe on a night-to-night basis though you do have a little foul trouble to contend with. That's the one issue that buzzes off his minutes, if anything. But this is a guy averaging 17/7 on the year and chips in with all the other stats as well.

SMALL FORWARD

LeBron James - FD 10100 DK 10100
Opponent - MIL FD Proj. Pts - 46.82 DK Proj. Pts - 48.6
Look, I'm going to list all four of the superstars tonight. It's not a cop out (it's a little of a cop out) but I think there is a case to play all of them. I know you can't and we don't usually roll this way, but I'm basically saying that depending on the circumstances there are cases for all of them. If you think the Bucks can hang in this one (like they did in the double overtime game a couple of nights ago) then Lebron has as high a ceiling as anyone on the slate. He's averaging a million minutes this season which is bad for the Cavs' long term prospects but great for DFS prospects. Milwaukee is a slow team which I hate, but this is Lebron.

Khris Middleton - FD 5600 DK 5600
Opponent - CLE FD Proj. Pts - 27.44 DK Proj. Pts - 29.24
Oh the Bucks. The team is so hard to trust (historically) when it comes to minutes and yet here we are in a
Justise Winslow - FD 3700 DK 4000
Opponent - SAC FD Proj. Pts - 21.55 DK Proj. Pts - 22.84
If you are looking to play some of the bigger money guys tonight then you are going to need to sniff out some of the cheaper plays. Winslow has the minutes, though all things considered he isn't an enormous upside guy. He doesn't feature in the offense which will keep the scoring down relative to run. But the floor is higher than most in his price range because he's on the court enough.

Consider Harrison Barnes if you think the Clips can keep it close

POWER FORWARD

Blake Griffin - FD 9700 DK 9600
Opponent - GSW FD Proj. Pts - 43.18 DK Proj. Pts - 43.81
Remember that thing I said about listing all the superstars? I wasn't kidding about that. Griffin and Crawford were the two biggest fantasy benefactors of Redick and Paul sitting out last game. Griffin put up 25 shots against the Pistons on his way to a 34/9/8 line. If the Clips can keep the game close (which won't be easy) then Griffin will almost assuredly see some monster minutes in this thing. Every superstar comes with a pitfall on this slate and Blake's is the minutes. If the game gets ugly early then he might not see the fourth. That being said, I think he sees his and because the rest of power forward is so bad, this is almost a must play.

Kevin Love - FD 7800 DK 8000
Opponent - MIL FD Proj. Pts - 31.96 DK Proj. Pts - 34.32
I hate his points per dollar expectation, but I hate the rest of the position even more. After Love there is really only Draymond and I suppose the decision is close. Love probably doesn't have Green's ceiling, but I think the matchup is slightly better. Again, I don't really love anything about what's happening at this position and don't feel great about this play. But there are very few options at the position who even go out and play an even average amount of minutes.

Can't believe I'm saying this but consider John Henson as a short slate punt play who doesn't see many minutes but can fill it up when he's in there.

CENTER

DeMarcus Cousins - FD 10700 DK 10300
Opponent - MIA FD Proj. Pts - 51.76 DK Proj. Pts - 52.41
Sure, I know. I've listed them all. And that isn't particularly helpful on such a small slate. But of all the big money guys, Boogie and Blake are the best deals going. Cousins has been an animal when on the court, playing a stretch four (I know!) and making it pay as he's been efficient from beyond the arc. If Cousins is a threat from three (which he is now) then you basically cannot guard him. Now Miami is good against big men thanks in part to their very slow pace. They plod along and it kills the volume for the opponents. But I think Boogie is coming at a discount still and you can get him in cash game lineups tonight.

Strongly consider Hassan Whiteside simply because he represents a major discount from Cousins. Hassan is also the top play on DraftKings where DeMarcus is a power forward.

So yeah, basketball season! And we've got some goodies you can take with you. At the end of the post, we have our NBA eBook that you really ought to check out before setting even a single daily fantasy NBA lineup. It's free, below.

We've also got our exclusive projection system, which you can grab a free three day trial for to get your sea legs under you as the NBA season begins. Click below to check it out!