Daily Fantasy Basketball Picks for Draftstreet and FanDuel 1/22/14

I'm back from a one day hiatus, turning the picks over for a night to MisterMarch who turned in a solid performance. And because daily fantasy never stops (thank god) we're back at it tonight with a full slate of games. Let's get to some NBA plays.

Quick reminder about these picks. At DFSR we employ a system that seeks to gain the most points-per-dollar. When we give a recommendation, it’s because we believe that player has the best chance to meet or exceed his price. On any given the night the highest dollar player can be expected to score the most points, but that doesn’t always make him the best play for the money. Want an in-depth look at how we set our lineups each night? Sign up for our email list and get a free eBook on the 6 steps every pro takes before setting his lineup, either by clicking that link or signing up through the sidebar. On to the picks.

 

 

Point Guard

A bunch of very nice, cheap options here tonight, which should allow you to load up at other positions.

Raymond Felton FD $5,500 DS $12,268 -
It's a testament to how bad Felton is that he isn't the runaway favorite for best point guard tonight against the Sixers. Our system typically gives healthy juice to anyone facing Philly. We have him as the best $/output PG for tonight on FD, but not on DraftStreet (That goes to Brandon Knight). This is a great case of who blows less: Felton or the Sixers D? I'll be starting him on FD, but on DS I'll be at least thinking about it (but probably still starting him).

Brandon Knight - FD $6,700 DS $12,222-
Like I said above, I like Knight a bit better on DS tonight and I might be hedging a bit with Knight there and Felton on FD. It's close. Knight has gone from punt play, to mid range value, to wildly overpriced and has finally settled back to where he should probably be: a decent option against the right matchup. Detroit is just that opponent. This is a great price on BK.

DJ Augustin - FD $5,600 DS $14,293-
Pretty much a must-start price on FD with Hinrich out. DJ will be seeing a majority of the PG minutes for the Bulls now. He was a great price on FD before that consideration, now he's a top option. His price on DS is a bit higher, but I think you can make the case. He's been awesome for the Bulls who are really lacking in productive scoring.

Ramon Sessions FD $4,200 DS 9,372-
Another amazing cheap option, this time on both sites. He's getting all the minutes he can handle for Charlotte with Walker out. These prices are almost impossible to ignore. He's another guy making PG a good problem to have tonight.

 

 

Shooting Guard

Depends which site you're playing tonight

Monta Ellis - FD $7,700 DS $15,344 -
I don't play Ellis all the time, but I probably could. He seems to go out and score more that 30 FPs every night, but the reason I like him is because he does it a little different way each night. Sometimes he's scoring. Sometimes dishing. And he grabs some boards to round it out. Toronto is a slow team, but opposing SGs have been able to work around the margins on them. I like the matchup.

James Anderson - FD $4,100 DS $8,022 -
This is an upside/ punt play that I think you can make tonight. He got into foul trouble last game, but he's shown that he can pay this off in a big way. He's the starting SG and playing 25-30 minutes a night. I wouldn't do it in double ups, but if you're looking for a tourney homerun I think you can try it.

DraftStreet Value

Gerald Henderson - DS $10,260-
A nice double up play on DS tonight. Like the matchup and has a little upside when the shot is falling.

DeMar Derozan DS $15,397-
A very nice price for a guy who takes a ton of shots in Toronto now. He shoots and shoot and shoots. That can kill you on DS with the misses, but Derozan rounds it out with the rest of the sheet. This is a strong play here tonight.

FanDuel Value

Kyle Korver FD $5000 -
A great price and a top play on FD tonight. He will be in almost all of my lineups here tonight.

Rodney Stuckey FD $4,100
Been scoring a ton for Detroit off the bench at a near minimum price. You can really go cheap on FD tonight with guys who have a bunch of upside.

 

 

Small Forwards

Some nice midrange value here today.

Josh Smith - FD $7,900 DS $15,504-
It's a been awhile since we gave you Smoove but he's back at the top of the system and ready to give you a nice value play. He's been fairly pedestrian since his two monsters against Philly and Phoenix, but he could go off again tonight. Milwaukee is below average against SF and Smith could pile on it multiple parts of the stat line.

Trevor Ariza - FD $6,600 DS $13,290 -
We've picked him the last two games and he's been a solid value play. That continues again tonight even though the price has climbed a bit. Boston is about average against the position and Ariza makes a fairly safe play by getting a bit of every piece of the box score.

Jeff Green FD $5,600 DS $11,110-
He's been fairly solid since Rondo's return and was able to keep his stat line in check last night even against a strong Heat team. Green just couldn't get the shot to fall. Washington isn't Miami and I really like Green's upside in this game.

Demarre Carroll FD $5,000 DS 9,271 -
He won't be a popular play and you can use that to your advantage. Carroll has been solid all year, and has been able to pay this price many times over. He isn't a big scorer but that's ok because Orlando struggles with SF in the other areas of the game. Look for Carroll to grab some extra boards especially.

 

Power Forward

Always such a tough position to fill because there are always just so many options. I'll break it into tiers.

Big money:

Carmelo Anthony - FD $9,800 DS $19,225 -
The Knicks are so fucking brutal that only Felton and Melo are even worth taking tonight. And I usually pick everyone against the Sixers. That being said, Melo is the top big money play tonight and basically needs to be in your lineups. He is forced to do everything for New York right now which translates to heavy volume, which translates to big points.

Upper middle:

Paul Millsap - FD $8,200 DS $16,416-
Millsap's never a guy I love at first glance for some reason. He's more a safe, double up play for me tonight against Orlando who's interior defense against scorers is basically gone with Vucevic out. Millsap could see plenty of points tonight.

Tim Duncan - FD $7,900 DS $15,717 -
Our system really like Timm-AY tonight. To be honest, I'm not seeing him as a GPP play but in a double up he could pay the day. OKC is below average against PF's. I don't see Tim as having the upside needed to win you a tournament but slotting him into a few cash games isn't a bad play.

Lower middle tier:

David West - FD $5,900 DS $11,990-
Price has fallen into a nice range against a team in Phoenix that struggles against scoring and rebounding power fowards. Hi David! West could pay a nice price on this if he can get enough looks. That's always a problem in the Pacer offense which focuses so much on George and Lance. But tonight the price is there on West.

Nene Hilario FD $6,300 DS $12,631
Played less minutes against the Sixers which was a gut punch. I still like his value tonight against the Celtics who don't defend the interior well at all. This is a bit riskier with the minutes consideration as those have fluctuated for Nene, but I think he gets a full run tonight, paying this price and then some.

Josh McRoberts FD $5,200 DS $10,605-
Never a popular play. Maybe it's the hair. Don't let that sway you.

Cheap but valuable:

Jason Thompson FD $4,100 DS $9,188-
We gave him to you last night and he was money. He can get in foul trouble which crushes his value in some games. That could happen tonight, but if he can stay in the game look for him to grab some boards and points against the Rockets who, other than Dwight, have no real interior defenders.

Mike Scott FD $4,100 DS $9,616-
Been paying every night.

FanDuel Value

Patrick Patterson FD $4,300 -
Comes in off the bench and pays 5x.

Tobias Harris FD $6100-
I'll probably use him in lineups in which I like everything else and need to shift a buck or two around.

 

Center

Roy Hibbert - $5,900 DS $12,404-
Far from a stud at the position which will work well for you tonight because he is an amazing value considering Phoenix trends small and gets killed on scoring and rebounding from opposing centers. If this game stays close look for Hibbert to have contributed a ton.

Andre Drummond FD $7,500 DS $15,692-
He's a double up safety play who also has big upside if he gets all facets of his game working right. Against the Bucks he could see some bump in rebounds as they really struggle there.

DeAndre Jordan, FD $7,800 DS $17,999 -
A much better play on FD but you can roll him on both. This could be a rebounding contest between DJ and Al Jefferson (see below)

Al Jefferson FD $9000 DS $19446 -
See above. Neither of these guys like to defend their opponent. But they like doing the other parts of the game. Could be some kind of weird, matador style defensive struggle.

Cheap Option:

Pero Antic FD $3900 DS $8459-
Just needs to start and hit a couple of threes to pay this off.

 

FanDuel Value:

Tyson Chandler - $5,000-
Actually the top center play on FD tonight. Just a ton of upside for his price against Philly and could really control the interior.