Daily Fantasy DraftKings and FanDuel NBA Picks - Wednesday, January 3, 2024

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Point Guard/ Shooting Guard

Donovan Mitchell FD - $10400 DK - $9500
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 56.76 DK - 59.85

Donovan Mitchell continues to be underpriced on DraftKings considering the role he has with this Cavs’ team. With Darius Garland out of the mix, Mitchell is shouldering almost all of the lead guard duties, running the point and putting up a ton of shots. He’s taken 21 or more shots in each of his last six games, averaging 30 points, 7.3 assists, and 5.5 rebounds in that stretch.

It’s on par with the best in the game, made even better when you remember that he faces the Washington Wizards tonight. The Wiz are the worst defense in the league and they run the fastest pace. There’s a reason you’ll see a bunch of Cavs in this article today.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander FD - $11500 DK - $10500
Opponent - ATL
Proj Pts FD - 61 DK - 61.5

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is playing like a guy who wants to, and should, be in the MVP discussion. He just dropped a 36/7/6 line against the Celtics on Tuesday and is averaging 31.4 points, 6.4 assists, and 2.6 steals per game. He’s been amazing, one of the best fantasy producers around. Now he’ll face off against the Hawks who run the fifth-fastest pace and play the third-worst defense. It’s not quite as great as facing the Wizards, but it’s close.

Kyrie Irving FD - $8300 DK - $8300
Opponent - POR
Proj Pts FD - 44.38 DK - 46.94

The Mavericks were crushed by the Jazz in Kyrie Irving’s first game back from injury, an unwelcome sign for Dallas fans for sure. But I think we can consider rostering him here, especially on FanDuel with the expectation that the minutes will increase for this game. Plus, he gets a good matchup against the Blazers.

Irving scored 14 points, grabbed nine rebounds, and added four assists in his first game back, a great sign from a fantasy per-minute scoring basis. He might not be a popular play because he’s sharing the court with Luka, but I think there’s value here.

Small Forward

Max Strus FD - $6600 DK - $6500
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 34.25 DK - 37.35

Max Strus can be a little hit or miss, especially on the scoring front, which makes rostering him on a game-by-game basis a bit iffy. The minutes are more than there (33+ in each of the last seven games), but the shot-making and usage can come and go. For instance, he took seven shots in the last game and 18 the game before. That being said, the matchup here is just too good, and he’s able to contribute in other areas of the box score, so his floor is plenty high. I like him on both sites.

OG Anunoby FD - $6300 DK - $5600
Opponent - CHI
Proj Pts FD - 27.85 DK - 30.32

OG Anunoby made his Knicks debut on Monday against the Timberwolves and didn’t waste any time showing why New York traded for him in the first place. He ran 35 minutes, went 3-6 from beyond the arc and 7-12 from the field, finishing with 17 points and six rebounds when all was said and done. And that was against the best defense in basketball.

Now things will get a bit easier against the Bulls and OG isn’t priced correctly on DraftKings if he’s going to be running minutes in the mid-to-high 30s with this group.

Power Forward/ Center

Jarrett Allen FD - $8700 DK - $7800
Opponent - WAS
Proj Pts FD - 46.43 DK - 48.66

Jarrett Allen has been a beast of late, averaging 22.3 points and 15.8 rebounds over the last four games. From a fantasy perspective, that’s about as good as it gets at the center (or any) position. The blocked shots haven’t been there in bunches, but could tick back up a tad here in a fast-paced game against the Wiz, who are swatted more than league average. Stacking Mitchell and Allen could be the popular move on both sites today.

Jalen Johnson FD - $6900 DK - $6300
Opponent - OKC
Proj Pts FD - 37.11 DK - 39.83

Jalen Johnson lost a month to injury but hasn’t seemed to have any rust over his first three games back. In fact, the last two have been awesome: 20 points, 14 rebounds, and four assists while running minutes in the high 30s. He’s a key piece to Atlanta getting back in the playoff mix and his run should stay high as long as the Hawks can stay in games.

That could be a tall order against the OKC Thunder who look like world-beaters right now. That being said, with a game total sitting at 248 and the Thunder just -2, Jalen Johnson can easily be rostered in cash games.

Brook Lopez FD - $7100 DK - $6000
Opponent - IND
Proj Pts FD - 37.13 DK - 35.81

The Bucks face off against the Pacers on the second half of the home and home following the 122-113 Indiana win on Monday. That game came under the 261 total, and this one is down to a “reasonable” 256.5.

Brook Lopez was solid last time out, tallying 21 points, five rebounds, and four blocks in his 38 minutes. He can clearly stay on the court for the Bucks in these pace-up matchups and the DraftKings price is pretty low all things considered.

Consider Ibou Badji (FD 3700 DK 3800) and Chimezie Metu (FD 4600 DK 5100) on the cheaper side of things.