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The top daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel on January 20th, 2022. John Brubaker provides NBA DFS analysis and sleeper picks for building optimal DFS rosters.
Happy Friday, RotoBallers! I hope you all had an excellent week to this point, and a great weekend is forthcoming! We have a plentiful NBA slate tonight, with a bunch of games on the board and some very fun matchups to look forward to. I'm a big fan of Friday slates since Thursday slates are typically underwhelming, and last night was no different. So let's take a look!
Tonight, we have ourselves a solid nine-game slate on this lovely Friday. With both FanDuel and DraftKings having multi-position eligibility players, we'll have to attack slates accordingly to make our lineups as optimal as possible. That's where I come in! I'll look to find my personal top plays and values for tonight's slate. Things can also change during the day, so I'll do my best to update you as news comes out!
Without further adieu, here is my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel and DraftKings on 1/20/22. Keep an eye on RotoBaller’s NBA injury news and also our full NBA injury report today to stay up to date before lineups are locked.
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DraftKings and FanDuel Guards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Ja Morant, at LAL (FD: $10,000, DK: $9,600)
I'll start the slate off with Ja Morant. Morant has been relatively consistent throughout the course of the season, averaging 27.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 7.9 assists on the year. He gets a great matchup against the Lakers tonight, who rank 20th in point guard efficiency. Morant projects to a 36.75% usage rate across 33 minutes.
FanDuel Projection: 50.91
DraftKings Projection: 53.75
Spencer Dinwiddie, vs MIA (FD: $6,800, DK: $6,700)
I'll take a look at Spencer Dinwiddie next. For what it's worth, I like Luka Doncic in this spot as well. However, Dinwiddie has been on a heater and gets a good matchup against the Heat who rank 25th in point guard efficiency. Dinwiddie projects to a 21.36% usage rate across 36 minutes tonight.
FanDuel Projection: 35.12
DraftKings Projection: 38.61
Jose Alvarado, at ORL (FD: $5,000, DK: $4,600)
I'll finish up the guard position once again with Jose Alvarado. Alvarado gets another solid matchup against the Magic who rank 19th in point guard efficiency. He did well enough for us last week, logging seven points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals, and a block against the Pistons. He projects to a 19.6% usage rate across 25 minutes tonight according to my model, but I expect him to play a bit more than 25 minutes as the Pelicans will once again be without Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson.
FanDuel Projection: 26.58
DraftKings Projection: 27.79
Also consider: Dejounte Murray (FD: $8,600, DK: $7,800), Dyson Daniels (FD: $4,000, DK: $3,700)
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DraftKings and FanDuel Forwards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Julius Randle, at ATL (FD: $9,900, DK: $9,800)
I'll start off the forward position with Julius Randle. Randle has been crushing it this season, averaging 24.2 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game this season. He should dominate this matchup against John Collins and the Hawks, who rank 19th in power forward efficiency. He projects to a 27.98% usage rate across 38 minutes.
FanDuel Projection: 51.00
DraftKings Projection: 54.89
Keldon Johnson, vs LAC (FD: $7,100, DK: $7,500)
I'll take a look at Keldon Johnson next. Johnson is coming off a 36-point, 11 rebounds, and four-steal performance against the Nets on Tuesday night. While I'm not expecting a similar production output, he does get a boost with Devin Vassell out of the lineup once again. He projects to a 28.5% usage rate across 33 minutes in a matchup against the Clippers who rank 13th in small forward efficiency. I'll be treading lightly (mostly in tournaments) with Johnson due to the matchup against Paul George and Kawhi Leonard.
FanDuel Projection: 37.58
DraftKings Projection: 39.68
Aaron Gordon, vs IND (FD: $6,600, DK: $6,100)
I'll finish things up at the forward positions with Aaron Gordon. Gordon has been a pleasant surprise this season, averaging 16.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.6 assists for the Nuggets. However, he has been up and down, so it's important to be able to snag him when you project an "up" game. While the matchup isn't great, as the Pacers rank 3rd in power forward efficiency, this should be a fast-paced and high-scoring game. My model projects Gordon to a 19.05% usage rate across 31 minutes.
FanDuel Projection: 34.73
DraftKings Projection: 33.44
Also consider: Larry Nance (FD: $4,800, DK: $3,400), Jericho Sims (FD: $3,600, DK: $3,000)
DraftKings and FanDuel Centers - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Wendell Carter, vs NO (FD: $6,600, DK: $6,200)
Last but not least, we'll talk about my guy Wendell Carter. I haven't mentioned Carter as much this season as I did last season, but he's certainly still a model favorite. Carter comes into this one averaging 15.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 2.8 assists on the year. He draws a solid matchup against Jonas Valanciunas and the Pelicans who rank 16th in center efficiency. Carter projects to a 19.63% usage rate across 30 minutes of game action tonight and is a nice mid-value center if you don't pay up for Nikola Jokic.
FanDuel Projection: 37.79
DraftKings Projection: 39.43
Also consider: Isaiah Hartenstein (FD: $4,000, DK: $3,000)
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