RADIO
It's been many months in the making, but we have to wait only a few more hours until the NBA is back in our lives! If you love NBA basketball as much as I do, then I know you have to be pumped for today's primetime games to kick off the season.
The defending Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics host the Philadelphia 76ers, while LeBron and the L.A. Lakers take on the defending champion Warriors in the nightcap. Two-game slates are always tough, and the pricing (especially on DraftKings) is going to allow you to build a lineup that you like pretty easily, so I am going to try not to just give out all the most obvious picks here today.
Here are my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel and DraftKings on 10/18/22. 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. Let's get to the picks already!
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DraftKings and FanDuel Guards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Stephen Curry vs. LAL (FD: $10,000, DK: $9,400)
It's a "stars and scrubs" type of slate tonight where you can easily fit in 2-3 high-priced studs pretty easily. I really like Steph here, as the Lakers bled fantasy points to opposing point guards last season. They brought in Patrick Beverley to boost that defense and moved Westbook to the bench, but Steph is pretty match-up proof at this point and Beverley's defensive prowess is largely overstated in my opinion.
Yes, Golden State has other weapons on offense, but Steph is still their guy and he's going to be launching from deep. He had a 21-10-10 game against LA last season and then dropped 30 points on them in their final meeting, too. Early ownership projections show him as possibly even half the ownership of LeBron, Embiid, and Anthony Davis providing us with a nice leverage opportunity.
Tyrese Maxey @ BOS (FD: $6,500, DK: $5,000)
Maxey had a fantastic preseason and then DK dropped the ball in a big way here with his price. That's going to make him uber-chalk there, but I don't think you can avoid it. He's coming into his own as a young player and can hit value very easily in this one with his ability to score and rack up steals. The FanDuel price at least makes it interesting, and he should be considerably lower-owned there since there are other much cheaper value options at guard.
Malcolm Brogdon vs. PHI (FD: $6,200, DK: $4,900)
Brogdon is a bit more appealing on DK, too, where he's under 5k and cheaper than we've ever seen him before. His role in Boston is going to be different than what we are used to, as he's set to come off the bench as the sixth man, but that certainly doesn't mean he won't be as productive on a per-minute basis. He's been around a 1.0 fantasy point-per-minute player in his career due to his plus rebounding and solid assist rate, and we could see him push for 28-30 minutes a lot of nights. He averaged 6.7 assists off the bench in the preseason in only 20 minutes per game, which proves to me that he is going to be running that second unit.
Also consider: Kendrick Nunn, Patrick Beverley
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DraftKings and FanDuel Forwards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Jayson Tatum @ PHI (FD: $9,800, DK: $9,000)
Tatum posted 23-12-5 against the Sixers last season in four games. Those numbers are impressive by any standard and make him one of the top pay-up options tonight. The Sixers did bring in PJ Tucker for his defense and he's likely going to draw Tatum to start the game, which should prove to be an interesting match-up, but even Tucker isn't likely to slow down Tatum all that much.
The young Celtics' star continues to evolve his game each season and can get it done so many different ways, whether he's hitting threes, getting to the rim, or drawing fouls and racking up free throws. I definitely want some exposure to him tonight and I would prioritize him ahead of LeBron James for leverage since they are at similar price points.
Anthony Davis @ GSW (FD: $10,100, DK: $8,500)
AD is badly underpriced on DraftKings, meaning he should be a pretty chalky play, there. On FanDuel, his price is right where it should be and we could see Joel Embiid soak up most of the ownership at center at a similar price.
Say what you want about AD, the guy is a skilled player on both ends and an excellent fantasy producer. Yes, there is always the risk of him getting hurt and not finishing the game (literally every night), but I don't see how you can fade him at 8500 on DK. The Warriors are playing small and Draymond Green is no match for AD's skill set on the perimeter and in the post.
Al Horford @ PHI (FD: $6,000, DK: $4,900)
Big Al chalk, who wants some? My love for Horford is well known and I would have paid more than 4900 for him on DK, come on now! His price (like Maxey's) is just stupid low for a guy who is going to start and play at least 30 minutes. Horford doesn't need to score to produce, he's still an above-average rebounder and an excellent passer out of the high post. He can drain open threes and Embiid isn't likely to wander out to the three-point line to check him either.
With Robert Williams III out, Horford will play center for the first half of the season and is going to have to play 28-30 minutes a night. In his only start against the Sixers last year, he went 10-8-1 with four blocks. The old man still has game and he's a free square for DFS tonight.
Also consider: LeBron James, Draymond Green
DraftKings and FanDuel Centers - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Joel Embiid vs. BOS (FD: $10,700, DK: $9,500)
Embiid is a pretty obvious play tonight, especially when you consider that there are no other options to pay for at the center position. On FanDuel, you are going to want his raw points at C, even if it means paying top dollar. On DK, I suppose you could fade him and play someone like Draymond or Horford in your center slot, but 9500 for Embiid against an undersized Horford and Boston is a no-brainer.
Joel averaged 25-13-6 last year in four games against Boston last season. Rostering Embiid will be popular tonight, so I will look to correlate him with some other plays from that game, which should be the less rostered game of the two since it has a significantly lower total. Yes, Philly and Boston will be a physical, tough game, but there should be plenty of fantasy production, too. Embiid is an easy play tonight, don't overthink this one.
Also consider: Damian Jones, Kevon Looney
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