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After a relatively quiet Tuesday night, we're right back to a massive 11-game ledger Wednesday. The ledger is loaded with attractive options all across the salary cap, which should make for a particularly fun night of lineup construction and tournament play in particular.
That notion is further supported by the fact there are plenty of healthy elite options available, as well as the six games already sporting projected totals in excess of 230 points as of late Tuesday night.
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for the respective main slates on DraftKings and FanDuel on 2/15/23. Remember to monitor the NBA injury report as the slate can completely change before lineups lock, which is at 7:00 pm ET. Good luck, RotoBallers.
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DraftKings and FanDuel Guards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - PG/SG, OKC vs. HOU ($10,500 DK, $10,500 FD)
SGA continues to make a case for MVP consideration as the All-Star break draws nearer, averaging a brilliant 31.5 points, 5.8 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 1.1 blocks across his last 15 games, a stretch during which he's also shot 52.6 percent. The fifth-year guard now draws a matchup against a Rockets team he's already tormented in three previous meetings, averaging 50 fantasy points on either site against them, including tallies of 66 DK/70.8 FD points just five games ago.
The Rockets continue to be very attractive targets, as they're allowing the second-highest offensive efficiency rating to point guards (30.6), along with NBA-high 55.5 DK/54.8 FD points per game to the position for the season. Houston has been even more vulnerable of late with 60.3 DK/61.3 FD points per contest surrendered to ones in the last seven, and the Rockets are also conceding the second-most assists per road game (27.6), cementing Gilgeous-Alexander's case further.
Brandon Ingram - SG/SF, NOP at LAL ($8,200 DK, $8,100 FD)
Ingram has rediscovered his rhythm after working through rustiness over his first three games back from a lengthy absence due to a toe injury, averaging over 40 fantasy points per game on either site over the last five contests while shooting 55.2 percent, including 46.2 percent from three-point range. The talented wing lit up the Lakers in one game during that stretch, producing 45.8 DK/44 FD points across 32 minutes on February 4, and the matchup continues to be attractive at his salaries Wednesday for a number of reasons.
One, Los Angeles remains league average at best defending two-guards, ranking just inside the bottom half of the league with a 22.5 offensive efficiency rating allowed to the position, along with over 44 DK and over 42 FD points surrendered to twos in the last 15 games. Then, Ingram has already delivered over 5x return on his DK salary in 10 of his 23 games and has done on his FD salary in 11 contests. Finally, he could take the floor without C.J. McCollum (ankle) on Wednesday, a scenario in which he sports a 32.4 percent usage rate and averages 45.6 DK/43.0 FD points per 36 minutes.
Bennedict Mathurin - SG/SF, IND vs. CHI ($4,800 DK, $5,000 FD)
Mathurin is an intriguing value option for tournaments at his extremely modest salaries, especially considering he exceeded 25 fantasy points in eight of his last 12 games alone. The rookie hasn't always been at his most efficient during that span -- he's shooting just 44.6 percent, including 24.4 percent from distance -- but his solid rebounding efforts have helped make up for it. He now faces a Bulls team that's had trouble with perimeter defense most of the season and against which he's averaged over 30 fantasy points in two prior meetings.
Chicago is allowing 36.6 percent three-point shooting to small forwards, while Mathurin has shot just shy of a full 10% higher from distance at home (36.2%) than on the road (26.3%). The Bulls have also surrendered 47.5 percent shooting to second-unit players overall, along with 41.7 DK/40.8 FD points per game to threes. There's also the possibility Myles Turner (back) isn't available Wednesday, a circumstance in which Mathurin ties for the second-highest usage bump on the Pacers (+1.4% to 26.6%) and averages 33.5 DK/31.4 FD points per 36 minutes.
ALSO CONSIDER: Jalen Green - PG/SG, HOU at OKC ($6,800 DK, $7,400 FD)
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DraftKings and FanDuel Forwards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Julius Randle - PF/C, NYK at ATL ($9,900 DK, $9,300 FD)
Randle has been the bane of the Hawks' existence through three games this season, putting up 26.7 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 4.3 assists across 32 minutes per contest while shooting 47.2 percent. That's led to averages of 48.7 DK/45.6 FD points in those contests, and Atlanta remains an appealing target for power forwards heading into Wednesday night's final meeting of the season between the teams.
The Hawks are surrendering the 10th-highest offensive efficiency rating to power forwards (27.1), along with the second-most DK (49.4) and third-most FD (47.45) points per game to the position. Atlanta has been even more generous recently with 50.7 DK/49.4 FD points surrendered to fours in the last seven games, and the Hawks are also giving up the sixth-most rebounds overall per home game (52.6) on the campaign.
Keldon Johnson - SF/PF, SAS at CHA ($6,600 DK, $7,400 FD)
Johnson has been one of the few consistent bright spots during a mostly miserable season for the Spurs, averaging a career-high 21.9 points and 2.7 assists while putting up 33.6 DK/32.1 FD points per contest. The talented forward should continue in a high-usage role in Wednesday's favorable matchup against the Hornets, who have had trouble slowing down virtually any position on the floor during an extremely difficult season for them as well.
Charlotte ranks No. 17 in offensive efficiency allowed to small forwards (22.9), while no team has allowed more DK (48.0) or FD (45.8) points per game to the position in the last 15 contests than the Hornets. Charlotte is also giving up an Eastern Conference-high 54.8 rebounds per home game on the season and is tied for fifth-highest shooting percentage allowed in that split as well (47.7%), while Johnson checks in shooting an impressive 52.7 percent over his last 13 games.
Jabari Smith Jr. - SF/PF, HOU at OKC ($5,300 DK, $5,600 FD)
Smith has outperformed his very reasonable salaries on multiple occasions during his rookie season, which, when paired with his favorable positional matchup Wednesday, makes him a very attractive value option. The third overall pick enters in the midst of a productive nine-game stretch in which he's averaged 12.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.0 blocks across 31.2 minutes, while OKC has allowed the third-highest offensive efficiency rating to power forwards on the season (28.4).
The Thunder is also giving up 48 DK/45.3 FD points per game to the position on the season, as well as a Western Conference-high 54.5 rebounds per contest. Then, Smith has been a more productive scorer and rebounder on the road, averaging 12.2 points and 7.1 boards per game in that split compared to 11.7 and 6.9 when at home.
ALSO CONSIDER: P.J. Washington - PF/C, CHA vs. SAS ($6,100 DK, $6,900 FD)
DraftKings and FanDuel Centers - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Nikola Vucevic - C, CHI at IND ($9,200 DK, $8,600 FD)
Vucevic dipped to under 40 fantasy points in his most recent contest against the Magic, but he averaged at least 50 fantasy points in a six-game stretch from January 28 to February 7. The big man has double-doubled in nine straight games overall, and Wednesday, he's facing a Pacers team he's shot 58.3 percent against in two previous games, including 60.0 percent from three-point range.
Indiana could be down Myles Turner due to a back injury as mentioned earlier, and the Pacers are already allowing the seventh-highest offensive efficiency rating to the position (34.0), along with over 60 fantasy points per game on each site in the last 15 games. Indy is also yielding the third-most rebounds per home game (53.7) and 47.7 percent shooting overall, while Vucevic is currently recording his highest shooting percentage (52.0) since the 2014-15 season.
Alperen Sengun - C, HOU at OKC ($7,800 DK, $7,800 FD)
Sengun has had a couple of relatively quiet games by his standards recently, going below 30 fantasy points on either site in each of his last two contests. However, the emerging big man naturally still carries ample upside, and he's now facing a Thunder team that could well facilitate a big bounce-back effort considering he's averaged over 40 fantasy points per contest against them in three prior games.
OKC is allowing the seventh-highest shooting percentage to centers (59.4%), along with over 56 DK and over 55 FD points per game to the position on the season. The Thunder's aforementioned propensity for allowing a high number of rebounds at home that was already detailed in Smith's entry also could benefit Sengun, considering he's averaging 8.7 boards per contest and has pulled down double-digit rebounds in 17 of 52 games overall. OKC is also tied for third-most blocks per game allowed (5.5), giving the young big yet another path to fantasy success.
Zach Collins - C, SAS at CHA ($5,100 DK, $6,400 FD)
Collins has offered solid production over his first three games on the first unit following the trade of Jakob Poeltl, putting up 16.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.3 steals while shooting 57.6 percent, including 37.5 percent from distance. The big man continues to sport extremely reasonable salaries despite having exceeded 30 fantasy points in two of those contests and now gets a crack at a Hornets team that's been generous to centers all season.
Charlotte has allowed an NBA-high 36.5 offensive efficiency rating to centers (36.5), along with the most DK (60.1) and FD (59.4) points per game to the position. The Hornets are also allowing an NBA-high 54.7 rebounds per game and an Eastern Conference-high 5.8 blocks per contest, which naturally bodes well for Collins on both fronts. Collins also brings the added benefit of spacing the floor at a solid clip for a big man (35.5% three-point shooting), and Charlotte is yielding elevated 38.7 percent three-point shooting in the last three games.
ALSO CONSIDER: Jonas Valanciunas - C, NOP at LAL ($5,800 DK, $6,000 FD)
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