RADIO
I brought you into the break here at RotoBaller and I'll bring you out the other side as well. The Association is back with a robust nine-game slate to get us back in the mood after a week of stepping out with college kids and hockey players missing teeth. This is the time when players start resting more and teams start tanking in earnest, but we would think that coming out of the break, we'll be safe. We know Curry, Wiggins, Zion, Nurkic, and Adams are out, so we know where to sniff out some value.
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 change during the day as well, so I'll do my best to update as news comes out!
Here are my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for FanDuel and DraftKings on 2/23/23. 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
Damian Lillard - at SAC (FD: $10,500, DK: $11,400)
The reigning NBA three-point champion comes out of the break with the team missing Nurkic and Anfernee Simons, so he is going to be with the ball in his hands for most of the game and is going to be leaned upon to fill the scoring void. We could see Terminator Dame here. While Luka now has Kyrie taking some of the weight off of his shoulders, Lillard is going to be carrying the Blazers tonight. He had four straight games over 55 fantasy points heading into the break. He should be in that territory again coming out of it. I like the play a lot more on FD, but there's enough value on DK to make it work as well.
D'Angelo Russell - vs. GS (FD: $7,100, DK: $6,500)
The mantra of the Lakers throughout the break, from the front office (LeBron) to the coaching staff, was "we're focused on winning." If that mantra is true, we should see the ball in Russell's hands more often. He has proven to be a good distributor throughout his career. That is what we saw heading into the break. LeBron, A.D., and Russell all had strong game with Dennis Schroder heading back to the bench. I expect this to be how the Lakers run down the stretch, health permitting. Russell's price is too low, especially on DK, if that's the way things are going to look. I'll take the leap of faith this time. The Lakers seem serious.
Malaki Branham - at DAL (FD: $4,500, DK: $5,500)
The Spurs are being cautious with Devin Vassell and Tre Jones, and who can blame them? They aren't going anywhere this year and the guys are hurt, right? You can hold them out longer and tank without meeting the NBA's definition of tanking. However, someone still has to play. That's where Branham and to some extent Devonte' Graham come in. Branham has 127.5 fantasy points over the last four games alone. He's a great bargain on DK, but only eligible at SF on FD. You can still play THT at SG though, so you can make it work, FanDuelers.
Also consider: De'Aaron Fox (FD: $9,400, DK $9,800); Desmond Bane (FD: $7,900, DK $8,100); Markelle Fultz (FD: $6,500, DK: $6,000)
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DraftKings and FanDuel Forwards - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Jayson Tatum - at IND (FD: $10,700, DK: $11,000)
Tatum showed off in a big way on Sunday, winning the All-Star Game MVP trophy. No one plays defense, but hey, it is what it is. That doesn't take away from Tatum's show. Now he starts off the second half against an Indiana team that he dropped 60 fantasy points on earlier this season. There's a bit of a dropoff at forward tonight. If you're paying up, it should be for the ASG MVP.
Bojan Bogdanovic. - at ORL (FD: $6,500, DK: $6,300)
Bojan went into the break on a heater, scoring 93 points in the three games leading into it with five rebounds in each of those games as well. The absence of Cade Cunningham has opened up at lot of extra shots for Bojan. He's not going to do much aside from score, but he's worth a look at this price with the number of points he's piling up. He has scored 38 points in two games against Orlando already this season.
Talen Horton-Tucker - vs. OKC (FD: $5,600, DK: $4,800)
With Collin Sexton leaving in the first quarter against Memphis in the game before the break, it was THT and not rookie Ochai Agbaji who saw the bulk of the minutes. THT responded with 37.75 DraftKings points. With the shakeup of the Utah rotation following the trades that sent Mike Conley, Jordan Clarkson, and Jarred Vanderbilt out of town, THT has moved his way back into the rotation and has played very well. With Sexton out again, I expect THT to play a prominent role in tonight's game as well.
Also consider: Lauri Markkanen (FD: $8,300, DK: $9,400), Jaren Jackson Jr. (FD: $8,400, DK: $7,700), Kelly Olynyk (FD: $6,100, DK $5,300)
DraftKings and FanDuel Centers - NBA DFS Lineup Picks
Nikola Jokic - at CLE (FD: $11,800, DK: $11,800)
I know...I know. Jokic is the low-hanging fruit. He nearly hit 70 fantasy points in the first meeting against Cleveland and hasn't been under 50 since January 5 against the Clippers in a blowout win. Well, Cleveland likely isn't getting blown out here and Jamal Murray could be out again. If Murray is out, Jokic is my favorite pay-up spot. Even if Murray plays, Jokic has enough upside to justify using him over the other five-figure players out there.
Jakob Poeltl - vs. NO (FD: $7,500, DK: $5,900)
Poeltl escaped Pop purgatory and destroyed Orlando just before the break. He set a season-high in points and blocks, and only missed two of 17 shots from the floor. This won't be the norm, but Toronto has shown that they are willing to let Poeltl eat in the middle. There are a lot of mouths on this team, so Poeltl is far from a sure thing. However, his defensive stats aren't going anywhere and Toronto is going to give him at least ten minutes more per game than he was getting in San Antonio. That alone makes him worth the price on DK. FD, you have to think about it a little more.
Also consider: Joel Embiid (FD: $11,700, DK: $11,100); Drew Eubanks (FD: $4,900, DK: $4,600)
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