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The top daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on January 19, 2019. Jake Finnen provides NBA DFS analysis and sleeper picks for building optimal DFS rosters.
To be completely honest, we have a fairly lame 8-game slate. Only two games are really projected to be high-scoring affairs, while most of the games are out-of-conference contests between a "good team" and a "bad team." I have confidence, the Bulls-Heat, Hawks-Celtics, and Pacers-Mavericks will all be worth of stacking and should dominate the DFS leaderboards, but the other five are truly horrific games. They are littered with blowout capabilities and it's true that anything can happen in basketball, from the outside looking in, the only other game I can see turning into a contest is the Pistons and Kings. Since there are plenty of games that should be blowouts, the value is going to be a bit riskier. If there was any team to target specifically for value, look at the Nuggets-Cavaliers game.
The Nuggets starters should dominate this game all while being DFS relevant, but where the real value lies is within their bench. Juancho Hernangomez and Trey Lyles both have been in a starting role and will take advantage of every extra minute they get this game. Both are stuck behind Paul Millsap in the rotation and will want to prove why they are still deserving of minutes. Believe it or not I actually have faith in the Lakers to keep the game competitive with the Rockets. Yes, it will be hilarious to watch them defend James Harden, but I can't say that Harden will do enough to suppress the entire Laker squad. I am NOT saying that anyone will score more points. I am just saying that the ENTIRE Laker team won't score more...
I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 01/19/19. These DFS lineup picks can vary from higher-priced players and elite options to lower-priced players and value picks on DraftKings. You can also check out today's FanDuel lineup picks. As always, don't set your lineups to early and check player statuses before the opening tip.
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DraftKings DFS Guards
Mike Conley - PG @ TOR ($6,800)
Seeing how this entire article will revolve around finding a way to minimize the damage done by James Harden's price tonight, Mike Conley offers an ideal pivot. His price is a little higher than what we hoped, especially coming off one of his bigger games of the season, but I still like his upside versus the Raptors backcourt. The Grizzlies players aren't as much of a threat as their pace is, so I'm hoping that will keep Conley in rhythm and allow him to get to his spots. Normally playing an older, high-usage player on the second night of a back-to-back is risky, but instead of seeing this is a reason for Conley to slow down, I think his teammates will struggle severely, throwing EVEN MORE usage in Conley-s direction. I do expect a few more assists, but Conley scoring 30 points as the Grizzlies get beat by 10 seems fair to me.
James Harden - PG/SG vs. LAL ($13,400)
Don't think, just do it.
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Rodney McGruder - SG/SF @ CHI ($3,200)
Rodney McGruder has been slumping lately and it is only going to get worse moving forward when players return from injuries. Until that point, McGruder offers a ton of useful, although inconsistent value. With Dwyane Wade dominating the box score last night, McGruder still found a way into fantasy relevance. His price is barely above the bottom-level, and even if he doesn't perform against the Bulls, he is going to get extra minutes against a fairly bad team. The Heat will most likely dominate this game from non-McGruder sources of offense, but that team-wide success will just open the floor for McGruder. His scoring has grown rapidly more inconsistent lately, but even then, he still has the scoring capability to be the sleeper of the night. You will need a player with a similar price tag to keep Harden firmly in your lineup.
Dorian Finney-Smith - SF/PF @ IND ($3,500)
This is a total shot in the dark. Dorian Finney-Smith plays a definitive role with the Mavericks and the only thing he does outside of defense is take threes and give the ball up. Not the greatest DFS asset, but for some reason the Pacers are going to struggle to contain him. He won't be crossing up players and dunking on Myles Turner, but his off-ball movement, spacing, and playmaking abilities make me think that he will be causing problems all game. The Pacers aren't bad defensively, but they do have weak-spots in their bench rotation. Finney-Smith plays with both starters and bench players because of his versatility, so look for him to get extra minutes in what should be a close game. The times Finney-Smith has scored double-digit points, he has followed up a majority of those games with another strong performance. Some of his better games don't reflect the box score which is of course a problem, but lately he has been taking better shots and playing more efficient basketball. While I am not even sure if I will roster Finney-Smith, for some reason, I REALLY want to.
DraftKings DFS Centers
Al Horford - PF/C @ ATL ($6,000)
In this particular position, I was looking for someone who was guaranteed to produce, won't hurt your salary and still has plenty of upside. The Hawks defense nearly guarantees upside for whoever they are facing, but you also have to be wary of a blowout. The Celtics just played last night and while they won't be overly fatigues, expect the production to come from sources outside of Kyrie Irving. Al Horford, Marcus Smart and Aron Baynes are all viable targets tonight, but I'm banking on Horford teaching the young Hawks frontcourt a few lessons in post-offense. He was only really able to score against the Grizzlies last night, so expect a much more well-rounded game versus a more more susceptible team. Playing Aron Baynes here might be the better play for price reasoning, but Horford should still be good for a more productive game than last night.
