RADIO
Welcome to the 15th Friday of the NBA campaign. After a relatively light schedule last week, the opening night of the weekend is once again back in full force with two-thirds of the Association's teams in action. There are not any real marquee matchups tonight. However, there are some intriguing storylines and some important games.
The top game of the night is the Raptors at the Rockets as James Harden, who is coming off a career-high 61 points against the Knicks on Wednesday, will look to extend his streak of 30-point games to 22 straight games. Houston is 15-6 during this stretch and is averaging the fourth most points in the league at 117 a game since Dec. 13. Meanwhile, Toronto looks to keep pace with Milwaukee as the Raptors and Bucks are currently battling for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Kawhi Leonard, who will likely be tasked with monitoring Harden on the defensive end, is having a fantastic January himself, averaging 31.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and three steals across 35.6 minutes per game this month. The Wizards at the Magic, Kings at Grizzlies, Hornets at Bucks and the Timberwolves at the Jazz are the games with playoff implications.
I will be providing you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 01/25/19. 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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Tomas Satoransky: PG/SG @ ORL ($5,500)
The 6-foot-7 combo guard has filled in nicely for the injured John Wall, and he is currently playing his best basketball of the season. Satoransky is coming off his third double-double of the season as he contributed 20 points on 8-for-13 shooting from the floor along with 10 assists and three rebounds on Thursday night in the Wizards 126-118 loss to the Warriors. It was the third time in the past six games that the 27-year-old has compiled double-digit assists and the fourth occasion during this stretch that he has doled out at least eight dimes.
Satoransky has scored in double-figures in four of his past five outings, but perhaps more impressively the third-year pro has recorded a steal in each of the past seven games with last night's game marking the sixth consecutive contest that he posted a multi-steal night. He is averaging 13.2 points along with 5.6 rebounds, seven assists, 1.4 triples, 2.2 steals while shooting 51.9 percent from the floor as well as 50 percent from beyond the arc over the past five games.
This game could be a relatively high scoring game, although the over/under is just 217.5. In the two earlier meetings, the teams combined for 225 and 226 points with both the Wizards and Magic picking up one win apiece. While Satoransky has not played much in the last two contests between the teams, Wall produced a double-double in each game which bodes well for the Czech.
There are several high-priced guards that are playable tonight including Harden, Devin Booker, Mike Conley, Kyle Lowry, Zach LaVine, and Jamal Murray. I personally like Lowry, LaVine, and Murray the best. Harden is just too expensive to recommend, although you can't go against him. Additionally, I like Justise Winslow due to his matchup with the Cavs. Patrick Beverley, Allonzo Trier, and Dennis Smith Jr. could also be value plays, depending on playing time.
Kelly Oubre Jr.: SG/SF @ DEN ($5,600)
Oubre has been playing exceptionally well since coming over to the Suns. He also played last night, filling the stat sheet with 18 points along with six rebounds, seven assists, three blocks and two steals in 35 minutes off the bench against the Trail Blazers. The 23-year-old was just 6-for-18 from the field and 1-for-6 from the three-point line, although he did make all five of his free throw attempts. It was his most shot attempts with the team and marked the ninth straight contest where the fourth-year pro has put up double-digit attempts.
The 6-foot-7 wing, who posted a season high in assists against the Trail Blazers, has scored in double-figures in nine straight games and 13 of his 19 games with Phoenix. He has made a three-pointer in seven games in a row and has started to be a consistent producer in defensive stats. Oubre is producing 16.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.2 block, and 1.9 treys this month, although he has been even better over the last five outings.
Tonight's game doesn't figure to provide a lot of fireworks as the teams have combined for over 211 points just once in their three meetings. However, Oubre has been pretty good against the Nuggets, averaging 15 points along with eight rebounds, two assists, 1.5 blocks as well as 1.5 steals over two games.
I also like Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic here as well. Bogdanovic is only an option if he is in the starting lineup, which would mean a few of the Kings are still dealing with injuries. Eric Gordon and Terrence Ross have exploitable matchups while Danny Green and Wesley Matthews are inexpensive options.
DraftKings DFS Forwards
Evan Fournier: SG/SF Vs. WAS ($5,600)
The 26-year-old has played well for most of January but is coming off his second dud performance of the month on Wednesday against the Nets, tallying just nine points along with two rebounds and one assist. It marked the first time in seven games that he failed to score in double figures and just the second time in 12 January games.
While Fournier has not shot the ball well over the past five games as he has made only 41.9 percent of his shots overall and 28 percent of his three-point attempts, the seventh-year pro has still produced 16.6 points along with 4.2 assists and 3.2 caroms during this stretch. The 6-foot-7 wing, who is averaging a tad bit more than 29 fantasy points over the last five games, has compiled 68 DK fantasy points in two games against the Wizards this year. He is averaging 17.5 points, 5.5 assists and 3.2 rebounds along with three triples in the two meetings. Fournier has played much better at home than on the road this year.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tobias Harris, and Trevor Ariza are also playable here. P.J. Tucker, Joe Harris, Jonathan Isaac, DeMarre Carroll, and Marvin Williams are lower end options.
Kenneth Faried: PF/C Vs. TOR ($5,300)
Faried is a value play and is only appearing in his third game for the Rockets. He is expected to start at center against the Raptors as he did versus the Knicks on Wednesday. The 29-year-old compiled 11 points along with eight caroms, three blocks and three steals in 26 minutes. Faried was 5-for-11 from the field, although he missed both of his three-point attempts, and was just 1-for-4 from the free throw line.
This Raptors-Rockets matchup has the potential to be a highly entertaining contest with a lot of points. Both teams are averaging at least 117 points a game over the past 10 contests, although the Raptors (109.6 points) have been much more stingy on the defensive end than the Rockets (117) during this stretch. However, Toronto has permitted 22.1 points on 51.8 percent shooting along with 15.5 rebounds with 5.1 caroms on the offensive end to opposing centers during this stretch. Marvin Bagley recorded 43.8 DK fantasy points versus the Raptors on Tuesday as he compiled 22 points and 11 rebounds.
Lauri Markkanen, Pascal Siakam, Dragan Bender, and Taj Gibson are also options here. Chandler Hutchison, who has played better recently, is a punt option as well.
DraftKings DFS Centers
Jarrett Allen: C Versus NY ($5,500)
There are a lot of enticing options at the five position tonight. I am going with Allen since he has been playing extremely well and is relatively inexpensive. Nikola Jokic, Karl-Anthony Towns, Nikola Vucevic, and Rudy Gobert are strong high priced options. However, I really like DeAndre Jordan against the Pistons as a mid-level price option. Serge Ibaka, Brook Lopez, Thomas Bryant, and Ante Zizic are other mid-priced options. There is a caveat to Zizic's inclusion and that is if Tristan Thompson and Larry Nance Jr. are out with their injuries once again. Bam Adebayo, Bismack Biyombo, Ed Davis and Willy Hernangomez are cheap or punt options. Enes Kanter is also a viable cheap play if he gets the start versus the Nets.
Allen has been a beast on the boards lately, grabbing double-digit rebounds in each of the last six contests. While he has failed to score in double-figures the past three games and has not recorded a block or steal in the last two contests, the 20-year-old has put up decent numbers in both categories in January overall. Allen has reached double figures on six occasions this month and recorded multiple blocks eight times.
The second-year pro has compiled 37.5 DK fantasy points over his last five outings. He has put up good numbers in three games versus the Knicks this season, averaging 12 points along with 9.7 rebounds and 2.7 blocks while shooting 56.5 percent from the field.
