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Zach's top DraftKings NBA DFS picks for today, Friday, 1/17/25. His favorite daily fantasy basketball lineup sleepers and value picks for DraftKings DFS.
This Friday, the NBA tips off another great sports weekend with seven games on the DraftKings main fantasy basketball slate. The Thunder are the only one of the 14 teams in action that are playing for the second night in a row after defeating the Cavaliers on Thursday. The Celtics and Timberwolves do have a second game in a row on Saturday, but for the most part, teams are clear of back-to-back games messing up their rotation. However, key injuries will still have a huge impact on the slate, so be sure to keep a close eye on availability updates leading up to tip-off.
Friday's main slate features some great fantasy plays to consider, so let's look at the best of these matchups from a DFS perspective on DraftKings. If you're looking for FanDuel-specific advantage, check out Thunder Dan's FanDuel picks!
This article will provide you with my daily fantasy basketball lineup picks for DraftKings on 1/17/25. Remember to monitor NBA injury news and our awesome NBA injuries report tool, as the slate can completely change before lineups lock at 7:00 p.m. EST on DraftKings.
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DraftKings NBA DFS Core Picks
Jalen Brunson, NYK - PG ($8,700)
Brunson and the Knicks welcome Minnesota to Madison Square Garden on Friday night, but former Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns ($9,900; wrist, thumb) is questionable. If KAT is out, Brunson will have to carry even more of the load, but regardless of Towns' status, Brunson is the heart of the Knicks offense and has a consistently heavy usage rate that gives him both a high floor and a high ceiling.
Brunson has scored 30+ points in three straight games and produced over 50 DraftKings points in each of those contests. He led the way with 38 points and 52.25 DraftKings points against the Sixers on Wednesday and averaged 47.6 DraftKings points on 32.5 points, 6.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds, 1.0 steals, and 2.3 three-pointers while playing 39.8 minutes in the four games that he has started without Towns. No Towns would give him a higher ceiling, but he's a strong core play against the Timberwolves either way.
Jalen Brunson put together ANOTHER high-scoring performance in New York's overtime win!
🏀 38 PTS (113 PTS in last 3 games)
🏀 5 REB
🏀 4 AST
🏀 3 3PM
🏀 2 STL pic.twitter.com/Pe8YKNQf2r— NBA (@NBA) January 16, 2025
Trey Murphy III, NO – SG/SF ($7,800)
The Pelicans host the Jazz in a very favorable spot this Friday, so I'm going back to Trey Murphy III once again since he brings such a high ceiling at his still relatively affordable salary. Murphy continues to pick up more work with Brandon Ingram (ankle) out and has proved he can work well alongside Zion Williamson ($8,600).
Murphy had a 24-point, 10-rebound double-double on Wednesday to post 52 DraftKings points, and he earned at least 43 DraftKings points in six of his last eight games. Over those eight contests, Murphy has produced 45.8 DraftKings points per game at the rate of 1.25 DraftKings points per minute. He missed three games during that stretch with an ankle injury, but he has 44.5, 54.5, and 52 DraftKings points in his three games since returning.
To top off his great fantasy production, he had the game-sealing block against the Mavs on Wednesday.
TREY MURPHY CLUTCH REJECTION 🚫 pic.twitter.com/2FrTaLG54L
— NBA TV (@NBATV) January 16, 2025
Mark Williams, CHA – C ($6,800)
The Hornets traded Nick Richards to the Suns since Williams has shown that he's fully recovered from his injury and is ready to be a key contributor for Charlotte. He's still very affordable given the upside that he has recently shown, and he and the Hornets have a nice road matchup on Friday in Chicago against the fast-paced, defensively challenged Bulls.
Williams dropped 24 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, and 52 DraftKings points in 30 minutes on Sunday in Phoenix, and on Wednesday, he played a season-high 36 minutes against the Jazz and totaled 57.75 DraftKings points on 31 points and 13 rebounds in the Hornets' five-point victory.
Mark Williams & LaMelo were DYNAMIC for Charlotte in their win in Utah!
Williams:
💪 31 PTS (career-high)
💪 13 REBLaMelo:
🎯 27 PTS
🎯 9 AST
🎯 6 REB
🎯 3 BLK pic.twitter.com/9TWbNS4yx4— NBA (@NBA) January 16, 2025
Williams has produced an impressive 1.38 DraftKings points per minute over his last six games for 40.2 DraftKings points per game. In what should be a high-scoring contest, he brings a ton of upside from under $7,000.
Williams was listed as probable for this game due to left knee soreness, and given his injury history, it's worth monitoring closely. However, as long as he is ready for a regular workload, he's a great mid-range option to build around given his recent production and high ceiling.
Others Under Consideration: Julius Randle - PF/C ($7,100), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - PG ($10,200), Kristaps Porzingis - C ($7,000)
DraftKings NBA DFS Tournament Pivots
Scottie Barnes, TOR - PG/SF ($8,700)
With Immanuel Quickley (groin) ruled out, Barnes will have to carry more of the playmaking responsibility for the Raptors as they visit the Bucks. In the 20 games he has played without Quickley this season, Barnes is averaging 45.8 DraftKings points per game and 1.30 DraftKings points per minute with a 27.2% usage rate.
Without Quickley on Wednesday, Barnes fell just one assist short of a double-double and finished with 18 points, nine assists, and 40.75 DraftKings points against the Celtics. He has over 40 DraftKings points in five straight games.
scottie barnes this season is shooting 60.3% from shots within 10 to 14 feet. here's just some of that bag work pic.twitter.com/oUSUnh26Tn
— tooforwon (@tooforwon241) January 16, 2025
Without Quickley, Barnes has both a high ceiling and a high floor since he'll have to carry the workload against the Bucks.
LaMelo Ball, CHA - PG ($10,400)
If you can spend up for one superstar player for tournament lineups, Ball is my favorite option as the Hornets face the Bulls. When he has been available, he has been excellent all season and continues to lead the NBA in usage, which gives him a high ceiling every night and also minimizes the risk since the opportunity is always there for him to dominate.
On Wednesday, Ball had another big game with 27 points, nine assists, six rebounds, and 52 DraftKings points against the Jazz. He has put up over 50 DraftKings points in each of his last three games even though his outside shooting has been a little off.
The Bulls have been a great matchup for opposing point guards and usually give up plenty of points. If Ball gets his outside rhythm back, his ceiling will be even higher.
Jalen Williams, OKC - PF ($8,000)
Without Isaiah Hartenstein (calf), Williams could be asked to slide into more center minutes for the Thunder over the next week. When he did that earlier this season, it was huge for his fantasy numbers.
In his six games without both Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren, Williams averaged 49.5 DraftKings points on 24.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 2.8 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game.
In his first game without Hartenstein due to this injury, Williams had 44.5 DraftKings points in just 30 minutes on Thursday against the Cavaliers. He finished with only 19 points but added six rebounds, five assists, two blocks, and three steals.
Jalen Williams hits the fadeaway jumper to end the 3Q 😮💨pic.twitter.com/JvMYxHvhw3
— Thunder Nation (@ThunderNationCP) January 17, 2025
The Thunder will finish their back-to-back against the Mavericks on Friday, and Williams has the potential to post a monster game while taking on more work in the frontcourt.
Keyonte George, UTA - PG ($6,000)
After a five-game absence, George returned on Wednesday against the Hornets and made quite a splash. He led the Jazz with 26 points and tacked on six assists, four rebounds, and two steals to total 46 DraftKings points.
On Friday, he'll get Collin Sexton ($7,500) back in the backcourt but John Collins (hip), Lauri Markkanen (back), Jordan Clarkson (foot), and Walker Kessler (rest) are all out. With so few offensive options, George should be set for high usage in a favorable spot against the Pelicans.
At just $6,000, he's a very solid mid-range option for your backcourt in tournament play since he brings such a high ceiling.
Others Under Consideration: Giannis Antetokounmpo - PF/C ($11,400), Jayson Tatum - SF/PF ($9,900), Dejounte Murray - PG ($8,200), RJ Barrett - SF ($7,900), Josh Hart - SF/PF ($8,000), Cole Anthony - PG/SG ($6,300)
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DraftKings NBA DFS Value Picks
Daniel Gafford, DAL – C ($5,500)
The Mavericks will be without Dereck Lively II (ankle) on Friday as they host Oklahoma City, so Gafford should be set up for plenty of playing time in the middle against the undersized Thunder. On Wednesday without Lively, Gafford went off for 27 points, 12 rebounds, and 50 DraftKings points in a three-point loss to the Pelicans.
DANIEL GAFFORD THIS IS RIDICULOUS!!
He made his first 12 SHOTS tonight 🤯 pic.twitter.com/0zcHda92Wu
— NBA (@NBA) January 16, 2025
In his nine games without Lively this season, he's averaging 30.6 DraftKings points per game on 15.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks in 26.4 minutes per game. He should easily return value and has a high ceiling if he can carry over his momentum from Wednesday.
Drew Eubanks, UTA – C ($4,100)
Eubanks is another option to consider if you need an even cheaper play in the middle that should return value in a good spot to step up. Without Kessler, Eubanks should be very busy against the Pelicans.
He has posted back-to-back strong showings for the Jazz coming into this contest, posting 27.75 DraftKings points against the Nets on Sunday and 29.5 DraftKings points against the Hornets on Wednesday. In that game on Wednesday, he only played 20 minutes but still produced 11 points, eight rebounds, three assists, and one of his best stat lines of the season.
He looks lined up for 30+ minutes and has a real shot at his first double-double of the season if he can continue his recent momentum.
Jonathan Isaac, ORL – PF/C ($4,000)
With Goga Bitadze (concussion) out and Paolo Banchero ($8,700) still ramping up to a full workload, Isaac should continue to get more playing time off the Magic bench. He exploded for his first double-double of the season on Sunday with 20 points, 11 rebounds, and 41.75 DraftKings points against the Sixers.
Jonathan Isaac with a big time alley-oop dunk, Cole Anthony assists pic.twitter.com/ROK52HPb12
— The Magic Way (@MagicFilmRoom) January 13, 2025
Over his last five games, Isaac has averaged 25.9 DraftKings points with over 16 DraftKings points in each contest.
Cason Wallace, OKC – PG/SG ($4,200)
Most of the apparent value plays are in the frontcourt this Friday with big-name, big-priced guards generally set up to take most of the work in the backcourt. Wallace is one play to consider if you have to go cheap at a guard spot, though, since the second-year guard has become a fixture in the Thunder's starting lineup.
Wallace had six points and six rebounds on Thursday against the Cavs, but before that, he had been even better, scoring at least 13 points and producing at least 23 DraftKings points in four of his last five games, including establishing a new season-high with 18 points against the Sixers earlier this week.
Cason Wallace : Season-high 18 points (7-10 shooting & 2-5 from 3), 5 rebounds & 4 assists in 34 minutes pic.twitter.com/fLbD0cF1FW
— Lee Harvey (@MusikFan4Life) January 15, 2025
On Thursday, Wallace still had 16 DraftKings points even though he gave up some usage to other members of the supporting cast. Wallace doesn't usually get a ton of usage, but he does log plenty of minutes for the Thunder and can chip in very solid value production at just $4,000.
Others Under Consideration: Jaylin Williams - C ($3,800), Kyle Filipowski - PF/C ($4,200), Wendell Carter Jr. - C ($4,300), Nickeil Alexander-Walker - SG/SF ($3,300), Tristan Da Silva - SF/PF ($4,300), Lonzo Ball - PG ($4,600), Chris Boucher - PF/C ($3,600)
Today's Top NBA DFS Game Stacks
Hornets at Bulls (235 total)
The Bulls have allowed the second-most points per game in the NBA and play at the second-fastest pace. It's a great pace-up place to target the Hornets, and their usage has been steady with LaMelo Ball ($10,400), Mark Williams ($6,800), Miles Bridges ($7,300), and Brandon Miller ($7,700) all getting plenty of work. Miller seems a little overpriced, but the rest of those stars should be able to return value against the Bulls while Cody Martin ($4,000) and Josh Green ($3,500) can be bargain fits in the stack as well.
On the Bulls' side, Zach LaVine ($8,600) has cooled off a little bit over his last few games, so I'd lean more toward Nikola Vucevic ($8,200) and Coby White ($6,300) instead. Josh Giddey ($7,000) has produced good, balanced lines lately as well, although his time could be squeezed now that Ayo Dosunmu ($6,100) is back from injury. As values, Jalen Smith ($3,300) and Patrick Williams ($4,500) get good enough minutes to be options as well. Of the two teams, I prefer stacking the Hornets, but the Bulls have a few strong plays as well.
Jazz at Pelicans (230.5 total)
The Jazz will be very short-handed once again on Friday, but that leaves more work for key producers like Keyonte George ($6,000) and Drew Eubanks ($4,100). Brice Sensabaugh ($4,800) should also continue to get plenty of work on the wing while Isaiah Collier ($4,900) slots in behind George and Sexton. Svi Mykhailiuk ($3,800) and Kyle Filipowski ($4,200) could also step into bigger roles and return nice value.
The Pelicans are starting to get much healthier, except Brandon Ingram. Trey Murphy III ($7,800) has been excellent and is highlighted above as a core play. You can stack him with Dejounte Murray ($8,200) or CJ McCollum ($7,000) while Daniel Theis ($3,100) and Jose Alvarado ($3,300) are bargain plays off the bench.
My Favorite NBA DFS Picks for Today
Here is where I leave you with some of my favorites.
- My favorite OVERALL play on the slate: Jalen Brunson
- My favorite CASH play on the slate: Mark Williams
- My favorite GPP play on the slate: Jalen Williams
- My favorite VALUE play: Daniel Gafford
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