Draftkings & Fanduel Expert Survey for Wednesday, January 3Rd

Our panel of experts is here to give you their NBA DFS picks for the upcoming slate by answering a handful of questions to help you make crucial lineup-building decisions. Want to know squirrelpatrol’s favorite tournament play? Or Noto’s favorite salary saver? Find out below!

NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings & FanDuel Expert Survey for Wednesday, January 3

Who is your favorite player to spend up for in cash games?

Notorious:

squirrelpatrol:

headChopper:

Stevietpfl:

TastefulTides:

Who is your favorite player to spend up for in large-field tournaments?

Notorious:

squirrelpatrol:

headChopper:

Stevietpfl:

TastefulTides:

Who is your favorite salary relief play in cash games?

Notorious: (FD) / (DK)

squirrelpatrol: (FD) / (DK)

headChopper: (FD) / (DK)

Stevietpfl: (FD) / (DK)

TastefulTides: (FD) / (DK)

Who is your favorite salary relief play in large-field tournaments?

Notorious:

squirrelpatrol: (FD) / (DK)

headChopper:

Stevietpfl:

TastefulTides: (FD) / (DK)

Who will be the biggest bust relative to salary?

Notorious:

squirrelpatrol:

headChopper:

Stevietpfl:

TastefulTides:

Who are you most afraid of being underweight on compared to the field?

Notorious:

squirrelpatrol:

headChopper:

Stevietpfl:

TastefulTides: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Who do you believe you’ll be most overweight on compared to the field?

Notorious:

squirrelpatrol:

headChopper:

Stevietpfl:

TastefulTides:

Which team are you targeting players from the most?

Notorious: CLE

squirrelpatrol: CLE

headChopper: CLE

Stevietpfl: CLE

TastefulTides: CLE

Which team are you looking to avoid players from the most?

Notorious: NOP

squirrelpatrol: CHI

headChopper: NOP

Stevietpfl: CHI

TastefulTides: NOP

Which useful trend or statistic stuck out most during your research?

Notorious: Despite missing Darius Garland and , the Cavaliers are still projected to score 12.2 points more than their season average. I’m not overthinking this one. I plan to be overweight on a lot of their players.

squirrelpatrol: The two highest-scoring offenses in the NBA meet up tonight with the Indiana Pacers (126.4 points per game) facing the Milwaukee Bucks (124.6 points per game) in a game with a 257.5-point total.

headChopper: In the 3 games that has missed this season, has seen his 3-point attempts go from 5.8 (when Brooks has played) per game to 10 attempts per game (when Brooks has missed the game).

Stevietpfl: There are only three teams in the NBA that rank inside the top 5 in pace and bottom 5 in defensive rating. Those teams are Washington, Indiana, and Atlanta. All three of those teams are on this slate.

TastefulTides: The point guard position is absolutely loaded. All of , , , , and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are on the slate, and I almost forgot against the Wizards. Your salary allocation should be focused on the point guard spots on both sites. Mix and match those pieces in your MME portfolio and find different positions to save at.

Who is your top overall play (when considering price, matchup, roster construction, etc.) on the board and why?

Notorious: – As noted above, the Cavaliers are projected to score 12.2 points more than their season average. They have an elite matchup against the Wizards, who are 1st in pace and 29th in defensive rating. Mitchell should dominate the usage, his price point isn’t prohibitive, and he has scored at least 50 fantasy points in each of the last 5 games.

squirrelpatrol: – Cleveland players will be popular, with good reason. The Wizards have allowed the most points, rebounds, and assists per game in the NBA this season, and Mitchell has barely moved in price for the matchup. The Cavs’ leading scorer has averaged 29.8 points and 7.3 assists over his last 6 games and has the best matchup for offensive players in the NBA tonight.

headChopper: – With no and no Darius Garland, it should once again be Donnie Mitchell’s game for the Cavs. In games without Garland specifically, Mitchell goes from 46.3 DK points per game to 53.7. That’s 45.3 to 52.7 on FanDuel as well. He’s priced below what his projection is saying he is worth tonight. A matchup with the Wizards also helps his cause.

Stevietpfl: – With Darius Garland and off the floor, Mitchell has a 30.7% usage rate and is averaging 1.39 fantasy points per minute. Washington ranks 1st in pace and 29th in defensive rating. This is a fantastic matchup for Mitchell, and he should excel in the pace-up spot with the little defense.

TastefulTides: – As I mentioned above, the opportunity cost at the PG spot is massive. I do see Mitchell as the top overall option when considering points per dollar and raw points potential. The Wizards are still the top team to target in the entire league, with a rock-bottom defensive rating and top overall pace.

Who is your top contrarian play (when considering price, matchup, projected ownership, etc.) on the board and why?

Notorious: – We currently have him projected for 9% ownership on FanDuel and 11% ownership on DraftKings. After the scandal that we don’t need to talk about, we saw a serious dip in his play. However, he seems to be back on the right track. Over his last 2 games, he has averaged 26 minutes and 39 fantasy points per contest. Tonight, he has an elite matchup against the Hawks, who are 5th in pace and 27th in defensive rating.

squirrelpatrol: – While the Wizards give up the most points per game in the NBA this season, the Pacers give up the 2nd-most and are also a premiere matchup. Milwaukee has the highest implied team total on the slate (130.5), and their game against Indiana has an eye-popping 257.5 total. is also listed as questionable for Milwaukee, which could put even more of the offense on Giannis’ shoulders.

headChopper: – Picking on the Wizards here, but it’s too easy. Allen has this cupcake matchup and no to interfere. Allen has averaged 29.9 DK / 29.8 FD points per game with Mobley playing this season, and in the 12 games without him, those numbers jump to 37.8 DK / 37.7 FD. Allen is a risky player due to his cheap fouls that can lead to reduced minutes (which he’s been better at this season) and his dependency on defensive stats for high-ceiling games, but I think this is a great spot to fire him in some GPPs.

Stevietpfl: – When we recorded the Morning Grind last night, I thought Giannis was going to be one of the highest-owned players on the slate. Early projected ownership has him under 5%. He just put up a 30-18-11-2-1 game for 75+ fantasy points against the Pacers on Monday. This game has a 258 total, and Giannis is one of the best players in the NBA. I want to be overweight on him in this game.

TastefulTides: – Haliburton was my top overall play just a couple of days ago when these two teams last played. He put up 58 DK points in that game. He was one rebound away from a triple-double and shot 1-for-7 from the 3-point line. His price tag is far too cheap on DK, and despite the elevated tag on FD, he can still pay off there with a ceiling game. With this game being at home and having a 258 total, I like Haliburton’s chances to eclipse 60 DK points.

What is your hot take of the day?

Notorious: Donny (Mitchell) drops 50+ real-life points against the Wizards.

squirrelpatrol: and combine for 100 real-life points.

headChopper: plays 40 minutes and takes 10+ 3-pointers in his second game as a Knick.

Stevietpfl: has a 35-15-10 game.

TastefulTides: records a triple-double with 20 assists.

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NOTE: Our analysts do their best to update their answers as news comes out throughout the day. For the most up-to-date picks and projections as lineup lock approaches, be sure to head to LineupHQ.

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