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    Evan Ritter | Sat, Nov 12th 2022, 10:13am EST

NBA DraftKings & FanDuel DFS Primer: Saturday (11/12)

The NBA offers us an appealing six-game slate Saturday with a 7:00 p.m. EST tip-off. The six to the eight-game range is the “sweet spot” in NBA DFS. The player pools are just large enough to pinpoint pivot plays to differentiate your lineups easily but not massive enough they make your head spin with all the tough decisions and news you have to keep track of.

However, while smaller slates may be easier to navigate, nothing is a cakewalk regarding DFS. Regardless of the slate size, there’s always a large amount of information to comb through. Hopefully, after reading today’s article, we can lighten the workload for you and shed light on the plays that stand out from a first-look standpoint.

Enough small talk, though. So let’s go ahead and dive into Saturday’s edition of the NBA DFS Primer for DraftKings and FanDuel.

Schedule and Odds

  • BOS (-9.5) @ DET (+9.5) O/U: 224
  • TOR (-1) @ IND (+1) O/U: 228.5
  • ATL (+3.5) @ PHI (-3.5) O/U: 220.5
  • CHA (+10) @ MIA (-10) O/U: 214.5
  • HOU (+10.5) @ NO (-10.5) O/U: 229.5
  • POR (+5.5) @ DAL (-5.5) O/U: 214.5

Check out our consensus game odds as well as the odds from each sportsbook at BettingPros

Injury Report

Core Plays

Bam Adebayo (C/PF-MIA): $8,300 DraftKings, $8,100 FanDuel

Bam Adebayo has been lighting it up as of late. Over the last five games, the big man has tallied three double-doubles and is averaging 18.2 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists on 51.4 percent shooting. He gets a dream matchup tonight against the Hornets, who have struggled mightily against centers. The Hornets allow 51.8 points in the paint per game, 17.2 second-chance points, and 46.8 rebounds, ranking bottom six or worse in the league. Bam has one of the best matchups on tonight’s slate and, in turn, is one of my favorite plays. Look for the Heats’ center to stay hot.

Jaylen Brown (SG/SF-BOS): $8,500 DraftKings, $8,200 FanDuel

Jayson Tatum ($10,100 DK, $10,300 FD) is the preferred option on the Celtics, but I like pivoting to his teammate Jaylen Brown. Brown may not have Tatum’s overall ceiling, but he’s been returning similar production at a significantly cheaper salary. Brown is averaging over 40 fantasy points a game and is locked in for 35 or more minutes. In his last eight games, he’s scored 20 or more points in six of them, and he’s shooting the ball tremendously well. He’s not only just getting it done scoring, either. In that same span, he’s grabbed seven or more rebounds in six. Look for Brown to have another big night against a Piston’s defense, who have the worst defensive rating (117.5) in the NBA.

Cash Game Considerations

Tyrese Haliburton (PG/SG-IND): $8,900 DraftKings, $8,800

Haliburton has been a fantasy stud this season, averaging almost 50 fantasy points per contest. Therefore, he has one of the highest guaranteed floors resulting in him being a cash game consideration anytime he takes the floor. The Pacers’ guard has scored 50 or more DraftKing’s points in over half of his games this season. While he does draw a tougher matchup tonight against the Raptors, who like to play at a slow pace and limit possessions, Haliburton has proven to be matchup-proof up to this point. He hasn’t burned me yet, and I’ll continue to ride him until the wheels fall off.

Terry Rozier (PG/SG-CHA): $8,600 DraftKings, $8,000 FanDuel

The Hornets are banged up right now with multiple key players out of the lineup due to injury. That leaves Terry Rozier to lead the way offensively. Over the last four games, he’s taken 20 or more field goal attempts. While he hasn’t shot the ball efficiently, he’s getting it done in terms of fantasy points for the most part. His salary is more appealing on FanDuel, but he can be looked too on either site. He will give you 30 or more fantasy points off volume alone and has the ability to provide you with much more.

GPP Targets

Spencer Dinwiddie (PG/SG-DAL): $6,700 DraftKings, $6,800 FanDuel

Dinwiddie has had his best two games off the season so far over the last two games scoring 29 and 33 points. Those performances have resulted in 49.05 FD points and 50.5 DK points. His current salary would be good for over seven times the return on investment and well over a fantasy point per minute. However, we have seen Dimwiddie have a pretty low floor, so this play is not without risk. Still, I’m willing to ride the hot hand in a GPP in hopes he has another ceiling game left in the tank.

Clint Capela (C-ATL): $6,000 DraftKings, $6,100 FanDuel

Capela is about as risky of a GPP play as there is, but he’s put up three massive games in three of his last four. Therefore, I’m willing to continue to test the waters in large field tournaments. The big man has averaged 42.4 fantasy points in the previous four games and has grabbed a whopping 19 or more rebounds in three of them. If he can churn out a similar performance tonight, he’ll return seven times the investment. That’s precisely the type of value to be looking for in GPPs.

Value Plays

Mason Plumlee (C-CHA): $5,200 DraftKings, $5,700 FanDuel

Plumlee isn’t the sexiest of plays, and he certainly could burn me by going back to him for the third time in a row. However, his recent play can’t be ignored. He has seen 30-plus minutes in back-to-back games, and he should once again see similar playing time tonight. As I mentioned, the Hornets’ roster is missing key pieces, which has thrust him into a more prominent role on both ends of the floor. Plumlee has answered the bell, grabbing 10 or more rebounds in six of the last seven games while logging consecutive double-doubles. That type of play certainly warrants getting some exposure to him again tonight.

Tari Eason (PF/SF-HOU): $4,200 DraftKings, $4,700 FanDuel

Eason is slowly but surely starting to see his minutes increase, logging 20-plus in three straight games. He’s taken full advantage of the increased playing time, having a season-best performance against the Raptors on Wednesday, finishing with 14 points, six rebounds, and five assists. Those numbers were good for 38 DK points and 41.7 FD points. While he may not produce that type of ceiling game again tonight, there’s plenty of value left in the rookie’s salary, specifically on DraftKings.

Advantageous Pricing

  • Tari Eason (PF/SF-HOU): $4,200 DraftKings, $4,700 FanDuel
  • Mason Plumlee (C-CHA): $5,200 DraftKings, $5,700 FanDuel
  • Terry Rozier (PG/SG-CHA): $8,600 DraftKings, $8,000 FanDuel
  • Trae Young (PG-ATL): $10.300 DraftKings, $9,800 FanDuel
  • De’Anthony Melton (PG/SG-PHI): $6,400 DraftKings, $5,800 FanDuel
  • Buddy Hield (SG/SF-IND): $6,600 DraftKings, $7,300 FanDuel
  • Kelly Oubre (SG/SF-CHA): $6,500 DraftKings, $6,000 FanDuel
  • Jaden Ivey (SG-DET): $5,700 DraftKings, $7,000 FanDuel
  • Jonas Valanciunas (C-NO): $7,400 DraftKings, $6,600 FanDuel
  • Myles Turner (C/PF-IND): $6,300 DraftKings, $7,100 FanDuel
  • Onyeka Okongwu (C-ATL): $3,900 DraftKings, $4,800 FanDuel
  • Jalen Duren (C-DET): $3,900 DraftKings, $4,500 FanDuel

If you enjoyed the article, please support me by giving me a follow on Twitter @ev_ritt3. We’ll be back tomorrow with Sunday’s edition of the NBA DFS Primer. Until then, good luck with your contest tonight!


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