On tap for Monday night is a nine-game slate, and below are some of the best NBA daily fantasy picks for both FanDuel and DraftKings based on Awesemo’s grades and values.
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NBA Daily Fantasy Picks: Awesemo Grades | April 19
Center: Isaiah Stewart
DraftKings Grades: C, Values: B
FanDuel Grades: C, Values: A
The Pistons will be down to 10 available players tonight, with all of Mason Plumlee (rest), Cory Joseph (illness), Dennis Smith Jr. (knee), Wayne Ellington (rest), Rodney McGruder (elbow), Jerami Grant (quad) and Sekou Doumbouya (concussion) confirmed out. The key factor here for Stewart is Plumlee being inactive, which inserts Stewart into the Pistons’ starting lineup at center. In the five starts Stewart has made for Plumlee this season, he is producing 34.25 DraftKings points per game, including a career-high 50.75 DraftKings points against the Thunder on Friday night. In general, Stewart has drastically improved as a fantasy asset, scoring 1.1 DraftKings points per minute for the month of April, which is a notable upgrade from the 0.88 DraftKings points per minute he provided in the first 32 games of his NBA career.
Considering how thin the Pistons are tonight, Stewart should absolutely exceed the 30-minute threshold in this tight spread against the Cavaliers (Cleveland -2.5). The Cavs have yielded the seventh-most DraftKings points per game to opposing centers over their last 10, and Stewart should post a double-double worth at least 30 fantasy points. He needs to be one of the core plays of the night, especially on FanDuel where he can be rostered as a power forward. Overall, Stewart is rating as top-10 value via Awesemo’s NBA DFS projections.
Projected NBA DFS Ownership: DraftKings 20.4%, FanDuel 39.0%
Shooting Guard: Bradley Beal
DraftKings Grades: A, Values: C
FanDuel Grades: A, Values: A
Russell Westbrook is going to be chalky tonight against his former team, but Beal also needs to be included in the player pool for this dream matchup against the Thunder. Rui Hachimura (knee) has been ruled out for Washington, and Beal has been the primary beneficiary when he has been missing. Hachimura exited Saturday’s win over the Pistons early due to the knee injury, and Beal took over the Wizards offense, posting 50.25 DraftKings points across 34.5 minutes. In the 543 total minutes he has logged without Hachimura, Beal has seen his usage rise 4.5 points to a team-high 39.3%. Fantasy-wise, this results in 1.44 DraftKings points per minute, which is also a team best for this situation.
As the Thunder tank away their season, their defense has been putrid, ranking 28th in defensive rating this month, and Beal should light them for nothing less than 50 fantasy points. At $8,500 on FanDuel, he is a primary play for all formats. As for DraftKings, Beal is the perfect pivot off Westbrook in GPPs. Per Awesemo’s NBA DFS ownership projections, Beal is slated for nearly half of the ownership of Westbrook on DraftKings tonight, making him a great NBA daily fantasy pick.
Projected NBA DFS Ownership: DraftKings 14.2%, FanDuel 41.2%
Center: Xavier Tillman
DraftKings Grades: C, Values: A
FanDuel Grades: C, Values: A
Tillman is the best point-per-dollar value of this nine-game slate for both DraftKings and FanDuel based on Awesemo’s projections. He is expected to draw the spot start in place of the concussed Jonas Valanciunas tonight against the Nuggets. Tillman has started seven times this season and is averaging 23.6 DraftKings points per game on those occasions. On top of Valanciunas, Dillon Brooks (thigh), De’Anthony Melton (leg), Brandon Clarke (hip) and Justise Winslow (quad) are all questionable for Memphis.
Tillman should handle at least 25 minutes with plenty of room for more if multiple of these players sit in a game with a 226.5-point total. He should have no issues outproducing his salaries tonight, and getting Tillman’s center production at a power forward spot on both DraftKings and FanDuel makes him a cash-game staple Monday.
Projected NBA DFS Ownership: DraftKings 35.6%, FanDuel 27.0%
Point Guard: Mike Conley
DraftKings Grades: B, Values: B
FanDuel Grades: B, Values: B
Regardless of this tough matchup against the Lakers, Conley is a tremendous GPP play considering his low expected ownership levels via Awesemo’s NBA DFS ownership projections. Donovan Mitchell (ankle) will miss his second straight contest, and Conley has averaged 46.3 DraftKings points per game in the three full games he has played without Mitchell this season. In these starts, Conley’s usage has seen a 2.9-point bump, and his assist rate has leaped a whopping 10.2%.
This clash of defense-oriented teams present a low total of 215 points, but Conley has 40- to 50-DraftKings-point upside and could be a key to winning GPPs tonight.
Projected NBA DFS Ownership: DraftKings 13.6%, FanDuel 9.6%
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