NBA Daily Fantasy Picks: DraftKings + FanDuel Ownership Projections

On tap for Monday night is a seven-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 5

Center: Karl-Anthony Towns

DraftKings Grades: A, Values: A

FanDuel Grades: A, Values: A

The wins aren’t there yet, but Towns is back to being an elite fantasy option under new head coach Chris Finch. Just this past Saturday night, against a 76ers defense that ranks second in defensive efficiency and with a healthy Joel Embiid in the lineup, Towns erupted for a season-high 70.5 DraftKings points. Towns is now amassing 51.4 DraftKings points in 35.2 minutes per game and a 30% usage rate since Finch took over. Prior to this, with Ryan Saunders at the helm, Towns was scoring 47.7 DraftKings points behind 32.5 minutes per game and only a 26.7% usage rate. This is a notable upgrade for one of the most talented big man in the NBA, and Towns should handle an even larger workload tonight with Ricky Rubio (back), D’Angelo Russell (knee) and Malik Beasley (hamstring) all doubtful for this game against the Kings.

Town’s usage elevates to 33.4% with those three guards off the floor, and the Kings have the worst defensive efficiency in the league by a large margin. They are extremely susceptible inside, allowing the opposition to score the most points in the paint this season, and this game’s total is all the way up to 235 points. This is the high mark of this seven-game slate by 6 points, and having exposure to this anticipated shoutout is a necessity for Monday night. Towns is without question the top target from this game and a building block for all formats. Even as the fourth-highest-priced player on DraftKings tonight, Towns is a top-12 point-per-dollar-value according to Awesemo’s projections.

Projected NBA DFS ownership projection: DraftKings 30.6%, FanDuel 27.6%

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Point Guard: De’Aaron Fox

DraftKings Grades: A, Values: B

FanDuel Grades: A, Values: B

Fox is the perfect bring-back option in lineups that feature Towns tonight. Finch may be getting the best out of Towns offensively, but he and the Timberwolves are still a complete disaster on the defensive end, ranking 26th in defensive rating over their last 10. Over this span opposing point guards have exposed them for a whopping 91.7 DraftKings points per game. This is the most allowed in the league when comparing every team’s last 10 games. The next highest average is Miami with 77.3 DraftKings points per game surrendered. Of the 14 teams in action Monday night, the Kings carry the highest implied team total at 119 points.

Fox is producing 45 DraftKings points per game when his club is slated for 115 points or more this season, and he is in the perfect position to find his ceiling tonight.

Projected NBA DFS ownership projection: DraftKings 15.0%, FanDuel 25.2%

Power Forward: Kelly Olynyk

DraftKings Grades: C, Values: D

FanDuel Grades: C, Values: C

Last night Olynyk posted 45 DraftKings points across 33.2 minutes against the Pelicans. The big increase in playing time was due to Danuel House going down with a sprained ankle 12 minutes into this loss. Olynyk was the player who started in his place for the second half and will likely be the replacement starter for Monday night with House ruled out. Since being traded to Houston at the deadline two weeks ago, Olynyk has supplied 1.07 DraftKings points per minute, and he should receive over 30 minutes tonight if the Rockets can avoid a massive blowout loss to the Suns.

This is a big if considering Phoenix is a 14-point favorite tonight, but Houston will be at home, and quite honestly, they are a far better team with Olynyk starting opposed to House. Dating back to when Olynyk joined the club six games ago, he has posted a 1.4 plus/minus, compared to House’s -6. Now, that is not to suggest the Rockets are going to pull off the upset over the Suns, but there is a solid chance that this game stays close enough that Olynyk sees the amount of work he needs to beat his price tags. He is contributing 28.4 DraftKings points per game whenever he has surpassed 25 minutes this season, and Olynyk is expected to be mostly overlooked in GPPs based on Awesemo’s ownership projections.

Projected NBA DFS ownership projection: DraftKings 4.6%, FanDuel 5.0%

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Center: Tony Bradley

DraftKings Grades: C, Values: A

FanDuel Grades: C, Values: B

In Saturday’s loss to the Trail Blazers, both Isaiah Roby and Josh Hall exited with concussions. Luguentz Dort is already in concussion protocol, and along with these three, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (foot), Darius Bazley (shoulder) and Mike Muscala (ankle) have all been ruled out ahead of Monday night. Plus, Oklahoma City waived Justin Jackson earlier today, leaving them with the league-minimum eight available players for this matchup with the Pistons.

With Hall and Roby going down, Bradley recorded 30.25 DraftKings points Saturday night, and he should be in line for 25 to 30 minutes off the bench against Detroit. Their defense has yielded the sixth-most DraftKings points per game to opposing centers, and Bradley is providing 28 DraftKings points per game on the eight occasions he has cracked 20 minutes this season. On DraftKings Bradley is an appealing punt play at only $3,500 that should be far less owned than the chalky Isaiah Stewart. As for FanDuel, Bradley’s $4,800 salary is more aggressive, but he is still an attractive value given his power forward eligibility and the fact that the higher cost should result in low ownership.

Projected NBA DFS ownership projection: DraftKings 23.0%, FanDuel 6.0%

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