Thursday, April 7, keeps the week rolling with a seven-game main slate starting at 7 p.m. ET on Yahoo, DraftKings and FanDuel. Let’s look at the player pool and discuss the top NBA DFS picks today for DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo lineups. As always, you can head over to the Awesemo NBA DFS & Fantasy Basketball home page for all the fantasy basketball content you need for any given slate.
NBA DFS Picks: Fantasy Basketball Building Blocks Today | Thursday, April 7
Yahoo Play of the Day — Giannis Antetokounmpo: Milwaukee Bucks vs. Boston Celtics
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 58.41 | DraftKings: 59.82
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 19.8% | FanDuel 34.7% | DraftKings 16.7%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $57 | FanDuel $11,200 | DraftKings $12,100
Things are tight at the top of the Eastern Conference standings with Miami holding a two-game lead over Boston with an extra half game on top of that when compared to Milwaukee and Philadelphia. The Celtics rolled over the Bulls in Chicago last night 117-94 without defensive cornerstone Robert Williams. Al Horford has been logging more minutes in the absence of Williams, and after playing 30 last night, he may get the night off.
The last time Giannis Antetokounmpo took the court against the Boston was on Christmas Day when he dropped 60 fantasy points on them in just 30 minutes. Since this game is so crucial to the standings, it makes sense that Giannis should see full run against a weakened Celtics defense.
Centers of Attention
Tonight the center position is loaded, with MVP frontrunners Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid each projecting for nearly 10 fantasy points more than Karl-Anthony Towns. Over their last dozen games as Jokic and Embiid are vying for the postseason hardware as well as the playoffs, each has been playing their full complement of minutes.
In this stretch, Jokic, the reigning NBA MVP, has averaged 35 minutes, 31.6 points, 13.5 rebounds, 7.2 assists and three combined blocks and steals. This works out to a lofty 1.81 fantasy points per minute. Embiid has been nothing short of amazing during this timeframe as well with 35.4 minutes, 33.3 points, 12.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists and three combined blocks and steals for 1.69 fantasy points per minute. Their respective squads are looking to keep racking up wins down the stretch, so 35 or more minutes is in play for both big men.
Charlotte Hornets vs. Orlando Magic
The Hornets are in search of victories, as they can still move into the second seed of the Play-In Tournament by passing two of Cleveland, Brooklyn and Atlanta; this quartet is separated by only 2.5 games, and Charlotte has three tilts left on its schedule. Orlando is mailing things in, but Charlotte has been so bad on defense, by default the Magic could keep things close into the third quarter. In each of their last two games, the Hornets have allowed 144 points while losing by an average of 29.5 points.
LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges and Terry Rozier consolidate most of the fantasy production from the point and the wings. P.J. Washington and Mason Plumlee take care of business down low, and it looks like Montrezl Harrell may be out of the rotation, having not left the bench for a single second in the last game. Kelly Oubre Jr. is always a playing time risk himself, but he would likely be in line for mop-up duty in the final frame if Michael Jordan’s franchise can take care of business.
Look to Ball against Orlando tonight in the NBA player prop market. Currently, he has a 5.5 over/under on his rebound prop, and the Awesemo NBA player projections have him for 7.4 rebounds, which gives him a 74% probability of surpassing the over. Ball has at least five rebounds in five of his last seven outings, and clearly the Awesemo projections think he is likely to clear that baseline with ease.
Orlando has shut down Wendell Carter Jr., Franz Wagner and Cole Anthony, though they still have plenty of players to absorb 240 minutes in regulation. Let other gamers assume the risk of rostering Markelle Fultz, who is unlikely to play more than 24ish minutes, despite moving into the starting rotation. Ignas Brazdeikis is going to be wildly popular tonight as a punt option, and he should be heavily involved in the offense as well as being the player with the best path to 35 minutes. If rookie Jalen Suggs sees an increase on his minutes limit, he would provide potential 35-fantasy-point upside at a discounted salary. Finally, Mohamed Bamba, Chuma Okeke and Moritz Wagner all have access to 40 fantasy points, though, aside from Bamba, who can get there on efficiency, this trio really needs one of their members to collect early fouls.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS Picks for the Thursday, April 7 Fantasy Basketball Slate
Similar to Wednesday, we have a staggered slate with the seven games drawing five different start times. There is a mix of teams tanking, recently eliminated from the postseason and some playing to improve their playoff lot. The final game of the night features the Los Angeles Lakers at Golden State Warriors, which may bring late breaking lineup adjustments or rest days.
