Thursday, March 10, has what should be a spirited pair of games beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET. Let’s look at the player pool and discuss the top NBA DFS picks today for DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo lineups. Do not forget to head over to the Awesemo NBA DFS & Fantasy Basketball home page for more great written daily fantasy basketball content.
NBA DFS Picks: Fantasy Basketball Building Blocks Today | Thursday, March 10
Yahoo Play of the Day — Joel Embiid: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Brooklyn Nets
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 55.17 | DraftKings: 56.57
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo n/a | FanDuel 41.8% | DraftKings 48.2%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $39 | FanDuel $10,800 | DraftKings $10,800
This will be the first time that Philadelphia and Brooklyn have met since the Ben Simmons and James Harden trade went down. Simmons has yet to take the court for his new team, but word is that he will be sitting on the bench tonight in his return to the City of Brotherly Love. It is apropos that this game is featured on TNT tonight, as it is appointment viewing to see how Harden looks to show out against his former backcourt mate Kyrie Irving and, of course, Joel Embiid is likely to want to make a statement as well in front of Simmons.
The narrative is not the reason we should be looking to Embiid, particularly on a slate with reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic taking the court. However, tonight is a back-to-back game for the Nuggets, and it is also their fourth tilt in the last five days. Last night Jokic logged 35 minutes, and in the other two games he had a second 35-minute outing and a season-high 43 in overtime against New Orleans. That is just enough to give a slight nod to Embiid when deciding between the pair of MVP frontrunners on the two-game slate.
Tonight Yahoo is doing something a little different with their contests. They are forgoing a two-game slate and instead featuring two single-game slates. This format is a lot of fun on Yahoo, and the wrinkle is that we have three multiplier slots, with the MEGASTAR receiving a 2x bonus score, the SUPERSTAR getting 1.5x modifier and the STAR assigned a 1.2x booster. These moving parts contribute to a challenging puzzle where salary cap and projections are just two of the three factors we are going to have to consider when building rosters. Since we are looking at two separate games, Embiid should be a priority in the first and then Jokic the key target in the second.
Brooklyn Nets at Philadelphia 76ers
In addition to being without Simmons, LaMarcus Aldridge (hip) will be missing his second consecutive game, which opens things up in the frontcourt. Andre Drummond has a history of getting worked over by Embiid, and prior to them being teammates, Drummond has managed to avoid his nemesis since December of 2019. In the last four meetings between these behemoths, Embiid has averaged 29 points, 11 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 3.3 combined blocks and steals for an average of 54.5 fantasy points. Would it really be a surprise if Drummond came down with something prior to tipoff that kept him out of the fray tonight?
Kyrie Irving is a prime option, as we know that when he is motivated he can be a force on the court. Kevin Durant now has been ex-teammates with Harden twice, and he too is likely to want to remind everyone of his greatness under the television lights. Nicolas Claxton should see decent minutes with Aldridge on the shelf, and if anything befalls Drummond, be it imaginary or something tangible like foul trouble, he would be next in line. Bruce Brown Jr. and Seth Curry are the other options to target, with Goran Dragic, Patty Mills and James Johnson tournament dart throws.
Look to Curry in this matchup against the 76ers tonight in the NBA player prop market. Currently he has an 11.5 over/under on his points prop, and Awesemo is projecting him for 13.3, which gives him a 68% probability of surpassing the over. In the 10 games he has played for Brooklyn, the journeyman sharpshooter is averaging 31.7 minutes, 12.2 field goal attempts — 6.5 from beyond the arc — and 15 points.
Harden has already made his mark for Philly through five games — all ending in victory — averaging 36.8 minutes, 24.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 12.4 assists and 1.2 steals. Tobias Harris has faded into the background since Harden arrived, but he can be productive without the ball in his hands and his recent game log is likely to keep his popularity in check.
Tyrese Maxey is very scoring dependent now that he has ceded the main facilitator role to Harden, but he has been making hay off his wide-open looks. Finally we have Matisse Thybulle, who should have no shortage of opponents to guard; Shake Milton, who can catch lightning in a bottle at any time; and, of course, long shot DeAndre Jordan, who is yet another player who has worn the uniform of both teams in tonight’s tilt.
Golden State Warriors at Denver Nuggets
The Warriors are running thin tonight without the services of Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, James Wiseman, Gary Payton II and Otto Porter Jr. Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins and Klay Thompson will all play a large role as the first three options in the Golden State offense. Jordan Poole has carved out a nice niche and continues to be productive, even with the return of Thompson after a two-year layoff. Kevon Looney has made strides in his game, and if he somehow looks to take a couple shots of his own accord instead of relying on dunks and putbacks, he could be a threat for a double-double.
Rookie Moses Moody has started four of the last six games, as coach Steve Kerr has preferred to keep Poole coming off the bench for a scoring boost. Moody has not been afraid to look for his shot. However, if this is a close game, he will likely fade into the background. Most sites still have him at a significant discount, and if he remains in the starting lineup, he should be secure in the rotation for 20 to 24 minutes with a couple available for upside if his shot is finding the bottom of the net. Fellow rookie Jonathan Kuminga and wily veteran Nemanja Bjelica are wild cards for tournaments.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS picks for the Thursday, March 10 Fantasy Basketball Slate
This is shaping up to be a great night of basketball. While the player pool is thin, the action on the court projects to be riveting to say the least. Friday and Saturday bring larger slates and, of course, NCAA March Madness is right around the corner as well.
