Monday, March 7, starts the week off right with a robust eight-game slate beginning at 7 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 | Monday, March 7
Yahoo Play of the Day — LeBron James: Los Angeles Lakers at San Antonio Spurs
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 56.93 | DraftKings: 59.48
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 25.8% | FanDuel 46.9% | DraftKings 27.7%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $53 | FanDuel $10,200 | DraftKings $11,600
Tonight value plays will be plentiful, as Portland has started tanking in earnest and several other teams are resting some key players. LeBron James will look to keep the momentum going in a great matchup tonight as the Lakers cling to their playoff hopes. While they are unlikely to escape the play-in category, they could still make a run at being the seventh or eighth seed and thus only need to win one play-in game before advancing to the bracket portion of the postseason.
James led Los Angeles to a 124-116 victory over Golden State and shows that, even at age 37, he is still one of the best in the league. There is a day off in between each of the next four games before a Sunday/Monday back-to-back in a week. After tonight’s game in San Antonio, the Lakers play Wednesday in Houston and then host Washington on Friday before heading to Phoenix on Sunday. Then they have the aforementioned back-to-back on Monday at home against Toronto. If LeBron and the Lakers can somehow win three or even four of these next five games, they could position themselves as a first-round underdog with upset potential if Anthony Davis is healthy — and James is not completely worn out — but the winning has to start now.
Dejounte Murray: San Antonio Spurs vs. Los Angeles Lakers
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 52.2 | DraftKings: 53.73
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 6.4% | FanDuel 25.6% | DraftKings 7.5%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $50 | FanDuel $9,900 | DraftKings $11,100
This is an intriguing matchup for Dejounte Murray, who has found great success against the Lakers this season. In the three prior meetings he has averaged 36.5 minutes, 17.3 points, 9.3 rebound, 12.7 assists and an eye-popping four combined blocks and steals. Murray is in the midst of a breakout season, and with Derrick White traded to Boston, he has become the first option on offense as well as the primary distributor. Murray is also one of the best rebounding guards in the league; he is averaging 1.56 fantasy points per minute in just over 1,000 minutes this season without White on the court, which is simply elite.
Denver Nuggets vs. Golden State Warriors
Last night Nikola Jokic nearly had 100 fantasy points in an overtime victory against Oklahoma City. In 43 minutes he was 16-for-22 from the field and 11-for-12 from the line, putting up 46 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists and seven combined blocks and steals. Jokic is very much in play for tournaments, but with Golden State resting most of their key contributors, coupled with the heavy minutes Sunday night, coach Mike Malone may have a quick hook for Jokic if this one gets out of hand. Of course, there is a reason they play the games, as the conventional thinking yesterday was that Memphis would roll through Houston and they ended up losing handily.
If for any reason Jokic gets the night off, look to DeMarcus Cousins as a potential difference maker. The rest of the Nuggets are really better suited for late-slate tournaments, as so much of the usage and production goes to Jokic that it is hard to trust any other player with consistency.
Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins and Klay Thompson are all out for rest, and Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, Gary Payton II and James Wiseman are injured. That means Jordan Poole will be running the show tonight, and he is a core play. Kevon Looney is coming off his worst game in six weeks, and this is a solid bounce-back opportunity since he will actually get to shoot the ball if he so desires.
Jonathan Kuminga looks fantastic on a per-minute basis and should get as much run as his limit of six fouls allows. Otto Porter Jr., on the other hand, will have to get by on efficiency since he rarely plays more than 24 minutes under any circumstances, making him somewhat of a trap. Finally, Nemanja Bjelica at least is a legitimate NBA player, but one who just does not get minutes normally. There is no shortage of players tonight for coach Steve Kerr, but there is a lack of options who can keep an offensive moving. Good luck guessing which of Damion Lee, Moses Moody and Chris Chiozza may luck into a fantasy-relevant performance.
Look to Looney in the NBA player prop market, where he has a 7.5 over/under on his rebounds. Awesemo is projecting him for 9.3 rebounds, which gives him a 70% probability of reaching the over.
Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Portland Trail Blazers
Anthony Edwards is likely to miss a fourth consecutive game with knee soreness, and Patrick Beverley could miss a second game with his ankle issue. Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell are core options tonight against a dilapidated Portland squad. Towns dropped 70 fantasy points in this same matchup on Saturday, while Russell chipped in with 41 of his own. If Beverley is out, Malik Beasley is a solid punt option, and depending on the health status for Naz Reid and Taurean Prince, other value options may emerge closer to tipoff.
The Trail Blazers are in complete tank mode and will be resting Anfernee Simons tonight. Josh Hart is back from his game off and is a tremendous play in all formats. Brandon Williams is a near-lock on DraftKings ($3,800) and FanDuel ($3,500), and he is still in play on Yahoo, who preemptively assigned him a $16 salary. Drew Eubanks, Trendon Watford and C.J. Elleby are solid, though their utility varies between the different DFS sites.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS picks for the Monday, March 7 Fantasy Basketball Slate
Tonight there is a staggered slate with games tipping off at six different times and a West Coast finale at 10:30 p.m. ET. Keep in mind that salaries and scoring formats differ across the various fantasy sites, and a slam-dunk play on Yahoo may be a below-average NBA DFS pick on DraftKings or FanDuel.
