NBA DFS First Look & Optimal Lineup Picks Today

The Slate Starter is a daily first look at to get your daily fantasy basketball lineup-building process started before lock tonight. Each day, we will go through some of the best NBA DFS picks, top stacks and optimal lineup construction for DraftKings and FanDuel. Be sure to check Awesemo’s NBA Starting Lineups page, as it will be updated throughout the day as the NBA injury reports are released and breaking news surfaces. Let’s dive into some players who stand out as key options on Monday’s nine-game slate.

Want to see how your lineup stacked up against yesterday’s winning NBA DFS lineups on DraftKings, FanDuel and Yahoo? Check out our Optimal Lineup Review, which uses Fantasy Cruncher Rewind to analyze the winning plays from the night before.

NBA DFS Picks & Optimal Lineup Construction | Nov. 29

Christian Wood, PF/C, Houston Rockets

Wood is coming off a monster performance in his last game, racking up 33 points, 16 rebounds, and three assists over 40.7 minutes. The result was 61.7 FanDuel points, albeit in an outstanding matchup vs. the Hornets.

Expect Wood to continue to provide value with Jalen Green out of the lineup. He has increased his usage to 25.9% with Green off the court this season, resulting in an average of 1.28 FanDuel points per minute. That represents a sizable increase from his average of 1.10 FanDuel points per minute for the year.

Wood is also priced at a massive discount at just $7,400 on FanDuel. He is still a viable target on DraftKings at $8,200, and he should be one of the highest-owned players across the industry. Expect him to own one of the top marks in our NBA Projections.

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C.J. McCollum, PG/SG, Portland Trail Blazers

McCollum is another player who should benefit from his team’s injury situation. Norman Powell has been ruled out with a quad injury, and McCollum has been one of the biggest beneficiaries with Powell off the court. McCollum ranks second in usage on the Blazers in usage this season, but he jumps up to first with Powell off the court. He has posted a usage rate of 31.0% in that situation, while Damian Lillard checks in at 29.6%.

McCollum has also been a better per-minute producer than Lillard with Powell off the court. He has averaged 1.18 DraftKings points per minute, while Lillard has averaged just 1.08. McCollum is nearly -$2,000 cheaper than Lillard on DraftKings, so he is the clear top choice of the two.

It will be interesting to see how DFS players approach the Blazers’ backcourt. McCollum always seems to command lower ownership than Lillard, which typically makes him the preferred option from a leverage perspective using the Boom/Bust Probability Tool.

P.J. Washington, PF/C, Charlotte Hornets

Washington stands out as one of the preferred value options on Monday’s slate. The Hornets will be without Mason Plumlee for the third straight game, and Washington has started each of the past two. He played 24.3 minutes in his first start, racking up 23.7 FanDuel points, and he scored 38.0 FanDuel points over 34.9 in his second. Overall, Washington has averaged 1.13 FanDuel points per minute over the past month, making him an elite option at just $4,900

Washington could also have some appeal in the player prop market. Make sure to take advantage of the Awesemo Player Prop tool, which highlights the most exploitable prop bets each day.

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