The NBA Slate Starter: NBA DFS Picks for DraftKings + FanDuel | 1/8

We are now two weeks into the season, but the contests are bigger and better than ever on DraftKings and FanDuel. I’m here to paint an early picture for you on this massive 10-game slate with some of my NBA DFS picks and strategies to take on the day. Let’s dive right into it.

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NBA DFS Slate Starter: Picks & Strategy | Jan. 8

The Elephant in the Room

Let’s get this out of the way nice and early: Caris LeVert is going to be massive chalk for a second consecutive night with Kyrie Irving expected to be out just for the heck of it. So long as LeVert is active (no reason to think he won’t be), at $6,800 on FanDuel it’s hard to imagine I won’t have 100% again. His $600 price bump to $7,400 on DraftKings makes you at least think about it, but that too is absurdly cheap. I don’t blame the sites for this pricing error; they couldn’t possibly anticipate Irving going full Axl Rose.

So the question on DraftKings becomes at what ownership level should we be looking at other options? After all, this is a 10-game slate as opposed to Thursday’s five, so there are more pivots and options available. Obviously none of them will project close to LeVert, who in 137 minutes with Irving and Kevin Durant off the floor sports an insane 38.5% usage rate and a more insane 55.9% assist rate. Basically, he’s James Harden sans Russell Westbrook from last season except with a lower 44.1% true shooting percentage in those same minutes. That means if he knocks down some shots, he’d somehow be an even better play than he was today. That feels asinine to fade at a sub-$9,000 salary, let alone only a $7,400 one.

My advice is to let the Awesemo Boom/Bust tool paint the picture for you tomorrow. You’re obviously giving up a fantastic play if you decide to fade LeVert, but something tells me the leverage score might surprise you. If you want a glimpse behind the curtain to check it out for yourself, use promo code 2021 at Awesemo.com/promos to get 21 days of Awesemo+ Platinum for just $20. The Boom/Bust tool, projections for a multitude of sports on a multitude of sites, Game Plan videos with Alex “Awesemo” Baker, it’s the best deal in the industry.

The Wounded Warrior

One of the best/worst aspects of this slate revolves around the Stephen Curry injury. As of writing this on Thursday night, he was just downgraded to questionable from probable. If he ends up playing, rejoice; we don’t have to jam an unhealthy amount of Andrew Wiggins and Kelly Oubre into our lineups against the Clippers.

But if he doesn’t, which the word “downgraded” always implies to me, we have a Warriors team that would be drastically underpriced across the industry. The aforementioned Wiggins and Oubre would become the de facto top plays. A plethora of other options, such as Draymond Green and James Wiseman, would become inserted firmly into the conversation of best mid-range plays on the slate. Pure punts like Damion Lee and Brad Wanamaker would become intriguing value. I know it’s a tough matchup against the Clippers, but who cares when there wouldn’t be a single play on the team above $6,600 on either site.

Also, if I have these Warriors in my lineups and the news breaks that Curry will play, there are a number of viable pivots at similar prices in the Raptors – Kings game that also starts at 10 p.m. EST. But being the lover of chaos that I am, here is what I’m really hoping to see tomorrow afternoon: “Game-time decision.” Because as of right now, I plan on jamming those Warriors in no matter what, so long as news of his status doesn’t break before lock. If it does, I assume they’ll be neck-and-neck with Brooklyn for chalk team of the day. But if it breaks well after lock (or hopefully right before tip of the night slate), I don’t think nearly as many players will be swapping onto this outrageous source of value as there should be.

As always, keep your eyes peeled throughout the day and make sure you’re following our guy @elnegroloco_dfs on Twitter to keep updated throughout the day. He’s truly a life/money saver.


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Final Thoughts for Your NBA DFS Lineups

When it comes to this article, I’m always trying to mix it up. Between recapping important plays from previous slates, discussing Fantasy Cruncher or simply discussing NBA DFS picks and strategy like the title of this article implies, I just want you to stay curious about this crazy game. These past two weeks have been educational for me too, and a lot of it has to do with the cast of legends we have on board at Awesemo I have the privilege of learning from every day. Be sure to catch Adam Scherer’s Deep Dive article, Eric MacPherson’s Building Blocks article and many more of the offerings in front of and behind the paywall. Together, I believe they can provide you with the edge that you’re looking for.


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Looking for more NBA DFS picks content? We have loads of articles, data, cheat sheets and more on the Awesemo NBA home page. Just click HERE.

Eric Lindquist hails from Sioux Falls, South Dakota (yes, that’s the one with Mount Rushmore). A steady diet of three SportsCenters a day at an early age led to his obsession with sports, one that 30 years later is paying dividends for him as a successful DFS player and sports bettor. Despite over half a million dollars in net career earnings, he’s most passionate about helping others achieve their financial goals, an energy you can witness on the daily in his current role as a host and analyst at Stokastic. He’s a former Division I golfer at Iowa State, wishes he was a former Minnesota sports fan, and is a proud father to a 100-pound Bernese Mountain dog named Duke that wishes he could just eat people food instead of the crap he and his wife feed him on the daily.

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