NBA DFS Risers Playbook for DraftKings and FanDuel 1-13

Welcome to the NBA DFS Risers Playbook for DraftKings and Fanduel! Every morning we will highlight standout Vegas totals, pace up spots, notable injury news, and how I would attack the slate given the information we have in the morning. We have an 8 game slate so grab a cup of coffee and let’s get into it!

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Notable Vegas Totals

Portland Trail Blazers @ Sacramento Kings O/U 236 – The Kings should come into this game at full strength. Buddy Hield and Richaun Holmes are both probable and will play barring setbacks this morning. My exposure to this team will start with De’Aaron Fox. He has the highest ceiling on the team and is priced in the $7,000 range on both sites. Outside of that, I will look to have pieces of this team but, none of the other players will be a priority.

Portland comes into this one at full strength as well. Jusuf Nurkic is questionable but, I am expecting him to play. In a game with the highest total on the slate, it makes sense that either Damian Lillard or C.J. McCollum would put together an outstanding performance. Both of them are in play in my early look but, I prefer McCollum. Carmello Anthony is an interesting play if you think he will get 30 minutes in this one. I don’t envision myself getting too much of the role players from the Blazers.

Atlanta Hawks @ Phoenix Suns O/U 228- The Hawks are an interesting team today. Trae Young and John Collins have found their way into my player pools constantly due to the high pace the Hawks run. Bogdan Bogdanovic is expected to be out several weeks with a knee injury which could free up some minutes for Cam Reddish and De’Andre Hunter to get a higher workload. If Rajon Rondo returns on this one, I would imagine he takes up the bulk of the minutes that would have gone to Bogdanovic.

The Suns are in a big-time pace up spot in this one. Devin Booker and Chris Paul look to be great plays in my early look and I expect them to be popular on today’s slate. Deandre Ayton hasn’t done enough on the offensive end of the floor to pay off his price tag on DraftKings and FanDuel. Cameron Johnson could end up being one of my top values on the slate. Big bounce-back spot for him.

Pace Up Spots

Detroit Pistons- The Pistons get another matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks who run the floor at a top 10 pace in NBA. There is some blowout risk here but, it is dangerous to assume that a blowout will affect fantasy production. Jerami Grant, Mason Plumlee, Blake Griffin, and Derrick Rose are my early targets from Detroit.

New York Knicks- The Knicks are taking a subway trip to Brooklyn to face the Nets. Brooklyn has run the floor at the 4th highest pace in NBA and the Knicks rank 29th in pace. This is a great matchup for Julius Randle as he should dominate the usage while getting more chances for rebounds. Taj Gibson will be available for this one and is the minumum price on both sites. We will have to see how his minutes shake out. Other early targets include Elfrid Payton and R.J. Barrett.

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Key Injury News

Anthony Davis- The Lakers are on the second leg of a back to back and Davis typically sits in this scenario. It isn’t exactly a daunting matchup against Oklahoma City so I would expect him to be out. I would expect Kyle Kuzma or Markieff Morris to get the spot start.

Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant- Kyrie is still not reporting to the team. Kevin Durant is currently not on the injury report but, I would not be surprised if he sits as well. Assuming Durant is in, the Nets rotation stays the same. If Durant is out, I’m locking in Caris LeVert.

Lonzo Ball- Ball is going to miss some time with a knee injury. I would expect Nickeil Alexander-Walker to fill in for Ball. It is possible that we see Eric Bledsoe move to point guard and Josh Hart slides into shooting guard. We will have to pay attention to the Pelicans lineup.

Early Targets

Giannis Antetokounmpo- Giannis gets a matchup agianst a Detroit team that has nobody that can slow him down. Giannis posted over 60 DraftKings points in both games these teams have played this season and I expect more of the same today. I’m locking him into cash builds and prioritizing him in tournaments.

Kevin Durant- Durant without Kyrie is a great spot to attack. He is still priced under the top studs on the slate and could easily surpass their production. Durant has seen an uptick in assists and shot attempts since Kyrie has been away from the team.

LaMelo Ball- Ball has been mazing to start the season and is still priced in the mid-range. He is a walking triple-double and it is only a matter of time until he steps into a starting role for the Hornets. I’ll be on LaMelo tonight.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker- Walker is the early value play of the day assuming he starts. He is close to minimum price on both sites and could see upwards of 30 minutes. This is more about opportunity than how good of a player he is. He should be volatile.

These are my EARLY targets. If you want targets from our NBA coaches closer to lock, check out NBA Building Blocks!