We have an eight-game NBA DFS main slate on Friday, December 29th, on DraftKings and FanDuel as both FanDuel and DraftKings have removed the late games off of their respective slates this evening. Even without those games, the likes of Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Alperen Sengun, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are taking the floor. We have a game between the Sacramento Kings and Atlanta Hawks sitting at 252.5 implied points, so if you like made shots, that's the game for you.

NBA DFS Tools to dominate tonight's NBA DFS slate!

Make sure to check out today's NBA DFS projections and NBA DFS ownership projections before finalizing your lineups today. We also have the NBA Consistency Report to help identify players that have exceeded value based on their current price tag this season and of course our NBA DFS Lineup Generator!

Here's the NBA DFS Podcast for today's slate. Like the video and subscribe to our channel!

Notable NBA Injury Updates

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Back-to-Backs

Pace Up Spots (December Ranks)

Pace definition: Pace is the total number of possessions a team uses in a game.

*key* Green is elite pace of play, Blue is decent pace of play, & Red is slow pace of play.

Green = Fast Paced team

Blue = Neutral Paced team

Red = Slow Paced team

  • Nets rank: 15th vs. Wizards rank: 1st
  • Hawks rank: 10th vs. Kings rank: 11th
  • Bucks rank: 2nd vs. Cavaliers rank: 30th
  • 76ers rank: 7th vs. Rockets rank: 18th
  • Thunder rank: 5th vs. Nuggets rank: 26th

Defensive Ratings (December Ranks)

NBA Game Totals

Top Tier Core Plays

Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets 

Jokic had well over 2 FP/min yesterday and got an entire fourth quarter of rest to boot. Without Aaron Gordon this year, Jokic averages 2 FP/min and has a 36% USG to boot. 

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Antetokounmpo has put up 60+ DKP in four of five and in 10 of his last 13. Giannis has a 1.65 FP/min average this year and his team is the highest rated offense in basketball during the month of December. He has a very safe ceiling/floor.

Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks

Young is involved in a 250+ O/U with the Kings tonight between two teams in the top-11 in pace and bottom-10 in defense in December. Young has played 40+ minutes in three straight games and has seven 30-point double-doubles over his last eight games.

De'Aaron Fox & Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings

The two Kings’ stars combined for 77 points last game and the Kings lost by 17 to the Portland Trailblazers. Think about that for a second. They’re both playing monster minutes and like Trae Young, they’re in a monster game total. They’re both 1.4 FP/min producers, but Fox is the highest usage player of the two by 10%.

Mid-Tier Core Plays

Alperen Sengun, Houston Rockets

It’s fairly surprising to see Sengun’s rates not increase without Brooks and Smith Jr., but 1.32 FP/min and a 28% USG isn’t too bad either way. Philly is without Joel Embiid here and Sengun should be able to have his way with their frontcourt.

Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic

Nobody is playing Orlando tonight but when you look at how the Knicks have fared in December, they’re playing no defense. They’re dead last in defensive rating this month. Orlando’s leading scorer, usage monster, and FP/min player is Banchero and he’s a good contrarian GPP option at this price tier. Can pivot to a cheaper Franz Wagner if you need the salary.

Dejounte Murray, Atlanta Hawks

Trae Young is the priority and I’m not going to try and change your mind, but getting to a lower priced Murray in an elite game environment isn’t a bad pivot. On the year Murray’s a 1.1 FP/min guy and is still 1.03 when he shares the floor with Trae Young. His price is as cheap as it’s been since early November. Over his last five games, he’s averaged 38.9 DKP/game while shooting 50% FG and 40% 3PT.

Mikal Bridges, Brooklyn Nets

We heard how unhappy Bridges was about the 12 minutes played last game and now he gets a bounce back spot against Washington, the fastest paced team and worst defense in December. Bridges has a 26.5% USG and averages 1.05 FP/min without Simmons and Walker IV. His price is also REALLY cheap and one he could crush if he has an offensive explosion.

Jalen Johnson, Atlanta Hawks

Nobody is getting to Johnson here despite the game environment and the minutes upon returning. He played 29 minutes in his return and in the four games before the injury, he topped 30+ and even hit 40 in a game. With De’Andre Hunter out and Okongwu shifting back to C only last game, Johnson has a high minutes ceiling.

De'Anthony Melton, Philadelphia 76ers

It’s a slow burn for Melton’s price despite 36 and 37 minutes and 42 and 35 DKP over the last two games and Joel Embiid’s still out. He sees a 5.5% USG bump to 23.5% while averaging 1.13 FP/min. Melton is very safe tonight.

Value Tier Core Plays

Josh Hart, New York Knicks

Since all of the front-court injuries the Knicks have suffered, Hart has been playing big minutes. He’s topped 30 minutes in three of four and the only game he didn’t he played 26 in a blowout loss. He’s stat sheet stuffer and has a ceiling when his shot falls.

Peyton Watson, Denver Nuggets

In 23 minutes last night, Watson looked really sharp scoring 20 actual points and 31.25 DKP in his first start of the year. With Aaron Gordon, no reason to think he doesn’t start again. Also, if Michael Porter Jr. (now Q) doesn’t play, it solidifies Watson’s minutes more.

Mo Bamba, Philadelphia 76ers

I’m taking a stand on Bamba tonight. Paul Reed is foul-happy. He had four first-half fouls in his first start and three in the first half of the last game. Now, he has to face Houston and Alperen Sengun. Mo Bamba is operating as the backup center and could step into a similar role as he had on Christmas if/when Paul Reed gets in trouble here.

Late-News Core Play Section

*Section for players we are considering “core plays” based on late-breaking news & research

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