Happy New Year's Eve, All! It is December 31st, the final day of 2023 and what better way to spend it than binking in some NBA DFS! We have just a five-game main slate for tonight's action, but we have some very juicy match ups including the Brooklyn Nets visiting the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Orland Magic heading to the desert to take on the Phoenix Suns, and my personal favorite - the Sacramento Kings hitting Beale street to take on the Memphis Grizzlies! Let's dive in.

 

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!

Notable NBA Injury Updates

Questionable:

OUT:

 

Back-to-Backs

 

PACE (Last 15 Games):

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

*key* Green is the 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

NBA Game Totals

 

Top-Tier Core Plays

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

Shai comes in as the top-priced player on today's slate, but we know it is for good reason. He is a model of consistency, and not talking 30-40 fantasy points. This guy is netting you 55-60 a night and is doing it pretty much effortlessly. SGA has recorded at least 56 or more fantasy points in his last six-straight contests and gets a Nets team tonight that is mediocre at best. The Thunder have basically been unstoppable on their home court this season, and SGA is a huge part for the near flawless record there. Although, he is the highest priced player, a smidge over $10K is not a bad tag.

Anthony Davis, (PF/C), Los Angeles Lakers

Davis is coming off a near 80-fantasy point outing vs the Minnesota Timberwolves last night. Davis was just reported probable to play with LBJ having a questionable designation, so there is a chance we get lone AD tonight against New Orleans, his old team! The Pelicans are not the best possible match up here, but we saw last night that when Davis feels like playing, he is pretty much match up proof. 

Jayson Tatum (SF/PF), Boston Celtics

Tatum sat the last game for the Celtics, so should be good to go for this one in San Antonio tonight. Tatum has picked up up quite a bit lately, going for 65 fantasy points last time out vs the Pistons, and was over 40 fantasy points in the prior nine games before that. This game does have a big spread in favor of the Celtics, however, the game total being the highest on the board means we have to pay attention to this game. The Spurs have been running with the 2nd fastest PACE in the league over their last 15 games played, and that is huge for fantasy purposes. We know Tatum has a ceiling and this Spurs defense is not good. 

Ja Morant (PG), Memphis Grizzlies

Morant is likely my favorite play on tonight's slate. He is back at home and has one of the best overall match ups and game environments on this slate. This game vs the Kings has just a single point spread and a nice total at 236. Since Morant's return to the court following his suspension, he has been over 50 fantasy points in three of his five games played, and over 40 in all but one. The Kings love to play fast, sitting right in the top-10 in PACE, so this should speed this game up nicely and play to Morant's favor at home.

De'Aaron Fox (PG), Sacramento Kings

Likewise, Fox also has an amazing match up here vs the Grizzlies backcourt, featuring Morant, who we know isn't the best defender. Fox has been great lately and I fully expect that to continue here. His last two games were on the road conveniently, and he put up 64 in Portland and 60 in Atlanta in those two games. Love the spot, love Fox here tonight.

 

Mid-Tier Core Plays

Victor Wembanyama (PF/C), San Antonio Spurs

With Wemby getting the rest day in the Spurs last time on the floor due to it being a 2nd leg of back-to-back, he should be a full-go here tonight at home vs the Celtics. The only flaw in this play is the fact that Pop is not playing him big minutes. He has seen 24 minutes in his last two games, but it was somewhat noted that he was on a minutes limit, so hopefully we get some more clarification on that tonight, but don't count on it. Either way, Wemby has immense upside, and with this game having such a large total it is very hard not to like. Last time out, Victor only needed 24 minutes to record 61 fantasy points on a line of 30 points, six boards, six dimes, and seven blocks against the Blazers.

Desmond Bane (SG/SF), Memphis Grizzlies

As mentioned above, this is likely my favorite game tonight to stack up and target on this slate. Even with the return of Morant, Bane is still playing extremely well and putting up nice performances. He is still clearly the 2nd option, and on some nights he has taken the lead and had higher usage than Morant. We can count on a couple things for Bane on just about every night he takes the floor - he will see 35+ minutes likely, and he is going to have a 25+% usage rate as he has had all season long (sitting at 28.4% for the season currently).

Brandon Ingram (SG/SF), New Orleans Pelicans

Ingram loves to play against his former team in the Los Angeles Lakers and that is who he gets to face tonight on his home floor! Ingram is playing big minutes and is a huge part of this Pelicans offense. Ingram has played 36 or more minutes on most nights, and we have seen his upside lately going for 44 and 56 fantasy points in his last two games, which happened to be on his home court against Utah and Memphis. He will get up to play against the Lakers tonight, and I expect  him to go right at them.

Derrick White (PG/SG), Boston Celtics

White continues to be one of the most under-rated players in the league in not just fantasy, but in real basketball. White is coming off another stellar performance against the Raptors, where the Celtics were down a few players, but nonetheless, he put up nearly 48 fantasy points on a line of 21 points, five boards, seven dimes, two blocks and three steals spread across 36 minutes. We shouldn't likely expect this performance with all of the Celtics back in play tonight, but Jrue Holiday is questionable here still. We know White will play tons of minutes and he contributes in just about every category possible.

 

Value Tier Core Plays

Devin Vassell (PG/SG), San Antonio Spurs

Not typically my favorite spot to fade being the Celtics backcourt, but Vassell has played very well lately. There is a chance that Keldon Johnson does not play here, and even with Wemby back in the line up, Vassell should still be a main focal point of this Spur's offense. Vassell is coming off back-to-back 44 fantasy point outings and we mentioned this game has the highest total on the board and the Spurs are running with the 2nd fastest PACE in the league. Like Vassell in this one, especially if Keldon happens to sit.

Jusuf Nurkic (C), Phoenix Suns

Nurkic returned from a couple game absence and performed very well against the Hornets playing 28 minutes and recording 48 fantasy points on the night with a 24 points, 15 boards, one assist, and two blocked shots line. This is likely a ceiling outcome for Nurkic, but it is one we have to pay attention to. This isn't the best possible match up vs Orlando, but Nurkic is playing to well lately to not consider. He has topped 35 fantasy points in six of his last seven games played.

Jalen Williams (SF/PF), Oklahoma City Thunder

Williams has shown some nice upside lately, putting up 32+ fantasy points in his last five-straight contests. Three of his last four have gone for 38+ to boot. Gets a nice match up here against the under-sized Nets, and this game should be a good one for fantasy. Jalen does a little bit of everything on the floor, so he does have nice upside.

Tre Jones (PG/SG), San Antonio Spurs

Tre Jones is getting good run over the last three or so games and has seen 27, 26, and 27 minutes in his last three contests. As a result, Jones has also recorded 25, 25, and 30 fantasy points in those three games. With the Spurs possibly being down Keldon, and the fact this game has a two touchdown spread, we could see Jones get some extended run here against Boston.

Santi Aldama (PF/C), Memphis Grizzlies

Santi missed a game and returned to see a 22-minute outing against the Clippers. I mentioned we want to have ample parts of this Kings/Grizzlies game and I think Aldama will likely see 20-22 minutes here once again, and will have a legit chance at around a fantasy point per minute, as he has done in multiple games this season. The Grizzlies are still down quite a bit in their frontcourt, and Aldama is a stretch big to boot. 

Larry Nance Jr. (PF/C), New Orleans Pelicans

After missing 13 games, Nance returned to action and was gifted 25 minutes off the bench against the Jazz in his return. In those 25 minutes, Nance secured nearly 30 fantasy points while scoring nine points, grabbing seven boards, swatting one shot, and swiping up FIVE steals. We likely won't see that type of defensive performance again from Nance, but the minutes and other production was a very encouraging sign of his role in the Pelican's rotation. Not to mention, Nance also played for the Lakers in his prior years.

 

 

Player Pool

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Stacks

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