We have a six-game NBA DFS main slate on Monday, January 8th, on DraftKings and FanDuel. Both sites kept the 10:30 pm ET, which is interesting because they've removed the late game for a good part of the last two weeks. We've had major news break already with Jayson Tatum ruled out in a rematch with the Pacers. Without Tatum, there are still elite options like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Tyrese Haliburton.

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

QUESTIONABLE

OUT

PROBABLE

Back-to-Backs

Pace Up Spots (Last 15 Games)

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

  • Jazz: 9th vs. Bucks: 1st
  • Thunder: 5th vs. Wizards: 2nd
  • Celtics: 18th vs. Pacers: 4th

Defensive Ratings (Last 15 Games)

NBA Game Totals

Top Tier Core Plays

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

There’s no Damian Lillard tonight and Antetokounmpo has already been on a heater, so what’s it going to look like without Lillard? He’s averaged 1.71 FP/min and has a 36% USG rate to boot.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

OKC has lost two straight since their dramatic win against Boston but have a nice juicy match-up against the Wizards tonight. They’re still on the road, but they’re 11.5 point favorites. He’s scored 30+ actual in nine of his last 10 games and has 55+ DKP in each of those nine. Washington is 28th in DRtg and 2nd in pace over their last 15 games.

Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers

Obviously, 44 DKP was not great, but on a night where he was just 5-of-17 and had seven assists to even close in on 5x shows us the growth in every fantasy department. 10.2K is still too cheap for a guy with 70+ FP upside.

Mid-Tier Core Plays

Boston Celtics, All of them

With Jayson Tatum out, a lot opens up for Boston here.

Al Horford likely starts alongside Porzingis, too, but he’s not as much of a priority as everyone else is. I’d be OK getting to any and all of the guys mentioned. Max 3 for me, but they’re in an ELITE spot.

Oklahoma City Thunder Trio

I have interest in Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, and Josh Giddey in the mid-tier so grouping them like I did the Boston guys makes sense. Holmgren has the best FP/min mark, notching 1.27, while Giddey’s right behind him at 1.12. Williams is actually last in that category (.99) but has seen his minutes back on the rise along with his fantasy production. I’d rank them Holmgren, Williams, then Giddey, but I like them all today in the best match-up on the board.

Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks

Nobody on the Bucks receives a bigger usage bump than Khris Middleton this year when Damian Lillard is off the floor. It's a whopping +8.2% up to 32.5% while also putting up 1.27 FP/min. Middleton is SG/SF eligible, playing 32-33 minutes a night, and saw a price drop on DK. He's a fantastic play today. 

Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets

We've seen it night in and night out when Tari Eason is out. Smith's minutes are very secure. He played 40 minutes last time out on the second leg of a back-to-back if you want more proof of that. Smith was one rebound shy in the Timberwolves game from having back-to-back double-doubles, which is live once again here against a bad Miami team when it comes to rebounding.

Jordan Clarkson, Utah Jazz

The Bucks can't stop guards and that's been clear from the beginning of the year. Clarkson's starting to heat up despite coming off the bench notching 32+ DKP in three of four games including two games of 50 DKP. I love where the minutes have been for Clarkson of late and I love that he's put up 31% USG or better in three of four games, and 30%+ in six of eight.

Value Tier Core Plays

Simone Fontecchio, Utah Jazz

It's been great to see Fontecchio's minutes of late as he's played 29+ in four of five and in the one he played 25, they lost by 30. His role is solidified and he can shoot and space the floor for a lineup featuring Kris Dunn and Collin Sexton who both shoot worse than 34% from three. He's averaged 25.9 DKP/game over his last six games.

Andre Jackson Jr., Milwaukee Bucks

Jackson has topped 20 minutes twice this year and has put up 22 DKP in each of those games. He's not a fantastic FP/min guy, but without Damian Lillard and Cameron Payne, there's a chance Jackson plays a bunch. They don't theoretically need a traditional point guard when you have Khris Middleton and Giannis Antetokounmpo. I expect Jackson to draw a start and at 3.1K, it's hard to ignore his price in this spot.

MarJon Beauchamp, Milwaukee Bucks

There's a little bit of an ownership discrepancy between Pat Connaughton and MarJon Beauchamp and I'll take the lower-owned of the two. Beauchamp has been much more consistent than Connaughton this year, especially from three. Beauchamp's at .79 FP/min while Connaughton's at .78. Beauchamp has a 14% USG and Connaughton has a 12% mark. Beauchamp leading in both leads me to him.
 

Slate Thoughts:

  • All the ownership going to Milwaukee, and I get it, but what about Boston? They're without Jayson Tatum and ALL rate out fairly elite.
  • Can Washington keep it close? If you think they can, OKC might be the best option of the day facing off against Washington.

Late-News Core Play Section

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

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