NBA DFS Picks, Projections, Lineups, Injuries & More Today: New Years Day Playbook

The 2025 price bump that DraftKings gave everyone on this slate really makes lineup building tough today. Sure, we've seen Cade over $10,000 this season and he should be but now as we creep close to $11,000 the ask gets tougher. He's gone for 60+ plenty of times this season and that's what we need on DK. On FanDuel you are in a good spot. Sure, you don't get the bonuses for double-doubles and triple-doubles but only needing 48 FP for 5x is more than doable.

It's too bad we don't have this game on DraftKings tonight because Maxey is one of my favorite plays of the day. The Kings don't play defense and when Joel Embiid is off of the floor we see Maxey go to town, owning a team best 32% usage rate while averaging 1.24 FP/Min.

Highest game total of all games today and yet we don't get this matchup on DraftKings. Those on FanDuel will want exposure to this game and while spending up for Nikola Jokic is going to be the popular path, this is also a spot where Trae Young could have a high scoring double-double.

He sat out the game against Portland the other night but he is off the injury report. Yes, the matchup against the Rockets is tough and he is going to see a lot of Dillon Brooks today but Kyrie can take over a game whenever he feels like it just as we saw on Christmas Day against the tough Timberwolves defense.

Yes, more FanDuel only plays. Fox continues to perform even while there are some trade rumors mentioning his name. The 76ers are good not great defensive team and if Maxey keeps this game competitive you can lock in Fox for 40+ fantasy points.

Another FanDuel only guard features Jamal Murray in that 247 game total against the Hawks. He is going to get a lot of Dyson Daniels tonight which is never an easy task but Murray has gone for 45+ fantasy points five of the last six games.

No Amen Thompson tonight and possibly no Tari Eason. Why does this matter? Because both players, when on the floor, are high usage plays. VanVleet has been really good of late and we need to ride these highs when he's got it going because we know there are stretches where he is also ice cold.

D'Angelo Russell is expected to make his team debut tonight but I don't foresee this coming at the expensive of Ben Simmons, instead I can see Russell playing more of the shooting guard while Simmons still runs this Nets offense with Russell and Cam Johnson on the wings. There is no Cam Thomas tonight and while Simmons isn't really scoring the basketball we are still almost getting double-doubles in rebound and assists alone.

McCollum is firing off right now, scoring 40+ fantasy points in three of the last four games. Miami does get Jimmy Butler back tonight and the Pelicans are 8.5-point road underdogs but if McCollum is going to shoot like this then that game may stay a bit more competitive than expected.

He's still considered questionable to play so his status needs to be monitored going into roster lock but if LaVine suits up he has a great matchup against the Washington Wizards.

Good scoring option that few end up getting to when building lineups. FanDuel only option but a fair price for someone who can score 40 fantasy points.

More of the same analysis as Fred VanVleet. With high usage players like Amen Thompson and Tari Eason off of the floor there is more opportunities for someone like Jalen Green to stay on the floor and be productive. 

I don't love the game flows that involve the Magic too often but Beasley is still a decent upside value play, especially on DraftKings where everyone got a major price bump. Ignoring how the rotation went last game, I'd expect to see Beasley back into the mid-to-high 20s in minutes tonight.

Could very well play another 40 minutes tonight, especially with Amen Thompson out of the lineup. The price bump here isn't awful and honestly, he's more than capable of giving us the 25 fantasy points we need here.

When Jimmy Butler is active and on the floor we don't really see him limited at all. He gets on the floor and plays his 30+ minutes with unpredictable levels of production. We've seen him go for 80 fantasy points and we've seen him go for 20 fantasy points. He is fine for a GPP.

Always a GPP darling of ours. Hart triple-doubled agaisnt the Wizards the other night, scoring 66 fantasy points. He has at least a double-double in four straight games. He just does not come off the floor, playing 41 minutes in their 20 point win over the Wizards the other night.

While a lot of focus goes to Maxey in these spots without Joel Embiid, George himself is averaging 1.18 FP/Min without Embiid on the floor with a 26.8% usage rate. This is a fair price in what could be a ceiling spot for PG tonight.

The Heat's defense isn't what it use to be and Murphy has been a flamethrower this season, as expected. Even in losses he is playing big minutes and taking a lot of shots.

The Raptors could actually have their core unit tonight with Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quckley potentially all on the floor tonight. What that means for Cameron Johnson and the Nets is that they need scoring and Johnson is going to be seeing a lot of shooting opportunities go his way.

One of my favorite players whenever he is on the slate. The $6,100 price tag on FanDuel is more than fair for a guy who at least 20 actual points in 12 of the last 15 games.  If he can chip in a few rebounds and defensive stats then a 6x night is well within reach.

The rookie is getting the opportunity to shoot the basketball and in three of the last four games he has come through big time for the Magic, scoring 18, 18 and 21 points while playing 34, 38 an 35 minutes. No reason to think that will not be the case here tonight against the Pistons.

Good value here, especially with Joel Embiid out of the lineup. He is already starting and playing heavy minutes but the shot attempts could be there against the Kings without Embiid on the floor.

If you've tuned into any of our shows this season you hear us talk about how nobody ever plays Jalen Johnson and that is once again true tonight with his ownership hovering just above 10%. He has triple-double potential and with the Nuggets playing a smaller lineup he he has a pretty good matchup on both ends of the floor.

I don't really love the price but no Luka Doncic and no Naji Marshall tonight for the Mavericks. Washington has some decent rebounding upside and if the three-point shot can drop we've seen him put up some big fantasy numbers.

I really like this play if Tari Eason ends up being ruled out. If Eason plays it likely cuts into his minutes a bit but this is a good matchup for Jabari given the Mavericks struggles defensively at times against opposing front courts. 

With Joel Embiid ruled out he is set to be the backup center tonight but Andre Drummond is also questionable. If Drummond sits out then Yabu likely starts and makes for a nice value play tonight.

I've been touting Williams for a few slates now and the numbers are there. We like the shot attempts and the minutes bumped up over 30 last game. The Wizards are a poor defensive team and on a slate with little value, he is among my favorites.

Listen, we can have this conversation as many times as you want. Yes,  $12,800 is expensive BUT the reason for that price tag is because Jokic in 6 of the last 11 games he has gone for 70+ fantasy points which includes three games of 80+ fantasy points. One of those 80+ fantasy point games came against this Hawks team which saw him score 48 points with 14 rebounds and eight assists. Nobody else on this slate can do that. So, if you want to take your medicine and know that for 5x we need to get 64 fantasy points but he can definitely do that in a game with a 247.5 game total.

Towns is the easy pivot down tonight. He's going to play 30+ minutes as log as he stays out of foul trouble and can give us a 30+ points double-double in this matchup against the Utah Jazz.

Sengun is one of my favorites on the slate here tonight, but again, the DK price bump is a bit of a killer. The matchup against Dallas is really good here and Sengun can likely get whatever he wants, especially if Dereck Lively ends up being ruled out.

Super safe play. The minutes are strong and he continues to be a productive double-double player for the Magic. Good cash game play, just wish he was like $500-$100 less expensive.

Drummond would be in line to start tonight for the 76ers assuming he is able to go as he is questionable to play tonight. Mid-tier option at center if he goes.

Fantasy point per minute freak. With nobody out of the lineup, just Valanciunas on the floor this season he has a 24.6% usage rate with a team high 1.36 FP/Min. If Jordan Poole sits that usage rate jumps to 27.8%. He's only going to play 20 minutes, we hope, but boy can he do some damage in those 20 minutes against the Bulls tonight.

Capela and Okongwu are essentially the same price tag. The last time the Hawks played the Nuggets we saw Capela nearly double-double in 19 minutes while Larry Nance actually saw more playing time. Okongwu came back the other night against the Raptors and had 28.8 fantasy points in 18 minutes. This is likely a timeshare situation for both.

Much like Valanciunas, Smith is a fantasy point per minute beast. He may only see 15-to-17 minutes on the floor tonight but against the Wizards that could be 20-to-25 fantasy points.