NBA DFS Picks, Projections, Lineups, Injuries & More Today: Sunday Playbook
Published: Apr 20, 2025
NBA Playoffs continue on Easter Sunday as the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics kick off their series against the Orlando Magic as 13.5-point home favorites.
This Sunday slate also includes exciting playoff matchups between the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder, Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers and finishes off with the Golden State Warriors vs the Houston Rockets.
Be sure to join us in Discord for all the news leading up to roster lock. Let's get into some of the top plays and best pivots for this smaller slate.
Before actually diving into the meat and potatoes, welcome to the NBA DFS season. If this is your first time reading our column on NBA DFS picks, I just want to welcome you and give you a few tips and tricks on what you should be looking for each night.
- News outlets: reliable sources that give us injury news & starting lineups
- Pace of play: who's playing fast vs. who's playing slow. Which teams get a pace-up spot (more possessions) vs. pace-down (fewer possessions)
- Usage rates: is a percentage of how many plays that player is being used in
- NBA DFS Projections
- Lineup Generator
- NBA Ownership
NBA DFS Picks & Daily Fantasy Playbook Today, April 20th
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NBA Injuries, News & Updates Today, 4/20
- No notable injury designations.
NBA DFS Slate & Game Overviews
In the section below, I’m listing the most notable things we need to look at in Las Vegas, including notable O/U and spreads. Not every game is listed, but every game listed has the pace and defensive numbers listed.
Memphis Grizzlies vs Oklahoma City Thunder
- Spread: Thunder -13.5
- Total: 230
Orlando Magic vs Boston Celtics
- Spread: Celtics -13.5
- Total: 205.5
Miami Heat vs Cleveland Cavaliers
- Spread: Cavaliers -12.5
- Total: 215.5
Golden State Warriors vs Houston Rockets
- Spread: Rockets -1
- Total: 213
NBA DFS Core Player Pool & Lineup Picks
It's the NBA playoffs. Teams are going to go with shortened rotations and the starters should all be set to play above their seasonal averages here for the next few months. When it comes top plays, the stars are always going to shine while value may be a bit harder to come back knowing that the minutes some of these guys may have gotten during the regular season won't necessarily be there with the playoffs.
High
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, PG Oklahoma City Thunder
SGA played a ton of minutes during the regular season but now we should see him consistently pushing 40 minutes with the playoffs here. Yes, they are big favorites today, at home, against the Memphis Grizzlies but I doubt that stops SGA from being one of the top, if not the top scoring player today. In four games against the Grizzlies this season he averaged 57 DK points over 32 minutes a game. You bump that to 40 minutes and we might be looking at a 70 FP play.
Jayson Tatum, PF Boston Celtics
The Celtics are one of the most complete teams in the NBA so it's not often we see Jayson Tatum truly reach his ceiling when it comes to fantasy production, especially during the regular season as Boston plays a deeper rotation and Tatum isn't shy about letting others score the basketball.
We are now in playoff time however and Jaylen Brown is not playing at 100%. The Magic are a good defensive team that play at a slow pace but in the one game Tatum played against the Magic this season he dropped 30 points.
Expecting him to play close to 40 minutes today, while leading the team in shots while also proving to be an elite playmaker should put him on everyone's radar here today.
Other Notable: Stephen Curry, Alperen Sengun
Mid
Donovan Mitchell, SG Cleveland Cavaliers
Let's be clear, Mitchell should be priced higher than he is here. When it's go time and the 40 minutes are going to be there he can be as productive as anyone on this slate with his ability to score the basketball and also contribute with steals and assists.
Yes, he's going to draw Davion Mitchell who is a solid defensive player but there is going to be a lot of switching in this game and the Cavs are going to get Donovan in spots to be productive.
Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder, SF
Again, we should be seeing a full 40-minutes out of Jalen Williams here today and in his four games against the Grizzlies this season he averaged over 40 fantasy points per game.
Sure, Chet Holmgren is going to get his fantasy points as will SGA, but Williams is the number-two option in this offense in my opinion and when he's on the floor and SGA is off the floor, he has a major usage bump.
Kristaps Porzingis, Boston Celtics
It's unicorn season in Boston. The Celtics have managed Porzingis playing time and minutes off and on this year in an effort to get him to the playoffs as healthy as possible and we've made it to Game 1 of the playoffs and he is 100% ready to go.
Porzingis is definitely capable of playing 40 minutes, we saw him play 39 minutes against the Knicks a few games before the season ended and he went for 50 fantasy points.
The pace of this game is slow, and the Magic are good defensively, but few teams have an answer for a 7-footer that knocks down 30-foot three-pointers with ease and that can rack up the defensive stats like he can.
Other Notable: Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, Amen Thompson, Derrick White, Andrew Wiggins
Value
Jalen Green, SG Houston Rockets
The Rockets rested their players over the final few games of the season, so don't be too concerned bout the lack of playing time that Green got over the final three games of the year. It's playoff season, we are getting Jalen Green as a cheap play knowing he's going to play a good amount of minutes here today in the most competitive matchup on the board with the Rockets just a one-point favorite against the Golden State Warriors here today.
Davion Mitchell, Miami Heat
We've talked about this alot this season but we never projected to see this kind of offensive production out of Davion Mitchell.
We never saw it when he was with the Kings or the Raptors when given opportunities to start but Erik Spoelstra once again turns water into wine and now he not only has a great defensive point guard in Mitchell but one that is also shooting the ball well.
Mitchell is going to play 40+ minutes in this game as he defends Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell.
Santi Aldama, PF Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies are still running Aldama out there for close to 30 minutes and his size should play well against this Thunder team along with his ability to stretch the floor. The issue is going to be his defense with Aldama really struggling on that end of the floor but if Memphis is going to stay competitive here, they need offense from Aldama and company to come through.
Other Notable: Jrue Holiday, Brandin Podziemski, Scotty Pippen Jr., Al Horford, Dillon Brooks
Player Pool
Player News
Buddy Hield had 15 points (5-of-14 FGs), three rebounds, one assist, one steal and four three-pointers against the Timberwolves in Game 2 on Thursday.
Hield moved into the Warriors’ starting lineup in the first round and the team became somewhat reliant on his scoring. With Stephen Curry (hamstring) out in Game 2, Hield started and played 29 minutes. The 32-year-old shooting guard led the Warriors in field goal attempts, though no one in a Golden State uniform was able to reach 20 points. The Warriors weren’t able to overcome a double-digit first half deficit. Despite the four made three-pointers, they’re going to need more from Hield as the series shifts to Golden State, especially if Curry remains out.
Jimmy Butler had 17 points (6-of-13 FGs), seven rebounds, four assists, one steal and two three-pointers against the Timberwolves in Game 2 on Thursday.
Butler couldn’t get it done without Stephen Curry (hamstring) on the road in Game 2. The Warriors fell behind by double-digits early and never recovered. Butler had 17 points on 13 shots, which wasn’t far off from the 20 points he had in Game 1. Still, the Warriors have to regroup as they head home for Games 3 and 4 as they try to figure out a way to keep this series close until Curry can return to the court.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 20 points (7-of-13 FGs), two rebounds, three assists, one block and four three-pointers in Game 2 against the Warriors on Thursday.
Alexander-Walker was a key scorer off the bench in Game 2. He, Naz Reid and Donte DiVencenzo combined for 10 made three-pointers off the bench. In a game where the Warriors were desperate for scoring without Stephen Curry (hamstring), those bench points were too much to overcome as the Timberwolves won by 24 points.
Julius Randle had 24 points (10-of-17 FGs), seven rebounds, 11 assists and one three-pointer in Game 2 against the Warriors on Thursday.
Randle led the Timberwolves in scoring in the Game 2 victory. The 30-year-old power forward was just three rebounds away from a triple-double. He was a steadying presence in his 33 minutes as Anthony Edwards dealt with an ankle injury towards the end of the first half. Edwards recovered from his injury to play 34 minutes, but Randle is still the next most important player in this series for the Timberwolves.
Anthony Edwards had 20 points (6-of-13 FGs), nine rebounds, five assists, three steals, one block and two three-pointers in the Timberwolves’ 117-93 victory over the Warriors in Game 2 on Thursday.
Edwards appeared to suffer a sprained left ankle towards the end of the second quarter as the Warriors’ Trayce Jackson-Davis landed on his foot. Edwards turned the same ankle in the first round against the Lakers and appeared to re-aggravate the injury. The 23-year-old shooting guard would go on to start the second half and play a team-high 34 minutes in the Game 2 victory. Edwards will only have one full day off before the series resumes in Golden State for Game 3 on Saturday.
Warriors will start Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield, Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green and Quinten Post in Game 2 against the Timberwolves on Thursday.
No surprise here as Curry was always a long shot to make it back for Game 2 after leaving Game 1 with hamstring injury. While there has been a report that the 37-year-old point guard is expected to miss a week, there is no firm timetable for his return. The Warriors will go big with their starting lineup for Game 2 with center Quinten Post entering the lineup in Curry’s absence.