NBA Picks At Sleeper Fantasy Today, 1/1: Basketball Projections + More
The opportunities to gloss over fantasy basketball projections and bring home some cold hard cash are endless on Wednesday, January 1st. Gain an edge with our NBA Sleeper Fantasy Picks.
Let’s dive into some of our favorite NBA Sleeper Fantasy Picks including Goga Bitadze of the Orlando Magic and Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks.
NBA DFS Sleeper Fantasy Picks, Wednesday, 1/1: Fantasy Basketball Projections
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Goga Bitadze Sleeper Fantasy NBA Pick: More Than 0.5 Dbl-Dbl (1.8x)
The Magic have been, well, a trainwreck in terms of injuries but they’ve had some guys step up in MAJOR ways to be in the position they’re in and that includes Goga Bitadze. Bitadze has rattled off three straight double-doubles and five in his last six games. The one game in which he didn’t? He had eight points and nine rebounds in 21 minutes before being ejected.
With Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, and Moritz Wagner off the floor, Bitadze sees his rebound percentage rise 3.5% up to 24.6%, seven percent higher than anyone else, while averaging nearly 17 PPG per 36 minutes. Lock this one in and throw away the key, it’s one of the best NBA Sleeper Fantasy Picks of the day at a 1.8x multiplier.
Jalen Brunson Sleeper Fantasy NBA Pick: More Than 25.5 Points (1.7x)
I know he’s listed as questionable, but he’s also been listed this way for two consecutive games and has played through this calf tightness. He didn’t shoot the ball well last game going 6-for-17 but has another very favorable matchup against the Utah Jazz who rank dead last in defensive rating.
Brunson’s team-leading 29.9% USG is amongst the best in the league and has cleared this mark in two of three games. Utah is going to have a very tough time keeping Brunson in front of them in this spot.
Multiplier: 3.4x
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Player News
Kristaps Porzingis (illness) said after Wednesday’s Game 2 loss to the Knicks that his current stamina issues may be related to the problem that sidelined him for eight games late in the regular season.
After an illness limited him to 13 first-half minutes in Boston’s series-opening defeat on Monday, Porzingis came off the bench in Game 2. Unfortunately, he could only give the Celtics 14 minutes. Following the game, Porzingis said his current problem may be related to the upper respiratory ailment that sidelined him for eight games late in the regular season. “Probably, probably,” Porzingis said. “I’ve had like ups and downs throughout until this point. Just now, had a big crash. Now, my energy, my everything, hasn’t been good, but who cares? Have to move forward and it will get better from this point.” While Boston’s shot selection was the focus following its two home defeats, Porzingis’ limited availability has also been a factor. He’ll hope to return to full health in time for Game 3 on Saturday afternoon.
Nikola Jokic finished with 17 points (6-of-16 FGs), eight rebounds, six assists, one steal, one block, two three-pointers and six turnovers in Game 2 against the Thunder on Wednesday.
This was Jokic’s worst performance of the postseason, and it came to an end in the third quarter. He fouled out with 1:17 left in the third, which brought his night to a close after he played 32 minutes. OKC was up 41 points when Jokic fouled out, so his night may have been close to over anyway. Jokic dominated Game 1, and the Thunder adjusted. Denver will need other players to step up if they want to have a chance of winning this series, but Jokic will also need to be better than he was in this game.
Michael Porter Jr. struggled on Wednesday and finished with just eight points (2-of-10 FGs), five rebounds, one steal and two three-pointers in Game 2 against the Thunder.
MPJ was slightly better in the second half, as all eight of his points came in the third quarter. However, the game was already out of hand at that point after a terrible first half for both Porter Jr. and the Nuggets. MPJ shot 1-of-8 in Game 1, and they’ll need him to be much better moving forward. The series will now shift back to Denver, and MPJ will look to get back on track during the two home games before the series heads back to Oklahoma City.
Russell Westbrook provided a boost off the bench with 19 points (5-of-11 FGs, 8-of-10 FTs), one rebound, five assists and one three-pointer in a 149-106 loss to the Thunder in Game 2 on Wednesday.
Despite an ugly first half for Denver, Westbrook was productive and entered the break with 15 points. He didn’t add much in the second half, though he sat the entire fourth quarter, still it was enough to lead the Nuggets in scoring. Russ has been awesome over Denver’s last five games, and his continued success will be key to the Nuggets winning this series. Though this game was ugly, they still have homecourt advantage in this series. They’ll look to keep it in Game 3 on Friday.
Chet Holmgren recorded a double-double on Wednesday with 15 points (3-of-8 FGs, 7-of-7 FTs), 11 rebounds, two assists, two steals, two blocks and two three-pointers in Game 2 against the Nuggets.
After struggling in Game 1, Holmgren bounced back and recorded the fourth postseason triple-double of his career, with three of those coming this season. Aside from Game 3 against Memphis, Holmgren has swatted at least two shots in every game during these playoffs, which was a trend that continued in this game despite him only playing 26 minutes. Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein (14/8/5/1/1) will look to continue to limit Nikola Jokic (17 points) in Game 3 on Friday.
Jalen Williams bounced back on Wednesday with 17 points (6-of-11 FGs), four rebounds, seven assists and two blocks in Game 2 against the Nuggets.
Williams was criticized for his poor performance in the Thunder’s Game 1 loss, but he responded well in OKC’s blowout victory. He was on pace for a bigger night, but he only played 26 minutes and sat the entire fourth quarter due to the lopsided score. He shot the ball much better after shooting 5-of-20 in Game 1, and he’ll need that success to carry over into Game 3 in Denver on Friday.