Friday brings a staggered seven-game set, tipping off at 7:00 p.m. ET on DraftKings and FanDuel. The player pool is packed full of exciting options, making this the ideal slate to spotlight the top NBA DFS building blocks and today’s must-have NBA DFS picks. Let’s dive into the day’s core plays, including discount dandies like Kristaps Porzingis and Nikola Jokic, plus plenty of Wizards on the cheap.
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NBA DFS Picks & Building Blocks Today: Saturday, Dec. 7
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NBA DFS Picks Today: Building Blocks
Kristaps Porzingis: Celtics vs. Grizzlies
NBA DFS Projections
DraftKings: 36.09 | FanDuel: 36.59
NBA DFS Ownership Projections
DraftKings: 5.8% | FanDuel: 13.3%
DFS Salary
DraftKings: $7,500 | FanDuel: $8,100
This is an off-the-board recommendation, particularly with so many discount dandies in the player pool, readily facilitating the coveted stars and scrubs build.
Kristaps Porzingis has been eased back after missing the end of the postseason last year, ramping up his minutes in the four games since his return. He did not play yesterday and we should not expect to see him on any back-to-backs this season, but the 26.6 minutes, increasing to 25.2, 32.0 and 29.4 is a great trend.
Expectations are that Al Horford will be resting, after logging 36 minutes last night in a 111-105 victory against Milwaukee, that saw the Celtics needing to outscore the Bucks by 10 in the fourth quarter to secure the victory in front of the Boston faithful. Coach Joe Mazzulla ran a tight eight-man rotation, with Payton Pritchard (24 minutes), Sam Hauser (24) and Neemias Queta (12) the only reserves to see the court. Jru Holiday (knee) played 34.1 minutes after missing two games, while Jayson Tatum and Derrick White led the way with 37 minutes, with Jaylen Brown rounding out the first five with 34 minutes.
Boston is now one game behind the Cleveland Cavaliers for the best record in the NBA. The matchup tonight should be a good one, with Memphis running hot with eight wins in the last 10 games. The Grizzlies have lost a little depth with rookie Zach Edey and veteran Luke Kennard both out with injuries. Marcus Smart (ankle) missed both games against his former team last year with injuries, but it is hard to see him missing this game, even though he is banged up. That adds another fun element, though it is less impactful for DFS.
Back to Porzingis, he will be going against Brandon Clarke and former Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr. This is to point out that while this is not a bunny, it is not a horrible matchup either, with Porzingis having fresh legs. He is going to get lost in the shuffle as gamers work to load up on the likes of Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. That makes him interesting for the featured-slate tournaments, while also putting him as a borderline core option for the two-game nightcap.
Nikola Jokic: Nuggets at Wizards
NBA DFS Projections
DraftKings: 69.75 | FanDuel: 67.12
NBA DFS Ownership Projections
DraftKings: 52.1% | FanDuel: 33.7%
DFS Salary
DraftKings: $12,100 | FanDuel: $12,400
Washington is the worst team in the league, having managed only two victories. The Wizards have lost their last 16 games and will be without Kyle Kuzma, Corey Kispert, rookie Kyshawn George and oft-injured combo guard Malcolm Brogdon.
This has Denver installed as 14.5-point road favorites, even with Jamal Murray questionable with a tender hamstring.
Tonight would be the perfect time to give Murray a break, while letting Joker run wild. Especially with the Nuggets playing again tomorrow in Atlanta.
Jokic currently leads the league with 13.4 rebounds per game, while scoring a personal-best 29.9 points per game which ranks third, but wait … there’s more … the Serbian also is handing out a career-high 10.4 helpers per game, trailing only Trae Young (12.3).
Using Jokic as a core building block is a savvy strategy, since he also has nearly a 10-fantasy point edge over Doncic and 15 fantasy points on Gilgeous-Alexander, when comparing median projections. For what it is worth, the Stokastic NBA DFS Projections currently have Murray in for his typical 34.2 minutes.
In a bit of trivia, Russell Westbrook is the all-time triple-double leader for the Wizards, logging an absurd 38 in just 65 games back in the 2020-2021 season, when he also led the league in assists. The next five players on the Washington career triple-double list are Darrel Walker (15), John Wall (7), Wes Unseld (7), Chris Webber (6) and Jeff Ruland (5), who combined have reached the statistical milestone two more times than Westbrook by himself. The fans still love Westbrook and while that should not have any impact on tonight’s game, there is a chance he could see some extended run in mop-up duty.
Aaron Gordon moved back into the starting lineup, after two games off the bench. The 29-year-old missed 10 games with a calf injury, but he has looked good in two starts. If he is not with the first five, be wary, since he too could be saved for Sunday’s matchup in Atlanta. If Murray is out and Gordon in, then consider his 33.6 minutes, 16.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists as attainable targets in this matchup, even if he sees 28-to-30 minutes.
It will be interesting to see who starts for Washington tonight. On Thursday, Marvin Bagley III drew a start against Dallas, slotting in alongside rookie Alex Sarr. The NBA vagabond had 30 fantasy points in 24.3 minutes, but that was nearly as many minutes as he had seen in his last seven appearances combined off the bench. Jonas Valanciunas had started the two preceding games, getting 30.8 and 18.9 minutes. Going with his size against Jokic will help take some of the burden off of Sarr.
Tune in to the Stokastic NBA Live Before Lock Show today at 6:00 p.m. ET on YouTube for all of the updated analysis and recommendation, once lineups have been announced.
Turning the attention to the Wizards, they are providing strong fantasy point per dollar options, but there is risk as lineups and playing time have been fluid all season. Jordan Poole, Bilal Coulibaly, Carlton “Lil’ Bub” Carrington III, Jared Butler, Sarr and Justin Champagnie are all worthy of being sprinkled across lineups.
Today’s Top Sports Betting Pick
Ja Morant is a dynamic player, but we can look to the under on his 1.5 made 3-point shots prop
Looking at the screen shot of Portfolio EV, we can see this wager is likely to come to fruition 42% of the time, though with the +155 odds, this works out to a nifty 6.5% expected ROI, when factoring in the +139 “True Odds” assessment.
BetRivers, SugarHouse and Unibet are offering the +155 line, which, which far exceeds the “True Odds” of +139 and the +120 or worse of most other books.
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Stokastic’s Advanced NBA Statistical Projections have Barnes projected for 28.9 minutes and 1.25 successful 3-point attempts. Of course there are no partial buckets, so he will need to drain two for the under to lose. In his last four healthy games, Morant has averaged 28.7 minutes with 5.8 attempts from downtown, converting on 21.7% for 1.3 on average. Boston is a tough matchup, and the C’s are allowing opponents to attempt just 35.3 3-pointers per game, which is the fourth-lowest mark in the league. Memphis is in the middle of the pack with 37.3 attempts and Morant is fifth on the team with 4.4 attempts per game this season.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS Picks & Building Blocks Today
Don’t miss a beat on tonight’s NBA action! Join the Stokastic NBA Live Before Lock Show today at 6:00 p.m. ET on YouTube. Get expert breakdowns, sharp insights and all the analysis you need to crush tonight’s NBA DFS slate!
