Friday brings some regular season action with the fun 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 Nikola Jokic and Anthony Davis, along with others on this eight-game slate.
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NBA DFS Picks & Building Blocks Today: Friday, Dec. 13
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NBA DFS Picks Today: Building Blocks
Anthony Davis: Lakers at Timberwolves
NBA DFS Projections
DraftKings: 60.04 | FanDuel: 60.24
NBA DFS Ownership Projections
DraftKings: 42.3% | FanDuel: 66.2%
DFS Salary
DraftKings: $11,000 | FanDuel: $11,100
LeBron James is out with a foot issue, which means Anthony Davis is going to be a very popular play on Friday. Since the start of last season, Davis has averaged around 1.44 fantasy points per minute alongside James. When LeBron is out, The Brow jumps to 1.57 fantasy points per minute, which is nearly a 10% increase in his efficiency.
Minnesota has been outstanding on defense this season, and over the last 10 games, the Timberwolves lead the league with just 104.7 points allowed per 100 possessions. However, we should not be that worried since Davis averaged 36.7 minutes, 30.7 points, 14.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 4.3 combined blocks and steals for 64 FanDuel points per game over the last seven games against the T-wolves where he played at least 30 minutes.
Anthony Edwards is an interesting countermove, as he has been crushing this season. In his last 14 games, excluding a 28-point victory against the Lakers and a 29 pointer against the Clippers, Edwards averaged 37.5 minutes, 28.0 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 2.2 combined blocks and steals. Edwards is projected to be on around 20% of all FanDuel ($9,000) lineups, though that slips to just under 15% on DraftKings ($9,200), despite four fewer teams in the player pool.
D’Angelo Russell is also expected to be popular, even if Austin Reaves (pelvis) is able to return from a five-game absence. The team will need him to help fill in the scoring void James leaves, which, of course, is Russell’s forte. This also gives new life to rookie Dalton Knecht, who has tallied double-digit points only once (14) in the last five games.
Wrapping up this game, Jaden McDaniels looks solid on both DraftKings and FanDuel, though there are likely to be better point-per-dollar options that replace him as more news comes out throughout the day. Naz Reid looks good on DraftKings ($4,600), but he is an afterthought on FanDuel ($5,500).
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Nikola Jokic: Nuggets vs. Clippers
NBA DFS Projections
DraftKings: 67.03 | FanDuel: 64.52
NBA DFS Ownership Projections
DraftKings: 36.5% | FanDuel: 11.8%
DFS Salary
DraftKings: $12,500 | FanDuel: $12,800
It has been a minute since Nikola Jokic was a featured player in this article series, so let’s see what he has been up to … oh, just back-to-back 80-plus-fantasy point games and 70-plus in the last four.
Jamal Murray has missed the last two games with a sore hamstring, and he is questionable for tonight.
The Nuggets do not play again until Monday, so they may elect to play it safe with Murray. If he is a go, expect him to be back to relative full health. Denver is 5-7 in the last 12 games, including an embarrassing loss in Washington. The team is 3.5 games out of third place, but in the tight Western Conference, it is currently slotted for the Play-In Tournament. The Clippers are half a game in front of the Nuggets, so this would be a nice win for either team.
If Murray is in, nobody aside from Jokic is particularly appealing. If he is out again, then Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. should see more offensive opportunities and Russell Westbrook will push for 30 minutes of run.
Norman Powell ($6,200) and Kevin Porter Jr. ($4,200) are each projecting to be on around one-third of all DraftKings lineups and one-in-five on the blue site at $6,700 and $5,000, respectively. James Harden is best left for the evening sub-slate, though he is expected to be a full-go after missing the last game with a groin strain.
Today’s Top Sports Betting Pick
John Collins looks like someone to target for the under on his 8.5 rebounds prop tonight.
Looking at the screenshot of Portfolio EV, we can see this wager is likely to come to fruition 55% of the time, and with the -115 odds, this works out to a solid 3.4% expected ROI when factoring in the -124 “True Odds.”
BetRivers, SugarHouse and Unibet are offering the -115 line, which far exceeds the True Odds of -124 and the -134 or worse of most other books.
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Stokastic’s Advanced NBA Statistical Projections have Collins projected for 29.9 minutes and 7.85 rebounds. That is below the median line of 8.5, but this wager is far from a slam dunk. The other helpful conditions — which, of course, are already baked into the math — include the health of Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler (giving Collins to strong rebounding teammates to contend with) and Phoenix being an above-average rebounding team.
Final Thoughts on NBA DFS Picks & Building Blocks Today
Stay ahead of the game with tonight’s NBA action! Tune in to the Stokastic NBA Live Before Lock Show at 5:00 p.m. ET on YouTube for expert breakdowns, sharp insights, and everything you need to dominate tonight’s NBA DFS slate!
