The NBA begins to settle into the home stretch of the season with the trade deadline and All-Star break now in the rearview mirror. There are under 30 games remaining for each NBA team and the standings have begun to settle in. Opportunities remain ahead for the teams with plenty to prove in the home stretch of the season and there are nine games set to take place tonight.
Headlining the night, the Cleveland Cavaliers will host the New York Knicks while the Memphis Grizzlies take on the Orlando Magic. The Milwaukee Bucks and Washington Wizards will also play for the lone other game in the 7:00 p.m. ET window. Then, the Miami Heat will play the Toronto Raptors and the New Orleans Pelicans will travel to face the Dallas Mavericks.
In the late window, the Oklahoma City Thunder will play the Utah Jazz while the Houston Rockets face the Minnesota Timberwolves. Both of these games will be tipping off at 9:30 p.m. ET before the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings play the final game of the matchup at 10:00 p.m. ET with both teams seeing a significant shakeup at the trade deadline.
There are plenty of opportunities to get involved in the action this evening. One of the more unique features on DraftKings this year is Pick6 Fantasy Basketball!
This article will look at my top Pick6 plays for the lone Feb. 21st matchup between the Lakers and Hornets. We simply choose whether a player will record more or less of the set statistic. Here are my six favorite plays for Friday night’s action.
Carlton ‘Bub’ Carrington Less Than 1.5 Made Three-Pointers
The Washington Wizards and Milwaukee Bucks will face off in one of the opening games of tonight’s slate. Washington will be searching for their 10th win of the season and continue to hold the worst record in the league. They also rank 27th in scoring and 29th in three-point percentage as a team. Bub Carrington has been one of the young members of the team free to play through his mistakes and is averaging 9.1 points per game this season. He has been a bright spot from the perimeter connecting on 35.6% of his three-point shots on 4.7 attempts per game.
Milwaukee is holding opponents to the ninth-worst three-point percentage this season. While Carrington has connected on as many as five three-pointers in a game, he has been held to less than 1.5 made three-pointers in 29 of the 54 games he has played. He has shot a combined 2-for-5 on three-point attempts in the two matchups with the Bucks thus far. Carrington connected on just one three-pointer in each of these games and has not scored more than seven points in either.
The Bucks sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference but have plenty of pressure on them to compete this season. They still have several areas they must grow, and expect a focused effort defensively over the final stretch of the season. Carrington will continue to see plenty of opportunity on the floor, but he has failed to have success against this Bucks team and has been a streaky shooter all year. Look for him to be held to less than 1.5 perimeter makes for the third time against the Bucks this season as attention continues to be closer paid to the team’s lottery odds.
Immanuel Quickley More Than 15.5 Points
The Toronto Raptors will host the Miami Heat tonight in their first game back from the All-Star break. Both of these teams made some notable changes at the trade deadline with Toronto taking a surprising chance on Brandon Ingram and signing an immediate extension. The Raptors still sit in 13th place in the Eastern Conference and have mild expectations for the remainder of the season. Their biggest priority is to continue evaluating which players will be a part of their long-term core with Immanuel Quickley being a key part of this equation.
It has been a frustrating season for Quickley who has been limited to just 16 games this season due to injury. The Kentucky product is averaging 15.3 points per game across this stretch but has only recorded more than 15.5 points six times this season. He showed some encouraging signs leading up to the All-Star break producing scoring outputs of 25, 20, and 15 in his final three games. With additional rest under his belt and a favorable matchup against this Heat team, expect a strong scoring output tonight.
The Heat have built an organizational identity as a defensive-minded team, but simply have fallen short in this category this year. Over their past 10 games, opposing starting point guards are producing 23.1 points per game against the Heat which is the fourth-worst rate in the NBA. Quickley has connected at a 50.5% rate from the field over his past 10 games, which is well above his season average of 42.2%. Expect his best basketball to be played this season to be yet to come and for this to start with a strong effort against the Heat tonight. Look for him to be in attack mode coming out of the All-Star break and record more than 15.5 points for the seventh time this season.
Dante Exum More Than 14.5 Points & Assists
The Dallas Mavericks continue to navigate the fallout brought on by the decision to trade away Luka Doncic ahead of the trade deadline. The optics worsened with Anthony Davis returning to the injured list and being set to miss a few weeks. One positive injury news that was received was the return of Dante Exum. He battled a wrist issue for the entire first portion of the season and tonight is set to be just his eighth game of the year.
Dallas desperately needs the skill set that Exum can provide and he has flashed these abilities over his first few games. Over the 19.7 minutes per game he has played, Exum is averaging 11.7 points and 3.7 assists. He has recorded more than 14.5 combined points and assists in four of the seven games thus far and had his best performance in the final matchup before the All-Star break in which he finished with 27 points and four assists.
The Mavericks have a favorable matchup tonight against the New Orleans Pelicans who have seen their season almost entirely derailed due to injuries. The Pelicans have played at an increased pace in recent games, ranking second in the NBA in pace over the past five games. This should increase the number of offensive opportunities for Exum and the Mavericks. The Australia native most recently logged 24:08 of game time in the final matchup before the break and expect the level of opportunity to continue looking similar to this. Dallas desperately needs another offensive creator to take some pressure off of Kyrie Irving and Exum is more than capable of filling these shoes. Look for him to record more than 14.5 combined points and assists for the fifth time this season.
Karl-Anthony Towns Less Than 13.5 Rebounds
The New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers will face off tonight in a battle of Eastern Conference threats with their sights on dethroning the Boston Celtics. The Knicks made a splash this summer trading for Karl-Anthony Towns as a key part of this vision. Towns has been everything to organization hoped for and is averaging 24.9 points, 13.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game this season. This is a career-best rebounding output for the five-time All-Star, but he still has been held to less than 13.5 rebounds in 27 of the 50 games he has played.
He will prepare to square off with the twin towers of Jarrett Allen who combined for 33 rebounds between the two of them just last night. Cleveland ranks 12th in the league in total rebounding and 13th in opponents rebounds allowed although these numbers are a bit diluted due to the number of blowout victories Cleveland has produced. This will be just the second matchup between these two teams this season with Towns being held to 10 rebounds in the first game.
Towns will still surely make his impact felt in this game, but expect a strong focus on keeping him off the boards especially with Josh Hart remaining out. 13.5 is a high bar to reach for rebounds and expect the length of Allen and Mobley to prevent Towns from reaching this O/U tonight. Count on there still being a solid performance from Towns but for him to be held to less than 13.5 rebounds for the 28th time this season and the second time against the Cavaliers.
Domantas Sabonis More Than 36.5 Points, Rebounds & Assists
The final matchup of tonight’s NBA slate will be between the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors. Domantas Sabonis has emerged as the central offensive engine of the Kings after De’Aaron Fox was traded to the Spurs ahead of the deadline. Sabonis missed out on his fourth All-Star appearance this season but is still averaging 20.4 points, an NBA-best 14.6 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game.
Sabonis is one of the higher-usage players in the NBA, logging 36.1 minutes per game and recording 77.9 touches per game. He trails only Nikola Jokic for the most post touches in the league. Expect the Kings’ offense to lean further into this with off-ball motion surrounding Sabonis. He has tallied more than 36.5 combined points, rebounds, and assists in 38 of the 52 games he has played this season. This includes both the previous matchups against the Warriors in which Sabinis has finished with outputs of 42 and 47 combined points, rebounds, and assists.
Golden State has flashed its defensive capabilities for stretches, but it is still difficult to project their full outlook. This is especially the case following the Jimmy Butler addition. Expect Sabonis to be at the center of their attack and to be especially active in rebounding the basketball and finding cutters surrounding him. He finds ways to impact the game every night and expect him to record more than 36.5 combined points, rebounds, and assists for the 39th time this season and the third time against the Warriors.
Jaren Jackson Jr More Than 1.5 Blocks
The Defensive Player of the Year race is now open for the taking following the disappointing news that Victor Wembanyama will be shut down for the remainder of the season. Jaren Jackson Jr will be a name at the forefront of the discussion and he has a chance to polish his resume down the home stretch of the season. So far this year the Michigan State product is averaging 22.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.6 blocks per game. While this a career-high output in steals, Jackson Jr has led the NBA in blocks twice already and averaged as many as 3.0 blocks per game throughout a season.
Memphis is set to face off with the Orlando Magic tonight who are the worst three-point shooting team in the NBA. They depend on attacking the paint often for their offensive production which will pave the opportunity for Jackson Jr to make his impact felt as a rim protector. He has recorded as many as six blocks in a game this season and recorded more than 1.5 blocks in 25 of the 53 games he has played. This includes a strong stretch leading up to the All-Star break in which he reached this number in four of the final six games.
The addition of Zach Edey has taken some defensive responsibility off of Jackson Jr which allows him to roam more freely as a shot blocker. Expect a focused effort on protecting the rim tonight with 44.0% of Orlando’s scoring production occurring inside the paint. Expect some Defensive Player of the Year level effort from Jackson Jr tonight with fresh legs coming out of the All-Star break and for him to block more than 1.5 shots tonight.
What is DraftKings Pick6?
Pick6 is a peer-to-peer fantasy variant where you build a lineup (your “Pick Set”) of at least two players and select whether you believe each will outperform their listed stat projection. Enter your Pick Set in Pick6 contests to compete against other users. Get enough picks correct and win a share of cash prizes.
How to Play DraftKings Pick6
Create a Pick Set
Create a Pick Set by choosing 2+ players from the same sport and Pick Group (a set of picks available from a group of set competitions). For each player, simply select if you think they’ll have more or less than their listed stat projection. In each Pick Set, you cannot pick the same player twice and you must select players from at least two different teams.
Enter an Amount
Once you finalize your Pick Set, choose your entry fee amount. Your entries will be automatically distributed into available contests, subject to your confirmation.
Sweat Your Picks
When the games go live, use the My Picks tab to follow your picks in real time to track how your players are performing against their projections and how they stack up against other users.
Compete for Prizes
Make enough correct picks and win a share of the contests’ guaranteed prizes. Any prizes won will be credited to your DraftKings account after contests are finalized.
Play at DraftKings Pick6 or by downloading the DraftKings Pick6 app on Apple or Google!
