It was a light slate in the NBA last night as the NCAA Tournament took center stage in the basketball world. But the home stretch of the regular season is here and there are 10 games of NBA action taking place tonight.
The Washington Wizards and Orlando Magic will start the night with the lone matchup taking place at 7 p.m. ET. Four games will tip off at 8 p.m. ET as the Houston Rockets play the Miami Heat, the New Orleans Pelicans take on the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Oklahoma City Thunder face the Charlotte Hornets, and the San Antonio Spurs host the Philadelphia 76ers.
Then, the Dallas Mavericks and Detroit Pistons will face off in the lone game at 8:30 p.m. ET before the Boston Celtics and Utah Jazz play at 9:30 p.m. ET. Two games will begin at 10 p.m. ET: the Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Phoenix Suns and the Denver Nuggets vs. Portland Trail Blazers. Finally, the Los Angeles Clippers will take on the Memphis Grizzlies at 10:30 p.m. ET.
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 action on March 21. You simply choose whether each set statistic will be more or less than the number set. With the stage set, here are my favorite picks across the 10-game slate.
Jeremy Sochan More Than 23.5 Points + Rebounds
The San Antonio Spurs looked set to make a strong play-in or playoff push shortly following the trade deadline but have had their outlook shift greatly since this point. With Victor Wembanyama and De’Aaron Fox each shut down for the season with injuries, the Spurs have their sights set on a high draft pick. They will face off with another team in the lottery mix with injuries derailing the Sixers’ season entirely. Both of these teams have shifted their focus to allowing their young players to play through their mistakes and continue developing.
Jeremy Sochan is a key part of this effort for the Spurs in his third NBA season. The Baylor product is averaging 11.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists in his 25.4 minutes per game. Sochan logged his first start since Jan. 6 in the previous game clocking 37:57 of game time against the Knicks. The Spurs will now shift their attention to the 76ers, who are a far more favorable matchup for a player of Sochan’s skillset.
Philadelphia ranks 30th in total team rebounds and 25th in opponent rebounds allowed. In addition to Joel Embiid, Andre Drummond and Adem Bona are also set to miss tonight’s game, leaving the Sixers without a true center. Guerschon Yabusele is expected to fill this role and has been a bright spot this season, but the Frenchman has been a bit overexposed in his role of late. Sochan is a high-level rebounder who will have an expanded opportunity to attack the glass and create easy put-back opportunities. Sochan has recorded more than 23.5 combined points and rebounds in 13 games this season and should be in line for a heavy workload tonight. Look for him to capitalize tonight and tally more than 23.5 combined points and rebounds again tonight against a struggling Sixers team.
Justin Edwards More Than 1.5 Made Three-Pointers
On the other side of this matchup sits the shorthanded Philadelphia 76ers who recently had over 96% of their payroll on the injury report. This will continue to be the story with Joel Embiid, Paul George, Jared McCain and Eric Gordon already out for the year while players like Andre Drummond, Kyle Lowry, Kelly Oubre Jr and Adem Bona have been ruled out for tonight. This presents a great opportunity for young players like Justin Edwards to make the most of his expanded opportunity.
The undrafted rookie has made the most of his chances thus far and already earned an upgrade from a two-way contract to a standard NBA deal. Across the 35 games he has played at the NBA level, Edwards is averaging 8.9 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists across 24.8 minutes per game. He has seen his opportunity expand of late and his confidence has continued to grow as the season has progressed.
Looking at his three-point production, Edwards is shooting 34.9% from beyond the three-point arc and is attempting 4.2 perimeter shots per game on the season. This comes out to an average of 1.5 made three-pointers per game, and he has made two or more perimeter shots in 14 games. He made more than 1.5 three-pointers in back-to-back games leading into this matchup and has free range to attack. Look for him to continue to make the most of his opportunity and connect with more than 1.5 made three-pointers against a Spurs team that ranks 19th in opponents’ three-point percentage allowed.
Chet Holmgren More Than 16.5 Points
Lost in the shuffle of an excellent start to the season for the Oklahoma City Thunder has been a fairly frustrating season for Chet Holmgren. The Gonzaga product has been limited to just 23 games due to injuries after suiting up for all 82 regular season games last year. Holmgren missed nearly three months with a hip injury and has not played more than three consecutive games since returning. He also has taken a statistical step back this season when he has been on the floor, averaging 15.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game.
This outlook has begun to change as Holmgren has been more aggressive offensively. His reduction in production has had much more to do with the growth in players surrounding him as opposed to Holmgren regressing. With Jalen Williams remaining out due to his hip injury, expect Holmgren to continue being called upon for a larger offensive role. The 7-footer has tallied more than 16.5 points in two of his last three games and five of his last 10.
Oklahoma City will take on the Charlotte Hornets tonight who hold the third-worst record in the NBA at 18-51 and will be without LaMelo Ball and Mark Williams. They also will be playing on the second night of a back-to-back. Even at full strength the Hornets do not have enough to fully contain the Thunder. Expect Holmgren to welcome the challenge of an increased offensive role and record more than 16.5 points for the 11th time this season against an inferior opponent.
Tyler Herro More Than 21.5 Points
Things have gotten ugly down in South Beach as the Heat have dropped to 29-40 on the season. This drops them to 10th place in the Eastern Conference, and they enter tonight’s game on a nine-game losing streak. Jimmy Butler is not walking back in that locker room anytime soon, so it is on the remaining players to figure out how to get back on track.
The bulk of this responsibility falls on the shoulders of Tyler Herro. The Kentucky product is amid an impressive season averaging a career-high 23.6 points, 5.6 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game. Herro earned his first All-Star appearance and will be expected to continue playing at this level as the Heat look to have some sort of chance in the postseason. He is attempting a career-high 18.1 field goal attempts and 9.3 perimeter shots per game. Herro has tallied more than 21.5 points in 40 of the 66 games he has played.
Miami will take on the Houston Rockets who play a strong brand of defense. They rank fifth in opponents’ points per game allowed and also limit opponents to the ninth-worst three-point percentage against them. Even still, Herro finished with 27 points on 17 shot attempts in the first matchup with the Rockets. His offensive role has only grown since this point, so expect Herro to continue playing in attack mode. The Heat guard has eclipsed this total in nine of his last 16 games, look for him to add to this again tonight.
Derrick White Less Than 3.5 Made Three-Pointers
The Boston Celtics have hit their cruise control a bit as the season winds down. The defending champions are pretty locked in for the second seed in the Eastern Conference and have been more willing to rest their starters in recent games with the playoffs on the horizon. They last played on Tuesday so this should not be the case tonight, although Jaylen Brown has been ruled out with a knee issue. Boston will take on the Utah Jazz, who have a much different outlook for the season as they hold the second-worst record in the league.
There is no doubt of the importance of Derrick White to this Celtics team. He is a jack-of-all-trades in what he can do on the floor and is capable of filling whatever role is needed on a night-to-night basis. White is averaging 16.7 points, 4.4 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game. The Colorado product is also shooting a career-high 9.1 three-point attempts per game and connecting at a 38.6% rate. This comes out to an average of 3.5 made perimeter shots per game. White has connected on more than 3.5 in 30 games this year.
While he is more than capable of getting hot from the perimeter, don’t expect this to be necessary tonight. Utah hung with Boston in its first matchup this year which ended in a 114-108 Celtics victory. White shot 3-for-11 from the perimeter in this game. Expect more of a focused effort from the Eastern Conference favorites tonight and for this game to have a chance to get out of hand early. Expect a quick hook on resting starters and for White to take a seat on the bench in favor of some of the younger players once the game gets out of reach. White has been held to less than 3.5 made three-pointers in five of his past six games, so look for this trend to continue tonight against an inferior opponent with his minutes likely limited.
Evan Mobley More Than 9.5 Rebounds
Taking place in the late window of games, the Cleveland Cavaliers will face the Phoenix Suns. The Cavaliers continue to hold a comfortable lead for the top spot in the Eastern Conference while the Suns are tied in the standings for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference. Evan Mobley has been a huge part of the leap the Cavaliers have taken this season, averaging 18.8 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
Cleveland’s tactic of playing both Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley has been problematic for opponents this season. But it should be noted that when the Cavaliers are forced to drop down to one big man when the matchup requires, it is typically Allen who gets the short end of the stick. Don’t be surprised if tonight is a matchup where Cleveland is forced to go in this direction as they face Phoenix’s isolation-centric style of play. Getting production out of the big man position has been a problem for the Suns all season. They rank 25th in total team rebounds and 18th in opponent rebounds per game. Even attempts like trading for Nick Richards and giving expanded opportunities to players like Bol Bol has not solved this issue.
Mobley is a caliber of talent above any of the options the Suns possess. The USC product has recorded more than 9.5 rebounds in 32 of the 61 games he has played this season. Expect the interior production of the Cavaliers to be problematic in this matchup and for Mobley to lead this charge. He enters this game having recorded double-digit rebounds in seven of his past nine games. Look for him to carry this strong output into tonight and take advantage of the weakness on the Suns’ roster by recording more than 9.5 rebounds 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!
