The NBA has an eight-game slate on tap for DraftKings on this first Wednesday night of April. The late game between the Clippers and Pelicans is not on the slate, but there are still plenty of players to pick from in the NBA DFS pool. The first three games tip off at 7:00 p.m. ET, and the final game on the slate starts at 9:30 p.m. ET when the Thunder host the Pistons.
Of the 16 teams on the slate, the Hawks, Nuggets, Knicks and Spurs are playing for a second day in a row, while the Heat and Wizards will turn around and play again on Thursday. Before tip-off, be sure to check back on the daily injury report and adjust your lineup if needed.
The NBA DFS main slate includes a variety of contests and pay-out structures on DraftKings, headlined by the NBA $150K Fadeaway [$50K to 1st].
Dallas Mavericks vs. Atlanta Hawks
The correct answer to Tuesday’s slate was definitely stacking the Trail Blazers against the Hawks, and I’m ready to run it back again on Wednesday but this time using the Mavs against the up-tempo Hawks. Atlanta has played at the second-fastest pace this season and the fourth-fastest pace over the last five games. The Mavericks should take advantage of the extra possessions to put up good fantasy numbers, especially since fatigue could also be a factor with the Hawks playing for a second straight night.
Core Plays: The Mavs will probably have Anthony Davis ($9,600), PJ Washington ($7,600) and Daniel Gafford ($7,100) in the mix on Wednesday and could get Dereck Lively II ($6,100; ankle, questionable) back as well. With so much crowding in the frontcourt, the key to the stack is actually Spencer Dinwiddie ($6,300). Dinwiddie has at least 31 fantasy points in seven of his last eight games and went over 44 fantasy points in four of those contests. With Brandon Williams unavailable after reaching his season-long limit of being active for 50 games at the NBA level, Dinwiddie will likely keep a heavy workload and could be a better source of assists as the team around him gets healthier.
Value Options: Klay Thompson ($5,400) could have a lighter workload with all the returning players, but it’s also possibly a role he can excel in. He has over 25 fantasy points in each of his last two games and may be shaking off a rough stretch from earlier in March. Max Christie ($3,900) and Jaden Hardy ($3,400) will help fill in the backcourt rotation with Williams unavailable. The up-tempo matchup should give them space to make a difference in NBA DFS on Wednesday.
Boston Celtics vs. Miami Heat
The Celtics host the Heat and could end up as a great source of value depending on who they have available. The team listed Jaylen Brown ($8,200; knee), Kristaps Porzingis ($8,000; conditioning) and Jrue Holiday ($6,300; shoulder) as questionable and Al Horford ($5,500; toe) as doubtful. Despite getting almost all their players a break at some point over the last few weeks, the team has continued to win by comfortable margins and get good production from the options available.
Core Plays: The core of the stack can still be Jayson Tatum ($10,500), who returned from an ankle sprain on Saturday with 57.5 fantasy points against the Spurs and followed it up with 48 fantasy points against the Grizzlies. He produced over 45 fantasy points in five straight games and eight of his last 10. Derrick White ($7,900) is also sure to be available and involved. He had 34.75 fantasy points against the Heat a couple of weeks ago and has posted over 34 fantasy points in four of his last five games.
Value Options: If Holiday is out, Payton Pritchard ($6,000) is a strong fill-in option even though he isn’t cheap. Sam Hauser ($4,200) is more affordable and has at least 18 fantasy points in five straight while picking up extra work. If Horford and Porzingis are out, Luke Kornet ($5,000) and Neemias Queta ($3,000) would carry the workload in the frontcourt. Kornet missed Monday’s game with an illness but had 44.5 fantasy points against the Spurs on Saturday.
Detroit Pistons at Oklahoma City Thunder
The Pistons will be very shorthanded as they face the rolling Thunder in Oklahoma City on Wednesday. Cade Cunningham ($10,300; calf, doubtful) is likely to miss a fifth straight game and Marcus Sasser, Ron Holland II and Isaiah Stewart will all serve their suspensions from Sunday’s altercation with the Timberwolves. The offense will have to be in high gear to keep up with OKC, so there is the potential for good production from the options available.
Core Plays: Without Cunningham and Sasser, Dennis Schroder ($6,000) will have to run the show. Schroder didn’t have big games right away in place of Cunningham, but he has delivered back-to-back double-doubles in his last two games. He had 43.75 fantasy points in 39 minutes while leading the Pistons past the Cavs last Friday and followed that with 11 points, 11 assists and 34 fantasy points in 33 minutes in Minnesota. His shooting has not been good, so the opportunity is there for even more fantasy points if he can score more effectively on Wednesday. Jalen Duren ($7,300) has three double-doubles in his last four games with 33+ fantasy points in each of those three games.
Value Options: Malik Beasley ($5,900) has stepped up with at least 25 fantasy points in four of his last five games and is coming off a 27-point performance against the Timberwolves. Ausar Thompson ($5,600) has also shown a high ceiling and could get more work filling in for the suspended players. With Isaiah Stewart absent, Paul Reed ($3,100) will likely step in as the primary backup for Duren while Simone Fontecchio ($3,300) could get more work in the frontcourt as well. Tim Hardaway Jr. ($4,300) is a boom-or-bust option but has been good in Detroit’s last two games, producing 40.75 and 30.5 fantasy points against Cleveland and Minnesota.
