LeBron James (ankle) will miss Tuesday night’s inner-arena matchup for the Lakers against the Clippers. James’ absence will have a huge impact on the outlook of Lakers in the NBA DFS player pool with his 24.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 28.9% usage rate available for others. Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell had 34 points and eight assists playing alongside James on Sunday, but could he be in line for an even greater performance without the NBA’s all-time leading scorer on the floor?
Anthony Davis will likely be a popular selection among NBA DFS picks, and after two big men had incredible performances yesterday with Joel Embiid scoring 70 points and Karl-Anthony Towns totaling 62 points, a tempting NBA DFS strategy could be utilizing the 6-foot-10 center and hoping for another monster performance. Davis is averaging 25.6 points and 11.3 rebounds in 54 games with the Lakers without James, so should daily Fantasy basketball players roster him in NBA DFS lineups? Before making your NBA DFS picks, be sure to check out the NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stacks, and top daily Fantasy basketball picks from SportsLine’s Mike McClure.
McClure is a DFS professional with more than $2 million in career winnings. He’s also a predictive data engineer at SportsLine who uses a powerful prediction model that simulates every minute of every game 10,000 times, taking factors like matchups, statistical trends and injuries into account.
This allows him to find the best NBA DFS values and create optimal lineups that he shares only over at SportsLine. They’re a must-see for any NBA DFS player.
On Monday, McClure highlighted Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley as one of his top picks in his NBA DFS player pool on both sites. The result: Quickley had eight points, five rebounds, 10 assists and two steals, returning 32.25 points on DraftKings and 31 points on FanDuel. Anybody who included him in their lineups was well on the way to a profitable day.
McClure has turned his attention to NBA action on Tuesday and locked in his top daily Fantasy basketball picks. You can only see them by heading to SportsLine.
Top NBA DFS picks for Tuesday, January 23
For Tuesday, one of McClure’s top NBA DFS picks is Pelicans power forward Zion Williamson, who is listed at $7,400 on DraftKings and $7,700 on FanDuel. Williamson had 24 points on 64.7% shooting in a 123-109 loss to the Suns on Friday. The 23-year-old is averaging 22 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game while shooting 58.8% from the field this season.
Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, has showcased why he was such a highly-touted prospect when healthy. He’s averaging 24.9 points and 6.7 rebounds throughout his NBA career, but health has always been his biggest issue, playing only 29 games last season. But daily Fantasy basketball players don’t have to worry about his season-long health, and with Williamson healthy on Tuesday, he’s a strong option for NBA DFS lineups against the Jazz, who are allowing 122.8 points over their last four contests.
Another part of McClure’s optimal NBA DFS strategy includes Lakers combo guard/forward Austin Reaves ($5,800 on DraftKings and $6,100 on FanDuel). He’s a prime example of a player that could see an increase in usage and production with James out. Reaves had 19 points against the Jazz with James out of the lineup, compared to averaging 15 ppg on the season. He also had 20 points, eight rebounds and five assists while taking 14 shots against the Timberwolves without James on the floor.
The third-year pro is averaging career-highs in scoring (15 ppg), rebounds (4.2 per game) and assists (5.1 per game). The 25-year-old, who went undrafted after playing his final two college basketball seasons at Oklahoma, seems to be coming into his own in the NBA. McClure loves Reaves’ value to add depth to NBA DFS lineups while leaving money to spend on some of the higher-priced options in Tuesday’s NBA DFS player pool. See McClure’s other NBA DFS picks right here.
How to set your NBA DFS lineups for Tuesday, January 23
McClure is also targeting a player who could go off for massive numbers on Tuesday because of a dream matchup. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is here.