Welcome to the NBA DFS Triple Threat here at Paydirt! This is going to be a daily article aimed at giving thoughts on three important aspects of the NBA DFS slate. We will talk through the most popular players on the slate, popular roster construction, and potential pivots and leverage spots. This article is best used with the projections models here at Paydirt (Found here), but it will still be valuable even as a one off piece of content. While the focus is on Draftkings, the content is applicable to Fanduel as well. Costs, Projections, and finishing percentiles format will be Draftkings/Fanduel.
Main Points
- The highest-owned players for tonight’s games are projected to be something called a Neemias Queta, Devin Vassell, OG Anunoby, Brandon Miller, and Nick Richards. Notably, Al Horford is OUT and Porzingis is doubtful which is leading to massive ownership on the min-priced Queta.
- A popular roster construction tonight will likely include 1 value players complemented by 5-6 mid-range players and 1-2 stars. Ownership on the high end is concentrating on the two Lakers stars LeBron and AD. Based on this, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Haliburton look like strong pivots in this tier.
- Players such as Wembanyama, Scottie Barnes, and Terry Rozier are intriguing GPP plays. Additionally, midrange plays such as Dennis Schroder, Jabari Smith, and Saddiq Bey look like potential pivot opportunities.
Depending on the size of the slate, there may be multiple situations, value plays, and popular options that you need to consider. Join the Paydirt discord with this link for more updates and game theory on all the slates details: https://discord.gg/mQ6u5dfawF
NBA DFS Cash Game Core:
This core of players will help you build a strong foundation in cash games. While it is best to use all these players, it’s not a requirement
OG Anunoby
Devin Vassell
Neemias Queta
Brandon Miller
Nick Richards

NBA DFS GPP Core:
This core of players will help you build in differentiation in your lineups. These players are meant to be mixed in with some of the stronger chalk options. How many of these players you put in is dependent on the size of the field and personal risk tolerance.
Tari Eason (Midrange)
Saddiq Bey (Midrange)
Zion or Brandon Ingram (Stud)
Terry Rozier (Stud)
Joel Embiid (Premium)

NBA DFS Final Thoughts
The popular build tonight is going to be the cash core with one of LeBron or AD. Thankfully, this makes it easy to get different on the slate. There are a multitude of pivot options available in the midrange. Likewise, playing any superstar other than the Lakers stars will be different tonight as well. Additionally, you can pay up at C with Embiid and leverage the chalk build and the chalk spend ups. The Paydirt models are heavy on TOR/HOU/NOP as spots to target with secondary exposure to PHI/ATL/CHA. Good luck and let’s bake some bread!
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