Daily Fantasy Basketball: DraftKings Cheat Sheet – January 14

Tyreke Evans

Daily Fantasy Basketball is in full swing, which means each day XN Sports will have a column detailing advised plays and lineups for the remainder of the NBA season. For those familiar with DraftKings, their daily fantasy basketball is formatted differently this season. There is no multi-position eligibility, which makes it a bit harder to set your lineup.

For those unfamiliar with DraftKings, you are given $50,000 in cap space to select a point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, center, a guard, a forward, and a utility player. There are no points deducted for missed shots, which changes the strategy from other sites. To read the full scoring, click here. Keep in mind that a double-double awards a bonus, which can be the difference between cashing in and winning nothing.

Generally, the goal for value is at five times a player’s salary, plus five points. That brings a lineup to 290 fantasy points, which will cash each day.

Give DraftKings a shot, as there will be a few freeroll opportunities each night in Daily Fantasy Basketball. Click here to play.

Tonight’s featured contest:
-First place wins $1,000 and a Fantasy Basketball World Championship Package ($55,000 value)
-$60,000 Prize Pool
-$20 Entry Fee
-Starts Wednesday, January 14 at 7:00 PM EST
-Top 177 scores win money
-First time depositors at DraftKings receive a 100% bonus up to $600

Remember, when you sign-up on DraftKings, use the promo code: XN.

Each position will have a few guys that we like for each night, ranked from top to bottom. To find these players, tools like usage rate, defense vs. position, injuries, minutes, and more are used.

There is a lot of news that will affect lineups tonight, stay informed before tip.

Point Guard

Michael Carter-Williams, Philadelphia 76ers $8,500

Kyle Lowry, Toronto Raptors $10,100

Cheap Plays:

Mario Chalmers, Miami Heat $4,300

Norris Cole, Miami Heat $3,600

Shooting Guard

Tyreke Evans, New Orleans Pelicans $7,300

Monta Ellis, Dallas Mavericks $7,300

Avery Bradley, Boston Celtics $4,800

Cheap Plays:

Devyn Marble, Orlando Magic $3,600 (if he starts)

Small Forward

Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors $8,300

James Johnson, Toronto Raptors $4,900 (if he starts)

Cheap Plays:

Bojan Bogdanovic, Brooklyn Nets $3,200 (if he starts)

Justin Holiday, Golden State Warriors $3,000 (GPP play)

Power Forward

Paul Millsap, Atlanta Hawks $8,300

Donatas Motiejunas, Houston Rockets $5,400

Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks $6,600

Cheap Plays: 

Jae Crowder, Boston Celtics $4,600

Center

Nikola Vucevic, Orlando Magic $8,700

Dwight Howard, Houston Rockets $8,100

Marcin Gortat, Washington Wizards $6,100

Hassan Whiteside, Miami Heat $5,700

Cheap Plays:

Kelly Olynyk, Boston Celtics $3,000 (GPP play)

Notes

Jrue Holiday, Tobias Harris, and Tony Wroten are out tonight.

– Kelly Olynyk is priced at the minimum, and is a decent tournament play. He has proven to have some big games, winning people tournaments on DraftKings.

– Bojan Bogdanovic has crushed value the last two games, and he is just $3,200. If he starts, he’s worth a look.

– Players will be on Mirza Teletovic tonight, but Brook Lopez is the real beneficiary with Garnett out.

– Spurs play in a back-to-back tonight, so be sure to keep an eye on what Pop does.

Usage Rates

– Tyreke Evans is close to 33 percent with Jrue Holiday out.

– Nikola Vucevic is over 30 percent as well with Tobias Harris out.

– Mario Chalmers and Chris Bosh have the highest usage rates without Dwyane Wade.

If you have any questions or concerns leading to tip, let me know on Twitter @JoshCollacchi.

*Keep an eye on the inactives, as things in the NBA change at the last second. Good luck tonight

author avatar
Josh Collacchi
In addition to writing here at XNSports, my fantasy content can be seen at Pro Football Focus Fantasy, eDraft, and Project Roto. Member of the FSWA and the FWAA and can be reached on Twitter @JoshCollacchi