Slow night in the NBA with only four games on the slate, but that doesn't mean you should take a break from playing daily fantasy basketball. Think of tonight as any other night, but play a lower percentage of your bankroll.
The point guard position is the hardest position to figure out because there are so many quality plays at the position. It helps that there are plenty of great value plays at the other positions so you can spend on at least one of the top-tier point guards.Damian Lillard is going to feast on the Celtics tonight and costs a lot less than Chris Paul on Fanduel. I want to believe in Derrick Rose because of his high ceiling and cheap price tag, but he's such a boom or bust type of player that it's hard to trust him in cash games. The shooting guard position has a lot of quality value plays (especially on DraftKings), which is why it's not smart spending up on a player like Jimmy Butler tonight. This will open things up to spend at other positions.
The small forward position is easy to figure out tonight as long as Dorell Wright is starting because he'll crush his low price tag and Nicolas Batum is still super cheap despite his big game last night. The power forward position is very top heavy as Blake Griffin, Pau Gasol, and Tim Duncan are all great options, while there are only a couple of good mid-tier/low-tier options at the position. The center position was muddled until we got the news that Derrick Favors is going to miss tonight's game due to a personal reason. This will open the door for Enes Kanter, who plays great whenever Favors is out. Also, Rudy Gobert is only worth using in GPP's because his price tag is a lot higher than Kanter's.
Here is the Daily Fantasy Basketball Playbook for January 22nd:
Point Guards
| Player | Team | DraftKings | Fanduel | Comments |
| Damian Lillard | Blazers | 9,600 | 9,000 | Celtics give up big games to opposing PG's |
| Derrick Rose | Bulls | 7,300 | 7,200 | Boom/bust option that is cheap considering his high ceiling |
| Jarrett Jack | Nets | 6,200 | 6,800 | Like his value on DK |
| Marcus Smart | Celtics | 4,400 | 5,000 | Good punt play on DK. Prefer T. Burke on FD |
Shooting Guards
| Player | Team | DraftKings | Fanduel | Comments |
| Wesley Matthews | Blazers | 5,700 | 5,700 | Has 17+ FGA in 3 straight games & 28+ FP in each of those games. |
| Evan Turner | Celtics | 5,300 | 6,000 | Super cheap on DK for a player that can easily reach 30 FP. Like Manu as well |
| Bojan Bogdanovic | Nets | 3,300 | 3,800 | Decent punt play that should crush his value |
| Joe Johnson | Nets | 6,000 | 6,300 | Boom/bust contrarian option for GPPs |
Small Forwards
| Player | Team | DraftKings | Fanduel | Comments |
| Nicolas Batum | Blazers | 5,300 | 5,300 | Should have no problem reaching value |
| Dorrell Wright | Blazers | 3,000 | 3,500 | Best value play of the day if he starts |
| Kawhi Leonard | Spurs | 7,800 | 8,100 | Good play on DK. Would rather go with G. Hayward on FD |
Power Forwards
| Player | Team | DraftKings | Fanduel | Comments |
| Jared Sullinger | Celtics | 6,600 | 6,600 | Love his value, great matchup, and has a high ceiling |
| Blake Griffin | Clippers | 9,800 | 10,000 | Good chance of finishing as the #1 FP producer on the night |
| Taj Gibson | Bulls | 6,100 | 5,500 | Only use as a safe play on FD |
| Ersan Ilyasova | Bucks | 3,700 | 4,500 | Sneaky punt play that will likely start and play close to 30 minutes |
| Pau Gasol | Bulls | 9,300 | 9,100 | Will play heavy minutes, can't say the same thing about Duncan |
Centers
| Player | Team | DraftKings | Fanduel | Comments |
| Enes Kanter | Jazz | 5,900 | 5,100 | Averaging 18.7/11/1.3 blocks in the three games Favors has been out |
| DeAndre Jordan | Clippers | 7,800 | 8,400 | Most reliable player at the position tonight |
| Brook Lopez | Nets | 6,400 | 6,200 | Risky play that needs 30+ minutes to reach value |
| Chris Kaman | Blazers | 4,400 | 4,600 | Nice matchup and super cheap |
