NBA DFS Picks, Projections, Lineups, Injuries & More Today: Friday Playbook

Published: Jan 17, 2025
Happy Friday, January 17th! We have a nice seven-game NBA DFS main slate on DraftKings and nine games on FanDuel.
The stars are out as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, and LaMelo Ball are taking the floor. There are some big-time injury statuses that we need to watch out for as Karl-Anthony Towns, Nikola Jokic and Kyrie Irving are questionable. There are also a bunch of teams on back-to-backs and there's rest potential.
Before actually diving into the meat and potatoes, welcome to the NBA DFS season. If this is your first time reading our column on NBA DFS picks, I just want to welcome you and give you a few tips and tricks on what you should be looking for each night.
- News outlets: reliable sources that give us injury news & starting lineups
- Pace of play: who's playing fast vs. who's playing slow. Which teams get a pace-up spot (more possessions) vs. pace-down (fewer possessions)
- Usage rates: is a percentage of how many plays that player is being used in
- NBA DFS Projections
- Lineup Generator
- NBA Ownership
NBA DFS Picks & Daily Fantasy Playbook Today, January 17th
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Pre-Lock Update
This section will be used for anything that changes from the morning until right up to roster lock.
Injury updates, players we’re higher on than we were in the morning and so much more.
6:25 pm ET
- Mike Conley is STARTING in place of Donte DiVincenzo. He's very safe. Nickeil Alexander-Walker is still fine because Minnesota runs a shortened rotation. Prefer the starter in Conley, however.
- Brandon Miller is OUT.
- LaMelo Ball (+3.3% USG), 41% USG, 1.57 FP/min, Miles Bridges (+3.1% USG) 29% USG, 1.2 FP/min, Mark Williams 22% USG, 1.4 FP/min
- Zach LaVine has been downgraded to QUEST.
- If LaVine sits: Coby White (+3% USG) 26.7% USG (1st), 1.05 FP/min, Josh Giddey (+2.5% USG), 23.4% USG, 1.3 FP/min, Nikola Vucevic 23% USG, 1.27 FP/min, Lonzo Ball (+3% USG), 1.05 FP/min
7:00 pm ET
- Kyrie Irving is IN, 33-minute limit
- Karl-Anthony Towns is OUT; Jericho Sims is starting in his place.
- Jalen Brunson (+4.4% USG), 35%, 1.35 FP/min, Josh Hart 1.05 FP/min, Precious Achiuwa .97 FP/min
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander downgraded to QUEST
NBA Injuries, News & Updates Today, 1/17
- Nikola Jokic - QUEST
- Anthony Davis - PROB
- Giannis Antetokounmpo - IN
- Karl-Anthony Towns - OUT
- LeBron James - PROB
- Ja Morant - QUEST
- Kyrie Irving - IN, 33 minute limit
- Dejounte Murray - IN
- Cameron Johnson - QUEST
- Lauri Markkanen - OUT
- Brandon Miller - OUT
- Josh Giddey - IN
- Jamal Murray - PROB
- Isaiah Hartenstein - OUT
- John Collins - OUT
- Jeremy Sochan - OUT
- Mark Williams - IN
- Immanuel Quickley - OUT
- Walker Kessler - OUT
- Coby White - IN
- Ayo Dosunmu - IN
- Dereck Lively - OUT
- Goga Bitadze - OUT
- Donte DiVincenzo - OUT
- Khris Middleton - IN
- Aaron Gordon - IN, playing off bench
- Tre Mann - OUT
- Johnny Juzang - OUT
- Micah Potter - OUT
- Dorian Finney-Smith - OUT
- Yves Missi - OUT
- Andre Jackson - OUT
- Gary Trent - IN
- Zach LaVine - QUEST
NBA DFS Slate & Game Overviews
With the NBA season just kicking off we don't have data yet for teams regarding pace of play and defensive matchups. In the section below, I’m listing the most notable things we need to look at in Las Vegas, including notable O/U and spreads.
Memphis Grizzlies vs. San Antonio Spurs
- Total: 239
- Spread: MEM -2.5
- Grizzlies are 1st in pace, Spurs are 17th in pace
- Grizzlies are 5th in DRtg, Spurs are 13th in DRtg
Charlotte Hornets vs. Chicago Bulls
- Total: 235.5
- Spread: CHI -4.5
- Hornets are 23rd in pace, Bulls are 2nd in pace
- Hornets are 17th in DRtg, Bulls are 23th in DRtg
Toronto Raptors vs. Milwaukee Bucks
- Total: 232
- Spread: MIL -11.5
- Raptors are 10th in pace, Bucks are 11th in pace
- Raptors are 26th in DRtg, Bucks are 8th in DRtg
Utah Jazz vs. New Orleans Pelicans
- Total: 230
- Spread: NOLA -11
- Jazz are 13th in pace, Pelicans are 15th in pace
- Jazz are 29th in DRtg, Pelicans are 27th in DRtg
- Total: 226.5
- Spread: MIA -1
- Nuggets are 5th in pace, Heat are 27th in pace
- Nuggets are 18th in DRtg, Heat are 10th in DRtg
Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Dallas Mavericks
- Total: 225
- Spread: OKC -8.5
- Thunder are 7th in pace, Mavericks are 9th in pace
- Thunder are 1st in DRtg, Mavericks are 12th in DRtg
NBA DFS Core Player Pool & Lineup Picks
Here are the core players I’m looking at for my NBA DFS picks tonight. You can see the full analysis of tonight’s NBA DFS projections and player pool below or skip ahead to building the best lineups possible by locking these into the aforementioned lineup generator now.
High
- Nikola Jokic, Victor Wembanyama (FD), LaMelo Ball, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Davis (FD GPP), Giannis Antetokounmpo
Mid
- Jalen Williams, Trey Murphy, Keyonte George, Devin Vassell (FD), Dejounte Murray, Miles Bridges, Mark Williams (GPPs), Josh Hart, Jalen Brunson (GPPs)
Value
- Stephon Castle (FD), Daniel Theis, Brice Sensabaugh, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Mike Conley, Kyle Filipowski, Wendell Carter, Drew Eubanks, Precious Achiuwa
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