NBA Daily Fantasy Picks & Playbook: November 5, 2026
James Grande | @The_Real_Grande | DraftKings and FanDuel main slate
We have a two-game NBA DFS main slate on Thursday, November 5th, and the NBA DFS top picks are here and they're glorious. Despite only having two games, we have plenty of starpower as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry, Bam Adebayo, and Franz Wagner are taking the floor.
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, November 5th
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Slate Snapshot & Injury Updates
Last updated: 10:00 a.m. ET
2 games | Lock: 9:00 p.m. ET
- Heat are the one team on a back-to-back (played OT last night)
- Warriors have a slate-high 120 implied points
NOTABLE INJURY UPDATES
Every player on this slate with an injury designation: 9 out, 3 questionable. Who Benefits is listed for the players whose absence moves the slate.
| Player | Status |
|---|---|
| Paolo Banchero (ORL, ankle) | Out |
| Gui Santos (GSW, knee) | Out |
| Jalen Suggs (ORL, knee) | Out |
| Jordan Goodwin (PHX, calf) | OUT |
Game Environments
| Team | Opp | Tip (ET) | Total | Spread | Implied | Pace Rank | Off Rank | Def Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIA | @ GSW | 10:00 p.m. | 233.5 | +7.5 | 113 | 3rd | 14th | 26th |
| GSW | vs MIA | -7.5 | 120.5 | 21st | 5th | 22nd | ||
| ORL | @ PHX | 9:00 p.m. | 222.5 | +1.5 | 110.5 | 25th | 25th | 25th |
| PHX | vs ORL | -1.5 | 112 | 19th | 13th | 30th |
Each game shows the away team first. MIA @ GSW carries the slate's top total. MIA @ GSW has the best pace matchup on the slate. Ranks are league-wide, 2026-27; pace rank 1 is fastest, and off and def rank 1 are best. Green marks a better DFS spot and red a worse one, so a weak defense shades green.
DraftKings vs FanDuel Price Differential
- Draymond Green is the 3rd highest priced C on DraftKings but 5th on FanDuel, so the better positional value is on FanDuel ($5,500 DK, $4,300 FD).
- Andrew Wiggins is the 9th highest priced SF on DraftKings but 4th on FanDuel, so the better positional value is on DraftKings ($5,000 DK, $5,000 FD).
- Duop Reath is the 15th highest priced C on DraftKings but 10th on FanDuel, so the better positional value is on DraftKings ($3,000 DK, $3,600 FD).
| Player | Pos | DK Salary | DK Pos Rank | FD Salary | FD Pos Rank | Rank Gap | Better Positional Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Wiggins MIA | SF | $5,000 | 9th | $5,000 | 4th | 5 | DraftKings |
| Duop Reath PHX | C | $3,000 | 15th | $3,600 | 10th | 5 | DraftKings |
| Bobby Portis MIA | PF | $5,100 | 9th | $4,900 | 5th | 4 | DraftKings |
| Charles Bassey GSW | C | $4,200 | 11th | $4,000 | 7th | 4 | DraftKings |
| Nikola Jovic MIA | PF | $3,400 | 13th | $3,600 | 9th | 4 | DraftKings |
| Ryan Dunn PHX | SF | $3,800 | 14th | $3,700 | 10th | 4 | DraftKings |
| Jamaree Bouyea PHX | PG | $3,000 | 16th | $3,500 | 12th | 4 | DraftKings |
| Anthony Black ORL | SG | $6,000 | 5th | $6,500 | 2nd | 3 | DraftKings |
| Pelle Larsson MIA | SF | $5,200 | 8th | $4,800 | 5th | 3 | DraftKings |
| Luke Kennard PHX | SG | $4,100 | 11th | $3,900 | 8th | 3 | DraftKings |
| Jamal Cain ORL | SF | $4,000 | 12th | $3,700 | 9th | 3 | DraftKings |
| Will Richard GSW | SG | $3,700 | 13th | $3,700 | 10th | 3 | DraftKings |
| Dru Smith MIA | PG | $3,500 | 14th | $3,600 | 11th | 3 | DraftKings |
| Simone Fontecchio MIA | PF | $3,000 | 14th | $3,500 | 11th | 3 | DraftKings |
| Draymond Green GSW | C | $5,500 | 3rd | $4,300 | 5th | 2 | FanDuel |
Each player is ranked by salary among every player in that site's file eligible at the position, including multi-position players (1 is the highest priced). Players are compared at a position they are eligible for on both sites; when they share more than one, the position with the bigger gap is shown. Rank Gap is how many spots apart the two ranks are; the greener the cell, the bigger the gap. Better Positional Value is the site where the player has the lower position rank (priced lower among players at the position), regardless of the raw salary, since the two sites use different salary scales.
Top Tier Core Plays
Giannis Antetokounmpo - PF · MIA
This has been an incredibly great start to the year for Giannis Antetokounmpo despite the Heat only having three wins at this point. Antetokounmpo averages 34.7% USG and is averaging north of 1.7 FP/min. The Warriors currently rank 22nd in DRtg and the Heat could really exploit that.
Franz Wagner - SF/PF · ORL
Wagner hasn't had any monster games yet but he's had some really well-rounded 50 pieces, which is very solid at his price on a smaller slate. Orlando has a dream matchup as Phoenix simply cannot defend anyone ranking 30th in the league in that category. They gave up another 132 points last night. Wagner has a 30% USG without Banchero and Suggs this year.
Stephen Curry - PG · GSW
Stephen Curry is on an absolute heater right about now. He's put up 31 actual or more and 50+ DKP in three straight games. On the year, he's averaging a robust 1.6 FP/min and has a 35.4% USG, which is actually higher than Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Heat are 4th in pace and 26th in defense.
Mid-Tier Core Plays
Yaxel Lendeborg & Brandin Podziemski - SF/PF & PG/SG · GSW
It's hard to ignore the Warriors today and the spot they're in. Lendenborg's ownership is incredibly appealing because it's sub-20% and we've seen what his ceiling can be. Obviously with Curry playing at the level he is it's harder to get there but there's no denying his 27.9% USG and 1.25 FP/min. Podziemski isn't as good of a USG player but is a FP/min player and plays mid-to-high 30s minutes nightly.
Bam Adebayo & Davion Mitchell - C & PG · MIA
Both Adebayo and Mitchell topped 40 minutes last night and were both great, but they've both been great all year long. Both players are averaging over 1 FP/min and Adebayo is up over 1.2 FP/min. Mitchell notched his fifth double-double last night, too. Love the floor/ceiling combinations for both.
Miles Bridges & Jalen Green - PF & SG · PHX
The most consistent starting player the Suns have had to this point is Miles Bridges and Jalen Green is doing his best to stuff the statsheet the last few. Bridges is a 1.1 FP/min player at this point and while Green's only .87, he's topped 30 FP in two straight and three of four overall. I like them both, especially Bridges at his ownership, which is pretty low for a two gamer.
Desmond Bane & Anthony Black - SG/SF & PG/SG · ORL
It's arguably been Anthony Black that's the Magic's best player this year and it's hard to argue against that when you look at the numbers. 25% USG and is averaging 1.2 FP/min, which leads the team. He's also the fourth-most expensive Magic player. Desmond Bane has been super disappointing offensively, but he just needs to make more shots. Without Banchero and Suggs this year, Bane has a 24.6% USG. He is playing nearly 40 minutes in competitive games, which is a huge plus when the shot starts to fall.
Value Tier Core Plays
Tristan da Silva - SF/PF · ORL
da Silva's been wildly efficient shooting the ball this year and you saw last game what happens when his shot doesn't fall. The thing is, he's going to play a bunch of minutes again and this time it comes against the worst defense in the league. da Silva has also flashed a 40 FP ceiling this year and has consistently topped 30 minutes per game.
Pelle Larsson - SG/SF · MIA
The only time in the last six games that Pelle Larsson hasn't played 30 minutes is in a 20-point win, so we forgive him there, but he is consistently on the floor a lot and is one of the Heat's best five players every night. He's only a .8 FP/min player, but that's not too shabby if he's going to play 30 minutes again.
Oso Ighodaro - C · PHX
In the 82 minutes Oso Ighodaro has played, he's been the Suns most productive fantasy asset at 1.16 FP/min, which is a surprise because he was NOT this guy a year ago. He's outplaying Khaman Maluach despite the fact that he's coming off the bench and he's arguably the easiest value to get to at his price.
Klay Thompson - SG/PF · MIA
At this point of his career, Thompson's classified as a streaky shooter and he's really hit his stride over the last three games scored 19+ points and making 4+ threes in each game. Thompson played in the Heat's last back-to-back, so my expectation is he'll suit up again tonight, especially against the Warriors. $4K is a good price if he's going to continue making shots.
Georges Niang - PF · GSW
The only way I'm clicking on Niang is if he's starting and he has a good opportunity at that considering Gui Santos is out again. Niang has played 20+ minutes in two of three and has firmly been in the rotation all year long. He's a .75 FP/min player that will hit value if he makes his shot, but there aren't many appealing 4K plays today.
Late-News Core Plays
Players we are considering core plays based on late-breaking news and research
Core Lineup
Cash Core: Stephen Curry - Anthony Black - Franz Wagner - Oso Ighodaro
GPP Leverage: Davion Mitchell - Yaxel Lendeborg - Miles Bridges - Giannis Antetokounmpo