The top two teams in the Eastern Conference go head-to-head on Friday when the Boston Celtics host the Cleveland Cavaliers and although it’s a contest many NBA fans will want to watch, is it really the best game to form an NBA DFS strategy around? The Celtics and Cavaliers both have top-10 scoring defenses and with this matchup having more than your typical regular-season feel to it, that could bring additional defensive focus and make even their elite options in the NBA DFS player pool like Jayson Tatum and Donovan Mitchell questionable additions at their price for NBA DFS lineups.
The Pistons enter Friday’s matchup against the Nuggets on an eight-game winning streak and Denver is playing the second half of a back-to-back, so should you build NBA DFS stacks around Detroit players like Cade Cunningham and Tobias Harris? Before making any NBA DFS picks, be sure to check out the NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stacks, and top daily Fantasy basketball picks from SportsLine’s Mike McClure.
McClure is a DFS professional with more than $2 million in career winnings. He’s also a predictive data engineer at SportsLine who uses a powerful prediction model that simulates every minute of every game 10,000 times, taking factors like matchups, statistical trends and injuries into account. This allows him to find the best NBA DFS values on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel and create optimal lineups that he shares only over at SportsLine. They’re a must-see for any NBA DFS player.
On Tuesday, McClure highlighted Suns guard/forward Bradley Beal as one of his top NBA DFS picks from the NBA DFS player pool on both sites. The result: Beal had 24 points, five rebounds, 11 assists, two steals and a block, returning 55.2 points on DraftKings and 53.5 points on FanDuel. Anybody who included him in their lineups could have been well on the way to a profitable day.
McClure has turned his attention to NBA action on Friday and locked in his top daily Fantasy basketball picks. You can only see them by heading to SportsLine.
For Friday, one of McClure’s top NBA DFS picks is Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who is listed at $12,200 on DraftKings and $12,800 on FanDuel. Jokic is coming off another triple-double with 32 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists in a 121-112 loss to the Bucks on Thursday. The three-time NBA MVP is on pace to become just the third different player in NBA history to average a triple-double in a season. Jokic is third in the league in points (29.2 ppg) and rebounds (12.6 per game) and second in assists (10.4 per game).
Although the Nuggets enter a matchup against one of the hottest teams in the league in the Pistons, Denver scored 134 points in its first meeting against Detroit this year. Jokic had 37 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Jokic is averaging a career-high in points and assists as he continues to prove himself as one of the most dominant offensive players in league history.
Another part of McClure’s optimal NBA DFS strategy includes rostering Hawks guard/forward Caris LeVert ($4,900 on DraftKings and $5,500 on FanDuel). LeVert is averaging 14.1 points over 27.7 minutes per game over his first seven contests in Atlanta after being acquired from the Cavaliers. He had 17 points over 32 minutes against the Heat on Wednesday and he’s played at least 28 minutes in five of his six games after making his Atlanta debut.
The Hawks play the Thunder, who have allowed more than 120 points in three straight games. The Nets, who rank second-to-last in the league in scoring at 105.1 ppg, scored 121 points against the Thunder on Wednesday as Oklahoma City’s second-ranked scoring defense has been struggling recently. Given LeVert’s price and opportunity, McClure sees value in the 30-year-old for NBA DFS lineups. See McClure’s other NBA DFS picks right here.
McClure is also targeting a player who could go off for massive numbers on Friday because of a dream matchup. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is here.
Who is DFS pro Mike McClure putting in his optimal NBA DFS lineups for Friday? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from a professional DFS player who has over $2 million in career winnings, and find out.
