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Chris Meaney
Opening night of the 2021-22 NBA season has come and gone, and now it’s Wednesday and we’re greeted by the first big DFS slate of the season.
Every morning on FTNDaily, we will have a comprehensive “first look” article at that day’s NBA DFS slate. This will be your go-to destination for game environments, fantasy-relevant situations to monitor, a quick look at the top-priced players across the industry, and some stats to get you started with the slate.
We have 11 games on tap Wednesday. Let’s dive in.
Consensus Vegas odds are derived from FTNBets Vegas Odds Board.
NBA Vegas Data for Oct. 20 | NBA DFS First Look
Indiana Pacers @ Charlotte Hornets
CHA -2, total: 223.5
2020 pace: IND (5th), CHA (21st)
Situations to monitor:
- Miles Bridges, Terry Rozier, and Malcolm Brogdon are listed as probable. All three are fully expected to play.
- Caris LeVert will miss the first four games of the regular season, while T.J. Warren and Kelan Martin also remain out for the Pacers. Jeremy Lamb is listed as questionable.
Chicago Bulls @ Detroit Pistons
CHI -5, total: 218.5
2020 pace: CHI (14th), DET (22nd)
Situations to monitor:
- Rookie of the Year candidate Cade Cunningham has been ruled out for the season opener.
- Coby White has been ruled out for the Bulls.
Boston Celtics @ New York Knicks
NYK -2, total: 217.5
2020 pace: BOS (20th), NYK (30th)
Situations to monitor:
- Jaylen Brown (COVID-19 protocols) is listed as questionable for the Celtics, though the Celtics had expressed optimism earlier in the week.
- Nerlens Noel is listed as doubtful for the Knicks, opening up opportunities for Mitchell Robinson and Taj Gibson.
Washington Wizards @ Toronto Raptors
TOR -2.5, total: 219.5
2020 pace: WAS (1st), TOR (13th)
Situations to monitor:
- Pascal Siakam is out and Chris Boucher is currently listed as questionable.
- Rui Hachimura is out for the Wizards, as is Thomas Bryant. Bradley Beal is expected to play.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Memphis Grizzlies
MEM -7.5, total: 216.5
2020 pace: CLE (24th), MEM (8th)
Situations to monitor:
- Dillon Brooks has been ruled out for the Grizzlies.
Houston Rockets @ Minnesota Timberwolves
MIN -5.5, total: 229
2020 pace: HOU (6th), MIN (4th)
Situations to monitor:
- John Wall is out and not expected to play this season with the Rockets.
Philadelphia 76ers @ New Orleans Pelicans
PHI -3, total: 225.5
2020 pace: PHI (T11th), NOP (9th)
Situations to monitor:
- Zion Williamson and Ben Simmons are not expected to play in this game.
Orlando Magic @ San Antonio Spurs
SAS -6, total: 212.5
2020 pace: ORL (T16th), SAS (15th)
Situations to monitor:
- Markelle Fultz, Chuma Okeke and Michael Carter-Williams are listed as out for the Magic.
- Jalen Suggs is listed as questionable due to a non-COVID-19 illness. It was noted that he “is trending toward playing.”
Oklahoma City Thunder @ Utah Jazz
UTA -12, total: 221.5
2020 pace: OKC (7th), UTA (T16th)
Situations to monitor:
- none
Denver Nuggets @ Phoenix Suns
PHO -6, total: 223
2020 pace: DEN (T26th), PHO (T26th)
Situations to monitor:
- none
Sacramento Kings @ Portland Trail Blazers
POR -5.5, total: 232.5
2020 pace: SAC (10th), POR (T16th)
Situations to monitor:
- none
Top NBA DFS Plays | NBA DFS First Look
The top-priced players on the NBA DFS slate at hand are listed below for DraftKings, FanDuel and SuperDraft. For SuperDraft, these are going to be the players without scoring multipliers (if any) or those with the lowest multipliers.
Top DraftKings NBA DFS Plays | NBA DFS First Look
- Joel Embiid ($10,600)
- Nikola Jokic ($10,400)
- Damian Lillard ($10,100)
- Domantas Sabonis ($9,800)
- Karl-Anthony Towns ($9,700)
Top FanDuel NBA DFS Plays | NBA DFS First Look
- Nikola Jokic ($11,400)
- Joel Embiid ($11,000)
- Karl-Anthony Towns ($10,800)
- Jayson Tatum ($10,200)
- Damian Lillard ($10,000)
Top SuperDraft NBA DFS Plays | NBA DFS First Look
- Joel Embiid (1x)
- Nikola Jokic (1x)
- Domantas Sabonis (1x)
- Karl-Anthony Towns (1.05x)
- Bradley Beal (1.05x)
- Damian Lillard (1.05x)
Five Stats to Know | NBA DFS First Look
Below are noteworthy stats to assist you in starting your NBA DFS research for Wednesday.
1. Bradley Beal posted a 37.05% usage rate in games with Russell Westbrook out last season (33.95% with him in). With Westbrook in Los Angeles, Beal has the chance to once again operate as the only reliable offensive asset on this team. Leading the league in scoring is well within reach this season and a matchup with the Raptors is a great place to start.
2. Kevin Porter averaged 74.4 touches per game once he was traded to the Houston Rockets last season. This was a higher number than Ja Morant, Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo each posted. With the Rockets hoping Porter can operate as their primary ball-handler, the opportunities for him to post productive fantasy outings will be plentiful.
3. The Detroit Pistons ranked 28th against rebounders, 24th against skilled centers, and 26th against stretch bigs in 2020-21, per advanced DvP. While Isaiah Stewart is likely to inherit the starting center job, he was operating as this for the majority of the second half of last season, so we may not see many changes in their defensive ability. With so much attention on expensive centers, Nikola Vucevic could go rather overlooked on this slate.
4. Brandon Ingram posted a 26.71% usage rate and over 39 FanDuel points per game last season in games where Zion Williamson was inactive. With Williamson expected to be sidelined for the foreseeable future, Ingram will operate as the alpha in an offense that also lost Lonzo Ball.
5. Since the start of the 2020 calendar year, Karl-Anthony Towns has averaged 29.3 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.3 blocks in only 31.8 minutes per game against the Houston Rockets. He’s absolutely abused the Rockets in less time than he typically plays and gets the opportunity to do it once again on Wednesday. The Rockets didn’t bring anyone in that is close to capable of stopping Towns, making him a priority on this slate.
