We have a quality eight-game NBA DFS main slate on Saturday night, which includes a primetime matchup on ABC between the Lakers and Warriors. It starts with Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets heading to Charlotte to play LaMelo Ball and the Hornets at 7 p.m. ET and wraps up with Kyrie Irving and the Mavericks playing the Kings for the second-straight night at 10 p.m. ET. Our DraftKings lineup has a good mix of veterans and rookies with solid matchups and a few value sleepers under $6K who are the type of low-risk, high-reward options that are key in daily fantasy basketball tournaments.
Before we break down all of our picks, here are the most notable scoring rules for DraftKings contests: Made three-point shot (+0.5 points), rebound (+1.25 points), assists (+1.5 points), steals and blocks (+2 points), double-double (+1.5 points -- max one per player) and triple-double (+3 points -- max one player).
Saturday night's NBA DraftKings Picks: NBA DFS lineup for GPP tournaments
Saturday night main slate, $50,000 budget
PG LaMelo Ball, Hornets vs. Nuggets ($10,200). The third-year point guard has been playing out of his mind lately and should be starting on a nightly basis across all fantasy platforms. Ball had a solid outing on Friday night against the Celtics, despite the Hornets suffering their sixth-straight loss. The former first-round pick just missed out on a triple-double as he posted 24 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds. Even though Ball did not shoot well against Boston (9-22 FG, 2-7 3pt), he still scored 52.3 DraftKings points. He will try to carry that momentum into tonight's game against the Nuggets, who haven't fared well against opposing PGs in DFS this season. Denver allows the sixth-most DraftKings points per game to the position (50.57) and the fifth-most points. This is a good spot for Ball, as he and Terry Rozier are the Hornets' best offensive players.
SG Jordan Poole, Warriors vs. Lakers ($7,500). To round out our starting backcourt, we will go with Poole, who has put together two back-to-back good performances against the Thunder and Trail Blazers. In Golden State's last game against Portland, Poole recorded 36 points on 13-of-25 shooting from the field and 7-of-12 shooting from three-point range. He also had seven assists and only two turnovers, which helped him score 52.3 DraftKings points. The last time Poole made seven threes in a game was on Jan. 16 against the Wizards, where he scored 52.8 DK points. The 23-year-old combo guard will face a stiffer test against the new-look Lakers tonight. However, Poole should be able to exploit some matchups as Los Angeles traded away one of its better perimeter defenders in Patrick Beverley. Look for Poole to take a lot of shots tonight, especially if the Lakers try to double-team Klay Thompson.
SF Bennedict Mathurin, Pacers @ Wizards ($4,600). After only scoring 4.5 DraftKings points on Wednesday night, Mathurin had an excellent bounce-back performance on Friday night against the Suns. The rookie had 22 points (7-15 FG, 7-7 FT) and three rebounds in 33 minutes (27.8 DraftKings points). The last time Mathurin scored 20-plus points in a game was against the Grizzlies on Jan. 29, where he also recorded 43.5 DraftKings points. We hope that Mathurin is starting to turn the corner and will have another solid performance tonight against the Wizards. This season, the former Arizona standout is averaging 16 points and 5.7 rebounds per game against Washington (three games). If he can hit those numbers in tonight's game, Mathurin will be one of the better value plays on the slate.
PF Paolo Banchero, Magic vs. Heat ($7,600). Sticking with this year's rookie class, Banchero will also find his way into our DFS lineup. The rookie power forward has produced a double-double in two out of his past three games and scored in double figures in six-straight games. Over that span, Banchero is averaging 43.2 DraftKings points per game. The former Duke star has a tough matchup tonight against the Heat, who allow the 11th-fewest DK points per game to PFs (44.13). However, he played well in Orlando's last meeting against Miami, scoring 26.8 DraftKings points (19 points and five rebounds).
C Clint Capela, Hawks vs. Spurs ($5,900). Capela could be in store for a massive performance tonight against the Spurs, who are coming off a double-overtime loss to the Pistons. In that defeat, the Spurs had no answers for rookie center Jalen Duren, who recorded 30 points and 17 rebounds. Now Capela gets a chance to face San Antonio after scoring 34.8 DraftKings points (seven points and 17 rebounds) against the Suns on Thursday night. The 28-year-old center has recorded a double-double in five out of his past nine games, which is what individual DFS players want to see. Therefore, Capela could be one of the highest-scoring centers on the main slate.
G Colin Sexton, Jazz @ Knicks ($4,000). With Mike Conley being traded to Minnesota, Sexton will be the Jazz's starting point guard for the rest of the season. The 23-year-old has brought a spark to the starting lineup, scoring 37.8 and 43.8 DK points in his past two games. The young combo guard will have his hands full with Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson. DFS players must remember that the Knicks allow the ninth-most DK points per game to PGs (49.8) this season. Sexton is the pure definition of a low-risk, high-reward play in DFS.
F Josh Green, Mavericks @ Kings ($4,800). Green has been a pleasant surprise for the Mavs as he's filled in nicely for an injured Luka Doncic. The 22-year-old wing has scored 10 or more points in five-straight games and is averaging 29.22 DraftKings points per game over that span. One of those games was against the Kings, where Green had 32.5 DraftKings (17 points, seven assists, and four rebounds) on Friday night. If Doncic is back in the starting lineup, we might need to lower our expectations for Green. However, with how he's playing, the young wing will likely be one of the first players off the bench.
UTIL Caris LeVert, Cavaliers @ Bulls ($5,400). To wrap up our DFS lineup for tonight's main slate, we will ride with LeVert, who played well on Friday night against the Pelicans. The veteran shooting guard did a little bit of everything for the Cavs, recording 13 points, nine assists, and six rebounds (38 DK points). The 28-year-old has scored 30-plus DraftKings points in two-straight games and will look to make it three against the Bulls tonight. This season, Chicago allows the ninth-most DraftKings points per game to SGs (43.87). It's a good matchup for LeVert, who is averaging 15.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game against the Bulls this season.