NBA Daily Fantasy Helper: Tuesday 1/8/19

If you're new to daily fantasy basketball -- maybe you started your DFS journey during the MLB or NFL seasons, or maybe basketball is your sport and this will be your first year giving it a shot -- you're in for a treat. The NBA scene changes hugely on a week-to-week, day-to-day, and -- depending on injury news -- even a minute-to-minute basis, making every slate a unique one that requires an ever-changing approach.

With so much changing so quickly, we're here with plenty of tools to help you out. We have daily projections, a matchup heat map, a lineup optimizer, and a ton of other great resources to help give you an edge.

We'll also be coming at you with this primer every day, breaking down a few of the day's top plays at each price point.

Let's take a look at who you should target on today's main slate.

Best of the Best

Russell Westbrook ($11,800): Westbrook's minutes are up lately -- from 34.8 per game on the season to 36.5 per game over his last 10. In those 10 games, he has played no fewer than 34.5 minutes and has topped 36 minutes five times. Unsurprisingly, that's translating to big fantasy numbers (55.3 FanDuel points per game). He brings that into a plus matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves, who play at a top-12 pace and rank 16th in defensive rating and 19th in rebound rate. Our models project him for the slate's top fantasy score. Russ has scored fewer than 50 FanDuel points in only one of his last eight games, and with his consistently high minutes, he offers a great floor, making him an especially strong cash-game option.