FanDuel Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Sunday 1/19/20

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 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 bunch of other great resources to help give you an edge.

Daily fantasy NBA is very reliant on opportunity, so you'll need to make sure that you're up-to-date with key injuries. Our projections update up until tip-off to reflect current news, we have player news updates, and the FanDuel Scout app will send push notifications for pressing updates regarding your players.

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

Let's break down today's main slate, which starts at 3 p.m. EST:

The Slate

This is only a two-game slate, but the slate could change depending on the fate of San Antonio Spurs forward Rudy Gay or Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro, both of whom are listed questionable.

Point Guard

Malcolm Brogdon ($6,800): Brogdon is the clear top option at point guard as he has continued to stuff the stat sheet since his return from injury. He's averaged 36.96 FanDuel points per game since coming back and has continued to captain the ship for a Indiana Pacers team without Victor Oladipo. Brogdon sees a tough matchup against the Denver Nuggets, but it's one that should be slightly easier with Gary Harris and his 106.1 defensive rating out of the lineup due to an adductor injury.

Goran Dragic ($4,600): Goran Dragic never possesses an incredibly high ceiling because of his limited role off the bench for the Heat (only 27.9 minutes per game on the year), but on a two-game slate, his floor will do. Dragic has averaged 23.6 FanDuel points per game across his last six, and he is actually second on the Heat in usage rate at 24.9%. That should increase with Tyler Herro battling a knee issue.

Shooting Guard

DeMar DeRozan ($8,700): This price would have felt incredibly rich for DeMar DeRozan even a handful of games ago, but it appears to be a growing trend of his future role in the San Antonio offense. DeRozan is averaging a massive 50.38 FanDuel points per game over his last five, and that is with LaMarcus Aldridge and Dejounte Murray both fully healthy and in the lineup. DeRozan sees a brutal positional matchup against Jimmy Butler, but he did post 30 points and 7 assists in this same matchup four days ago.

Malik Beasley ($4,500): Many suspected Monte Morris would be the main beneficiary of Jamal Murray missing time with his ankle issue, but it was Malik Beasley who exploded off the bench Thursday against the Golden State Warriors, pouring in 27 points. Beasley may be a more natural fit to replace Murray in the offense as a deadly shooter as he's at 39.6% for the year from downtown. It is unknown whether Beasley will start after the great performance, but coming off the bench may actually improve his usage at this fair price tag.

Small Forward

Will Barton ($6,600): Small forward is incredibly thin, but the must-play on the entire slate is Barton. With Nuggets starters Jamal Murray, Gary Harris, and Paul Millsap all out, the team relies on Barton as its primary ball-handler from the backcourt to a tune of 23.9% usage rate on the year. Barton turned that into 31 points in 43 minutes against the Warriors Thursday, and he will be a top scoring option again Sunday.

T.J. Warren ($5,700): Warren is the only other small forward on the slate getting consistent minutes, but that may not be the only reason to slot him into your lineup. Pacers guard Jeremy Lamb is questionable with a hip injury, and Warren would see a boost -- Malcolm Brogdon would too -- in responsibility to score the basketball. Warren carries a 25.1% usage rate without Lamb on the floor.

Power Forward

Bam Adebayo ($8,800): The slate leaves plenty of money to spend in the frontcourt, and while Domantas Sabonis will be popular, I prefer the slightly cheaper Adebayo. San Antonio is still trying to sort out its frontcourt, rotating between Trey Lyles and Jakob Poeltl to find the best pairing with LaMarcus Aldridge, but Bam took advantage of any Spur in his way when the two teams met four days ago. He posted 14 points and 13 boards, and that point total was actually his lowest in six games. Adebayo should continue his success on the glass against the Spurs, who give up the fifth-most points to opposing power forwards.

Michael Porter Jr. ($5,200): Like Beasley, MPJ came off the bench in a huge way for the Nuggets on Thursday, totaling 18 points and 10 rebounds in an overtime game. There has never been any doubt about Porter's ability to score, but his defensive woes have kept him off the court this season. He actually has a 110.1 defensive rating in his limited minutes this year, so if he can keep contributing at both ends, he should continue to see major minutes for Denver, especially with Paul Millsap out.

Center

Nikola Jokic ($10,000): The highest-priced player on the slate is worth paying up for. Due to Denver's injuries, Jokic joins Will Barton as the only starters left standing. All season the Nuggets have funneled their offense through Jokic, who leads centers with 6.4 assists per game. With 10 missed shots and nine turnovers on Thursday, Jokic still posted a respectable 46.4 FanDuel points. Pay up for the talented Serbian center on such a small slate.

Austin Swaim is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Austin Swaim also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username ASwaim3. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.