FanDuel Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Thursday 12/9/21

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 basketball is very reliant on a player's 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 on FanDuel.

The Slate and Key Injuries

There is only one major injury to note -- Keldon Johnson of the Spurs.

The bad news? It doesn't really provide much obvious value even Johnson is doubtful with an ankle sprain. Keita Bates-Diop, Lonnie Walker, and Bryn Forbes split the minutes fairly evenly for San Antonio after Johnson did not return.

Devin Vassell may enter that mix as well if he returns from his quad injury, but he's doubtful to return for Popovich's boys tonight, as well.

Really, the only other statuses in doubt are with Memphis. Both Kyle Anderson (back) and Brandon Clarke (knee) are listed as questionable, but they also don't have a significant impact on the slate.

We can pretty much play things straight up with minimal news on the horizon. Enjoy some downtime today!

Guards

Donovan Mitchell ($8,400): Mitchell should be inherently less popular with salary to spend on Lakers forwards and the two marquee centers, but he's still solid here. He has one of the best roles in the NBA for Utah with a 33.7% usage rate, and he's used it to score at least 44 FanDuel points in five straight games. If he's given his full minutes, he usually produces, and the 3.5-point spread against Philadelphia gives solid chances of that happening Thursday.

Seth Curry ($5,400): On a full slate, I just never get to Curry. He's buried on the Sixers with a low usage rate. But his hyper-efficient scoring (63.3 true shooting percentage) for a guard can allow him to fill it up in one night. He's broken 30 FanDuel points nine times this season, and he's seen at least 32 minutes in nine straight. He's on the court with the ability to explode, and that's upside plenty of guards on this slate lack.

Others to Consider:
Desmond Bane ($6,400): Salary shot way up after back-to-back 40 FanDuel point games. But he has that upside.
Tyus Jones ($5,800): The lower-salary, higher-floor option from Memphis. He has at least 23 FanDuel points in five straight.
Bryn Forbes ($3,900): The starting lineup will be key, but Popovich could lean on him in Keldon's stead. At this salary, minimal risk to see.

Wings

LeBron James ($10,400): All three Lakers are over-salaried, but per-dollar value is not a huge concern on this three-game slate. We just need points, so the best Lakers option is far and away LBJ. James has a 31.9% usage rate since returning from injury, and both Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis are sub-25.0% with some rough shooting splits to justify that at a salary close to LeBron. LeBron is probable and should play Thursday.

Dillon Brooks ($6,100): Desmond Bane is the more efficient player, but Brooks is still the one leading the offense currently. He still has a 30.6% usage rate this season with Ja Morant off the floor, and Bane (22.4%) lags way behind in that department. The extra offensive responsibility just boosts Brooks' floor, but I think I'd prefer to have both at fairly affordable salaries to capture a ton of scoring inside a 109.5 implied team total.

Others to Consider:
Will Barton ($6,000): He'll be popular after dropping 20 real-life points last night, but he's still third on the Nuggets' pecking order personally.
Bojan Bogdanovic ($5,200): 25-plus FanDuel points in five of his last seven games. A high-floor plug with good minutes.
Lonnie Walker ($4,100): If he starts, he's a lock in cash and single-entry lineups. Should see plenty of floor time as a similar player to Keldon.

Bigs

Joel Embiid ($10,600): I feel like I'm in the matrix choosing "the red pill" with Embiid or "the blue pill" with Nikola Jokic. They're both outstanding and the safest way to spend salary on the slate while still providing a ceiling. Like Neo, I went with the red pill, Embiid. The $500 in salary goes a long way on a slate short in terms of value, and Embiid's usage rate (35.8%) and FanDuel points per minute mark (1.58) are better than Jokic's since he returned from injury.

Jaren Jackson Jr. ($6,200): I fully plan to use Bane, Brooks, and Jackson in the same single-entry lineup. That provides me access to most of the usage and scoring talent against a Lakers team that's struggled to a 109.9 defensive rating in their last 10 games. Jackson Jr. averages a team-best 1.33 FanDuel points per minute without Morant on the floor this season and is the shining star of numberFire's projections today.

Others to Consider:
Nikola Jokic ($11,100): My only complaint is he's not power forward eligible. Still an absurd 1.60 FanDuel points per minute the past two weeks.
Jakob Poeltl ($6,700): A contrarian build is using Poeltl's high floor at center and spending elsewhere. Not a bad one.
Aaron Gordon ($5,500): Like Jackson, a power forward staple. He has upside with 30 FanDuel points three times in his last six games.