The Detroit Pistons have a monumental task on Thursday as they face Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets with five of their top seven scorers sidelined. The two who will play – Jaden Ivey and James Wiseman – are two top 5 picks that could also make for a pretty cheap NBA DFS stack against Denver. Ivey has averaged 18.3 points and 10.3 assists in his last three games, while Wiseman has had more double-doubles in 12 games with Detroit than he has in 60 games with the Warriors.
With low-priced NBA DFS picks like the two Pistons, you could still field high-priced Superstars from Thursday’s NBA DFS player pool. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Devin Booker and Domantas Sabonis are all available Thursday, so which ones should you include in your daily fantasy basketball lineup? Before you hit NBA DFS picks for Thursday, make sure to check out SportsLine’s Mike McClure’s NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stacks and top daily fantasy basketball picks.
McClure is a DFS professional with over $2 million in career earnings. He is also a Predictive Data Engineer at SportsLine, using a powerful prediction model that simulates 10,000 times every minute of every game, accounting for factors such as matchups, statistical trends and injuries.
This allows him to find the best NBA DFS scores and create optimal lineups that he only shares on SportsLine. They are a must have for any NBA DFS player.
On Wednesday, McClure highlighted Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan as one of his top NBA DFS picks. The result: DeRozan produced 33 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals, and averaged 46.25 points on DraftKings and 45.1 points on FanDuel. Anyone who included him in their lineups was well on their way to a profitable day.
Now, McClure turned his attention to NBA action on Thursday, laying down his best daily fantasy basketball picks. You can only see them if you go to SportsLine.
The best NBA DFS picks for Thursday, March 16th
One of McClure’s top NBA DFS picks for Thursday is Nets point guard Spencer Dinwiddie ($7,900 at DraftKings and $8,700 at FanDuel). Brooklyn has unlocked something with Dinwiddie since he sat out last Thursday’s game as he has averaged 20 points, 12.7 assists and 5 rebounds in the three games since then. His three highest assists of the season came from those three games, as he had 11 assists on Friday, 16 on Sunday, and 11 on Tuesday.
Dinwiddie should have every opportunity to pick up plenty of stats again on Thursday against a team that loves going up and down Sacramento. The Kings concede the third most points per game in the NBA, and their defense has deteriorated over the season. Sacramento has allowed 126.3 PPG in its last 10 games, which is nearly 10 points more per game than the 117.2 PPG it has allowed in its first 58 contests.
Another part of McClure’s optimal NBA DFS strategy involves fielding Nugget’s point guard Jamal Murray ($7,700 at DraftKings, $8,200 at FanDuel). Murray likely has a knee injury but is expected to sit out after Tuesday’s final game. In his last eight games, Murray has averaged 20.5 points, 6.8 assists and 1.6 steals, all of which are above his season averages.
Murray should be eager to speak up against the Pistons’ defense, which ranks 28th in defensive ratings and 29th in points allowed per game. Detroit has allowed the second most fantasy points for opposing point guards at FanDuel and third most at DraftKings. Three of the nine players Detroit used in its last game were on either two-way contracts or 10-day contracts, so don’t hesitate to use Murray against the exhausted Pistons.
How to set your NBA DFS lineup for Thursday, March 16th
McClure is also targeting a player who could fold for a massive numbers dream matchup on Thursday. This choice could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who that is here.
Who does DFS pro Mike McClure put in his optimal NBA DFS lineup for Thursday? Visit SportsLine now to see the best NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice and stacks, all from a professional DFS player who has over $2 million in career earnings and find out.
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