Opening night puts all six teams on the floor for their season openers. 76ers–Knicks carries a 232.1 total, with the Knicks favored by 4.5 and a 118.3 implied total. Thunder–Spurs sits at 231.1 with the Spurs favored by 1. Celtics–Pistons comes in at 221.1 with the Celtics favored by 1.5. The three-game slate locks Tuesday at 3:00 PM ET when Celtics–Pistons tips. 76ers–Knicks starts at 7:00 PM ET and Thunder–Spurs at 9:30 PM ET.
Tobias Harris is out for the Spurs, and Dylan Harper (DK $5,100) projects to start beside De'Aaron Fox (DK $6,100) and Stephon Castle (DK $6,800). Bruce Brown is out for the Knicks, and Josh Hart (DK $6,200) projects to start on the wing. The Knicks carry the slate's heaviest DFS Hero numbers. Karl-Anthony Towns (DK $7,800) sits at a 51.1% optimal rate and OG Anunoby (DK $5,300) at 49.5%. Anfernee Simons (DK $4,400), Dean Wade (DK $3,800) and Adem Bona (DK $3,700) are questionable for the 76ers. Their game tips after lock, which makes all three late-swap checks.
Injury Watch
- Tobias Harris (Spurs, out)
- Bruce Brown (Knicks, out)
- Anfernee Simons (DK $4,400) (76ers, questionable)
- Devin Carter (Celtics, out)
- Nikola Topic (Thunder, out)
- Taurean Prince (Pistons, out)
- Dean Wade (DK $3,800) (76ers, questionable)
- Adem Bona (DK $3,700) (76ers, questionable)
Point Guard
Dylan Harper (DK $5,100)
Tobias Harris is out, and Harper projects to start for the Spurs against the Thunder. He draws 32 minutes with a 21.9% usage rate. Books set him at 15.5 points and 4.8 rebounds.
Pricing puts Harper on top at point guard, with a 5.85 value on a 29.8 Hero Projection. He is 56.8% owned with a 63.5% optimal rate. The field and the sims land on the same guard.
Payton Pritchard (DK $5,400)
Pritchard projects for 31 minutes for the Celtics against the Pistons, with a 21.4% usage rate. Books set his points line at 16.2. He is a popular play, and his 46.3% optimal rate is the second-best at point guard.
De'Aaron Fox (DK $6,100)
Fox handles a 25.0% usage rate across 31 projected minutes for the Spurs against the Thunder. He carries a 26.9% optimal rate and a leverage of 4.3, the third-best leverage at point guard.
Shooting Guard
Josh Hart (DK $6,200)
Bruce Brown is out, and Hart starts on the Knicks' wing against the 76ers with a 32-minute projection. Books set him at 7.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists. The Knicks carry a 118.3 implied total.
The rebounds and assists make Hart one of the Knicks' sharpest prices. He is 44.6% owned with a 48.2% optimal rate, the second-best at shooting guard. He scored 32.3 DK points against the Spurs on June 13 last season and averaged 31.6 last season.
Stephon Castle (DK $6,800)
Castle draws 33 projected minutes and a 24.9% usage rate for the Spurs against the Thunder, with a 35.9% optimal rate. His 54.9 ceiling is the top mark at shooting guard. The field is on him in numbers, and books set his assists line at 6.3.
Cason Wallace (DK $4,600)
Wallace starts for the Thunder against the Spurs with a 27-minute projection and a 1.8 steals line. He carries a 25.9% optimal rate and a leverage of 6.1, the third-best leverage at shooting guard.
Small Forward
Ausar Thompson (DK $5,200)
Defense drives Thompson's case against the Celtics. Books set him at 2 steals and 1.5 blocks, plus a 6.1 rebounds line. He projects to start for the Pistons at 28 minutes.
Pricing makes Thompson the top value at small forward, with a 5.23 value on a 27.2 Hero Projection. He is 34.2% owned with a 35.3% optimal rate.
Jalen Williams (DK $6,600)
Williams runs a 26.1% usage rate for the Thunder against the Spurs across a 32-minute projection, with a 24.1% optimal rate. Books set him at 18 points and 4.4 assists. He is a crowd favorite on the slate.
Isaiah Joe (DK $3,500)
Threes carry Joe's case for the Pistons against the Celtics: books set him at 1.7 over an 18-minute projection. His price frees salary at the top of a build. He is 19.5% owned with a 20.7% optimal rate.
Power Forward
Karl-Anthony Towns (DK $7,800)
Towns plays both power forward and center for the Knicks against the 76ers. He projects for 32 minutes with a 25.9% usage rate. Books set him at 11.2 rebounds and 18 points.
The Knicks are 4.5-point favorites with a 62% win chance. Towns is 42.9% owned with a 51.1% optimal rate, the top optimal rate at power forward.
OG Anunoby (DK $5,300)
Anunoby logs a 33-minute projection for the Knicks against the 76ers, with a 49.5% optimal rate. Books set him at 17 points and 2.1 threes. His 6.18 value is the top mark at power forward.
Jayson Tatum (DK $9,000)
Tatum owns a 30.0% usage rate for the Celtics against the Pistons and a 29.6% optimal rate. His 45.2 Hero Projection is the top mark at power forward. Books set him at 25.9 points and 8.2 rebounds, and he is a heavily played piece.
Center
John Collins (DK $4,700)
Collins starts in the Pistons' frontcourt against the Celtics with a 29-minute projection. Books set him at 11.9 points and 5 rebounds. His Hero Projection sits at 24.9.
Collins turns his starting role into a 5.29 value. His leverage of 9.7 is one to let Build & Sim size. He is 16.8% owned with a 26.5% optimal rate.
Joel Embiid (DK $8,100)
The 76ers run their offense through Embiid against the Knicks, with a 33.7% usage rate over a 30-minute projection and an 11.7% optimal rate. Books set him at 22.7 points and 7.6 rebounds. The field backs him widely.
What The Market Is Saying
The market builds around Jalen Brunson (DK $7,600), Dylan Harper (DK $5,100) and Karl-Anthony Towns (DK $7,800), treats the Knicks as underpriced, and keys on reports that the Spurs start Harper beside De'Aaron Fox (DK $6,100) and Stephon Castle (DK $6,800). It splits on Victor Wembanyama (DK $10,500) and on Jayson Tatum (DK $9,000), while a minority of the market likes Julian Champagnie (DK $4,300), Tyrese Maxey (DK $8,300), Chet Holmgren (DK $5,900) and Isaiah Hartenstein (DK $4,900). DFS Hero has Tatum at a 29.6% optimal rate. DFS Hero backs the chalk at Harper, with a 63.5% optimal rate against 56.8% ownership, and Brunson's 45.5% optimal rate sits close to his 46.1% ownership. Of the contrarian names, Hartenstein carries a 20.0% optimal rate and a leverage of 5.0.
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The content in our articles is based on data available at the time of publishing. Always double-check your lineups before locking in your players.
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