The 2023 NBA In-Season Tournament begins on Friday with seven group-stage games on the NBA schedule. All 30 NBA teams are split into six groups with teams in the same group playing one another once on Tuesdays and Fridays in November. These games also count toward the team’s regular-season records, so will daily Fantasy basketball players see a little more output from stars in the Friday NBA DFS player pool like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Steph Curry and Luka Doncic?
Should Friday being a part of the first-ever NBA In-Season Tournament affect how you build an NBA DFS lineup? There are lots of unknowns as to how the players view this new tournament, but given their competitive drives, it wouldn’t be shocking to see stars put on special performances, so it’s something to consider when forming an NBA DFS strategy. Before making your NBA DFS picks, be sure to check out the NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stacks and top daily Fantasy basketball picks from SportsLine’s Mike McClure.
McClure is a DFS professional with more than $2 million in career winnings. He’s also a predictive data engineer at SportsLine who uses a powerful prediction model that simulates every minute of every game 10,000 times, taking factors like matchups, statistical trends and injuries into account.
This allows him to find the best NBA DFS values and create optimal lineups that he shares only over at SportsLine. They’re a must-see for any NBA DFS player.
On Thursday, McClure highlighted 76ers center Joel Embiid as one of his top picks in his NBA DFS player pool on both sites. The result: Embiid had 28 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, returning 56.25 points on DraftKings and 53.1 points on FanDuel. Anybody who included him in their lineups was well on the way to a profitable day.
McClure has turned his attention to NBA action on Friday and locked in his top daily Fantasy basketball picks. You can only see them by heading to SportsLine.
Top NBA DFS picks for Friday, November 3
For Friday, one of McClure’s top NBA DFS picks is Trail Blazers guard Malcolm Brogdon, who is listed at $6,500 on both DraftKings and FanDuel. The eight-year veteran is still adjusting to his new team in Portland after being traded from Boston in a package that brought Jrue Holiday to the Celtics. However, he’s making the most of his new role with the ability to create more for himself, averaging 18.2 points with at least 20 points in two of five games this season.
After serving as a role player in Boston alongside Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown last year, the 30-year-old has the chance to become a more aggressive playmaker and have the ball in his hands more in Portland. He averaged 19.1 and 21.2 points per game in his final two seasons with the Pacers before being traded to the Celtics, and daily Fantasy basketball players may see more of that aggressive scorer this season. Portland hosts the Grizzlies, who are 0-5 and allowing the second-most points in the Western Conference (118 ppg), on Friday and this could be a breakout spot for Brogdon, as Portland is without both Scoot Henderson (ankle) and Anfernee Simons (thumb).
Another part of McClure’s optimal NBA DFS strategy includes rostering Grizzlies small forward Ziaire Williams ($4,600 on DraftKings and $4,300 on FanDuel). Williams has one of the more consistent stat lines on Memphis to begin the season with at least eight points and four rebounds in all five games. The No. 10 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft is averaging 10.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game this season.
The 22-year-old is playing significantly more minutes to begin this year than he did over his first two NBA seasons. He is averaging 29.2 minutes while starting all five games after averaging 19.3 minutes over his first couple of years. Williams dealt with multiple knee and a foot injury last season, but especially as the Grizzlies await the return of Ja Morant (suspension), Williams should receive ample opportunities to prove himself as a top-10 pick on a team playing at the fifth-fastest pace to begin the season. See McClure’s other NBA DFS picks right here.
How to set your NBA DFS lineups for Friday, November 3
McClure is also targeting a player who could go off for massive numbers on Friday because of a dream matchup. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is here.
Who is DFS pro Mike McClure putting in his optimal NBA DFS lineups for Friday? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from a professional DFS player who has over $2 million in career winnings, and find out.