DraftKings Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Thursday 1/23/20

With three games to choose from on tonight's NBA slate, let's take a look at how to utilize the DFS possibilities.

Here are some of the top plays and sleepers on DraftKings. As always, good luck.

Point Guard

Collin Sexton ($6,500) -- Sexton has been balling since the New Year began, averaging 22.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 11 games. He's scored 20 or more in 7 of those 11 games. In his last three, he's been rebounding and passing at a much higher rate, recording 5.3 rebounds and 4 assists in those contests while shooting at a 43.5%-clip. If he's going to record yet another 20-point game, what better opponent to do it against than the Washington Wizards. The Wizards remain at the cellar in just about every defensive category ranging from points allowed to opponent's field goal percentage. We will get to that all on a short night here, but kick it off with Sexton as a solid option for real-life and fantasy points. Sexton is projected by our model to record 21.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3 assists versus the Wizards.

Caris LeVert ($4,900) -- LeVert has scored double-digits in seven of his last eight games for the Nets. Against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday, LeVert played his most minutes (29) since coming back from a hamstring injury, totaling 16 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists versus one of the NBA's best defenses. He posted 32 fantasy points in that one, and tonight he will face a similar stingy defense when the Nets welcome the Lakers to Brooklyn. The Lakers rank fifth in defensive rating, but what helps LeVert is that the Nets is rank ninth in pace factor (104.7) while Los Angeles is 13th (102.9). Whether or not Kyrie Irving ($8,400) plays, LeVert and Spencer Dinwiddie ($7,000) are capable of pushing the pace and hitting threes. Don't sleep on LeVert tonight.

Shooting Guard

Tim Hardaway Jr. ($4,700) -- Hardaway is a hit or miss player as he gets most of his fantasy points from scoring buckets. He has mostly stuck to hitting threes, with more than 50% of his shot attempts coming from beyond the arc. He exploded for 29 points against the Blazers on Friday in Dallas and gets to face them in Portland tonight. He'll be hoping for similar success in this one. On a short night, it's going to be a tough draw between him, Jordan McRae ($5,000), and Joe Harris ($4,100) for value guards.

Bradley Beal ($7,700) -- Beal has gotten back on track the past two games after his outburst following the Wizards loss to the Bulls. He scored 14 against the Raptors on Friday, and whatever happened after the game led to him scoring 29 and 38 points in back-to-back games. His 38-point performance was against the Heat in overtime last night, where he shot 16 of 24 from the field (66.7%) and 2 for 8 from three (25%). Beal also added 9 rebounds and 5 assists for good measure. He heads into a road game with the Cleveland Cavaliers, who allow 113.9 points per game (20th). If the Wizards control the pace, Beal should flourish tonight.

Small Forward

Kyle Kuzma ($4,600) -- Kuzma has been dealing with inconsistencies, which is why his value is so low even on a night with just three games. Kuzma has averaged 17.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.3 made three-pointers per game over his last eight but scored under 17 real-life points in five of the eight contests. The Lakers have been on the road the last three games, and Kuzma has averaged 25.5 fantasy points on the road trip thus far. He's averaging four more real-life points on the road (15.2) than at home (11.1) this season. Back Kuzma on the road tonight in what should be a high-scoring affair. Our model projects Kuzma to record 13 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.7 made three-pointers tonight.

LeBron James ($10,400) -- LeBron and the Lakers are playing their first back-to-back of 2020 after defeating the New York Knicks last night -- where James cruised to 21 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and a smooth 5 steals. He tallied 45 fantasy points and has now reached 45 or more in 9 of his last 10 games. He's also double-doubled in 7 of his last 10 games and triple-doubled in two of those. Kyrie Irving is listed as probable and DeAndre Jordan ($4,000) as questionable for tonight's matchup in Brooklyn. The Nets record 46.3% of their points in the paint (4th) and rank eighth in points allowed in the paint (46.0) coming into tonight's game. If Jordan isn't able to go, LeBron could very well make a living scoring and rebounding in the paint tonight. LeBron has averaged 25.5 points, 9.2 assists, and 8.5 rebounds in his four road games in January.

Power Forward

Kristaps Porzingis ($8,000) -- Porzingis returned to the Dallas Mavericks lineup on Tuesday and fell one rebound short of a double-double versus the Los Angeles Clippers. He recorded 10 points and 9 boards on just 4 for 17 shooting (23.5%). That was certainly a tough matchup with the Clippers for his first game back, but Portland will be an easier matchup for him. The Blazers allowed Dallas to score 120 points and grab 56 rebounds on Friday without Porzingis. Portland allows 114.1 points per game (24th) as well as the most rebounds per game (48.5) in the league. I expect a better shooting performance for Kristaps tonight, which is backed by our model's projection of 16.9 projected points to go along with 9.2 rebounds.

Dairis Bertans (5,000) -- The power forward position is looking very thin tonight, and taking Bertans off a 24-point performance against the Heat last night isn't a bad idea. That was his 11th 20-point game of the season, and his 7th time making three or more triples in a game over his past 10. The Wizards are scoring 113.6 points per game over their last five, and Bertans is averaging 14.8 points per game and 25.3 fantasy points during that stretch. He's a viable option to score 15-20 real-life points tonight against Cleveland, who have lost five straight home games and their last five overall. Beal will need another scorer tonight, and Bertans can stretch the floor and be just that. He's averaged nine three-point attempts per over his last five games and is hitting 3.4 (37.7%) per game. Our algorithm projects him to post 15.1 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.7 three-pointers made.

Center

Tristan Thompson ($7,300) -- Thompson is coming off a monster effort in a terrible loss to the Knicks on Monday. Thompson was grabbing everything, pulling down a career-high 22 rebounds -- he added 13 points to the mix. Thompson is up to eighth in rebounds per game (10.6) and averages a double-double on the season in boards and points (12.6). The Wizards are ranked 29th in rebounding (42.4) and defensive rebounding per game (32.0), which is good news for Thompson and teammate Kevin Love ($8,100). Thompson already went off against Washington once this season, scoring 21 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in November. He'll look to post a similar line tonight.

Jarrett Allen ($5,900) -- The Fro is best remembered for his huge block on LeBron that sent the internet into a frenzy. Tonight he gets another shot at The King and potentially without fellow center Deandre Jordan. If Jordan is out, Allen's workload increases, and he's almost guaranteed to play 30 minutes. Allen has double-doubled in two of his past three games, averaging 11.3 points and 11 rebounds during that span -- recording 32.75 fantasy points per night. Allen has played the Lakers well in his career, posting 20 points and 5 rebounds during his sole game versus LA in his rookie campaign, and 9.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in two games versus the purple and gold last season. The Nets rank second in rebounding (48.5) thanks to the combo of Allen and Jordan but will need Allen to hold his own versus the Lakers bigs down low. Back Allen tonight, especially if Jordan is out.