DraftKings Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Thursday 4/8/21

With seven games to choose from on Thursday's slate -- which locks at 7:30 p.m. EST -- let's look at the top options across all five positions for NBA DFS.

Be sure to check out our projections, which are updated throughout the day as news breaks, and our other DFS tools such as advanced stats and a matchup heat map.

Here are some of the top plays on today's DraftKings slate. As always, good luck.

Point Guard

Luka Doncic ($10,900) - Tonight, we get Luka versus Giannis in the battle of statsheet-stuffing stars -- or do we? After missing Wednesday's game, Giannis is doubtful to play Thursday, meaning Doncic could be the only player above the $10,000 threshold. That also makes him the only healthy player on this slate averaging above 50 DraftKings points per game. And as if Luka's 55.7 DK points per game weren't desirable enough, he's averaged 59.2 at home this season, as well as posting 63.5 in his only game against the Milwaukee Bucks. A boost in pace -- Milwaukee is third, per NBA.com -- only adds to Luka's high upside on a night like tonight.

Malachi Flynn ($4,700) - The Toronto Raptors are still a shell of what they were last year and early on this season. Trades and injuries have now decimated their squad to the point they're down to their third option at point guard. No Kyle Lowry and no Fred VanVleet has opened up room for Flynn to play most of the minutes at the point and, as a result, produce. The young guard has converted an average of 32.7 minutes into 14.3 points and 36.4 DK points a contest over the last three. He's added peripheral stats across a few categories and should continue to do so as long as his workload is high. That won't change, especially against a Chicago Bulls team allowing a cool 113.5 points per game on the year.

Shooting Guard

Donovan Mitchell ($8,600) - Mitchell's had a couple lower games of late, but a pair of them come via blowouts. In fact, in the All-Star's last 10 games, he's averaged 1.45 DK points per minute, or 0.19 above his season average to this point. At that rate, if Mitchell was to play his average of 33.2 minutes, he would return no fewer than 48 DK points and 5.6 points per $1,000. This one shouldn't be a blowout, either, as -- per NBA Finals odds -- the Jazz are favored by seven over Portland in a game with a 231 over/under. Mitchell should be the primary driver of his squad's 119-point implied total.

Collin Sexton ($7,600) - You probably know that the Oklahoma City Thunder are in an all-out rebuild, driven by young and upcoming players. However, did you know that since the All-Star break they're now dead last with a 117.5 defensive rating? They've been absolutely demolished of late, giving up 140, 133 and 132 points in their last three games, respectively. This just feels like one of those games where Sexton will take advantage and explode for a big scoring night. He's scored at least 20 in 9 of his last 10.

Small Forward

Jerami Grant ($7,000) - As we've come to know, facing the Sacramento Kings has its perks. They are last on the year in defensive efficiency, trailing the next-closest team by 1.6 points, all the while playing at the league's 11th-fastest pace. They average 2.6 more possessions per game than Grant's Detroit Pistons, who scored a very OK 107 points the last time these two met. Yet, Grant went for 30 points and tallied up 40.3 DK points when all was said done. Add in his success on the road (averaging 2.1 additional fantasy points away compared to home), and you have a recipe for success in this matchup.

DeAndre Bembry ($3,800) - Alongside Flynn, Bembry is one of the fill-in contributors of late for Toronto. After becoming a rotation player off the bench, the combo guard/forward has started two straight games, yielding 30-plus DK points and logging 30-plus minutes in each. He's shot well from the floor and has turned in a combined 12 boards, 8 assists and 6 steals. He's far too much of a value at less than $4,000.

Power Forward

Kristaps Porzingis ($8,700) - Some people may not feel comfortable rostering Porzingis tonight, and that could lead to a big advantage for those who opt to roll him out in tournaments. Prior to missing Dallas' last two games, the big man had completely caught fire, averaging 45.6 DK points a game over a six-game span. On two occasions he surpassed 50 fantasy points in addition to a pair of double-doubles. He makes for a great stack with Doncic in an uptempo game against a shorthanded Bucks defense.

Kevin Love ($5,800) - It's been another lost season for Love, but hear me out. His minutes are trending up, as he's gone from 20 to 23 and 26 in the three games he's appeared in since his return. Last time out, he played 26 minutes in route to 9 points, 8 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals and a total of 27 DK points. He also had a double-double in the game prior. With injuries to Jarrett Allen and Larry Nance Jr., he's played a lot of small-ball five, which is to his advantage against OKC. The Thunder are down to their third starting center and are noticeably thin in the frontcourt at this time.

Center

Nikola Vucevic ($8,700) - Vooch continues his dominant run so far in a Chicago uniform. On Tuesday, he came through with 32 points, 16 boards and 63 DK points on 14 of 29 shooting in the Bulls' latest win over the Pacers. In doing so, he made it two straight games with both a double-double and 50-plus fantasy points, but also three of four with at least 49.5. He owns a 27.6% usage rate, and that should play well versus the injured and reeling Raptors.

Tony Bradley ($4,200) - Bradley is a bit of an under the radar play tonight. While Moses Brown is set to start again for the Thunder, Bradley -- without all of Al Horford, Mike Muscala and Isaiah Roby healthy -- has gotten his fair run over the last four games. He has played no fewer than 21 minutes in each, racking up an average of 11.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 23.8 DK points in the process. You're counting on him to be efficient with his team, but that's certainly in the cards here. Bradley draws the under-sized Cavs, who are 27th in rebounding rate since the break.

Brett Oswalt is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Brett Oswalt also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username BRO14THEKID. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the authors alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.