NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Friday, January 23

Dominate DraftKings NBA DFS with elite picks, dollar-value sleepers, and injury-driven strategies—track matchups, usage, and lineups for your sharpest roster today.
NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Friday, January 23

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A six-game DraftKings DFS main slate brings a mix of surging home teams, injury-driven opportunity and several high-end fantasy basketball targets to build around. With NBA injury reports continuing to thin rotations across the league, tracking NBA lineups, depth charts and player usage is essential for projecting fantasy basketball stats and uncovering DFS value. This breakdown highlights elite plays, expected chalk and salary-saving options while factoring in the latest NBA news, matchup data and recent trends. Whether you're building lineups around star guards, attacking frontcourt mismatches or hunting for value tied to NBA injuries, this guide is designed to support sharper DraftKings roster construction.

DraftKings Main Slate NBA Games Today

HOU at DET: Rockets 11-13 on road; Pistons on four-game win streak; 17-4 at home 

PHX at ATL: Suns on three-game win streak; Hawks 4-6 in last 10 games

SAC at CLE: Kings on three-game slide; Cavs 14-11 at home 

BOS at BKN: Celtics 14-9 on road; Nets on three-game slide 

NOP at MEM: Pelicans on three-game slide; Grizzlies 3-7 in last 10 games 

IND at OKC: Pacers on three-game slide; Thunder on two-game win streak 

For the latest spreads and over/unders, visit RotoWire's NBA Odds page. There you can also find player props, futures, picks, articles and sportsbook bonus codes.

NBA Injury Report Today

For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report       

HOU - Steven Adams (ankle), Tari Eason (ankle), Dorian Finney-Smith (ankle): OUT

ATL - Kristaps Porzingis (Achilles), Zaccharie Risacher (knee): OUT 

SAC - Keegan Murray (ankle): OUT

CLE - Darius Garland (toe), Sam Merrill (hand): OUT

BOS - Neemias Queta (illness): Questionable; Josh Minott (ankle), Derrick White (): OUT

NOP - Herbert Jones (ankle): Questionable; Jose Alvarado (oblique): OUT

MEM - Jock Landale (personal): Questionable; Santi Aldama (knee), Zach Edey (ankle), Ja Morant (elbow): OUT

IND - Bennedict Mathurin (thumb): OUT 

OKC - Alex Caruso (thigh), Isaiah Hartenstein (calf), Ajay Mitchell (abdomen), Aaron Wiggins (groin), Jalen Williams (hamstring): OUT

Elite NBA DFS Picks

Guards

Devin Booker, Suns ($8,800) at Hawks 

Booker continues to lead the charge for his squad, averaging 24.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists over 10 games, including four with more than 40 DK points and a high of 49.3. He should continue to prosper against the Hawks, who are giving up the league's sixth-most points per game, including the eighth-highest field-goal percentage. 

Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers ($9,700) vs. Kings 

Mitchell reached the 30-point mark in five of the last 10 games, averaging 26.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.5 steals over that span. He faces an ideal opportunity to keep up the production, as the Kings give up the league's fourth-most points per game and second-highest field-goal percentage. 

Forwards/Centers

Jaylen Brown, Celtics ($10,000) at Nets 

Brown reached the 30-point mark in each of the last three games, including a high of 41 points and back-to-back 30-point double-doubles in the two most recent outings. He is likely to keep it up against the Nets, who give up the league's eighth-highest field-goal percentage to opposing small forwards, and the league's second-highest three-point shooting percentage. 

Jalen Johnson, Hawks ($10,500) vs. Suns 

Johnson bounced back from a bit of a lull with over 60 DK points in each of the last two games and is averaging 21.1 points, 10.2 rebounds, 6.4 assists over 10 outings. He is up for a challenge against the Suns but has a good chance to pad his stats, as they give up the league's fifth-most free throws per game to opposing power forwards. 

Jalen Duren, Pistons ($7,700) vs. Rockets 

Duren is averaging 17.3 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 blocks over four games since returning from a four-game absence. He should find a good chance to stand out with a bit of a break against a shorthanded Rockets frontcourt.

Expected NBA DFS Chalk 

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder ($10,700) vs. Pacers

Gilgeous-Alexander is coming off an incredible offensive outing, as he delivered 40 points on 16-for-19 shooting, along with 11 assists in just 33 minutes of action. He is averaging 31.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.1 blocks over 10 appearances and is up for an advantageous matchup against the Pacers, who give up the league's eighth-most points per game and sixth-highest field-goal percentage. 

Mid-Range NBA DFS Picks

Anfernee Simons, Celtics ($5,000) at Nets 

Simons finished with less than 10 points in each of the last two games but is averaging 16.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists over his last 10 outings. He should do well against the Nets, after he racked up 35.8 DK points in their previous meeting. 

Jarrett Allen, Cavaliers ($6,500) vs. Kings

Allen is averaging a modest 11.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.0 blocks over the last five games, with a high of 34.3 DK points. He is up for a favorable matchup against the Kings, who are giving up the league's second-most points in the paint and sixth-most rebounds per game. 

NBA DFS Value Picks

Jordan Poole, Pelicans ($4,500) at Grizzlies 

Poole has reached the 20 DK-point mark in four of the last six games, averaging 13.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists across that span. He should do well against the Grizzlies, who are shorthanded in the backcourt.

Saddiq Bey, Pelicans ($5,400) at Grizzlies

Bey is averaging 16.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 0.8 steals over five games since returning from a six-game absence. He has a good chance to maintain momentum against the shorthanded Grizzlies, who also give up the league's fourth-most rebounds and second-most blocks per game to opposing small forwards. 

Vince Williams, Grizzlies ($4,400) vs. Pelicans

Williams is averaging 8.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 20.8 minutes per game over his last six appearances. He is in line for more playing time while his squad is significantly shorthanded, and he has an ideal opportunity to fill the stat sheet against the Pelicans, who give up the league's third-most points per game. 

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Dan Bruno plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: duelingdan.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dan has been writing all things NBA for RotoWire since 2014. He is an active fantasy sports player, with a love for DFS. Dan is a certified Coach with the Ontario Basketball Association and is a recreation professional in his home city.
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