There are six games overall on the NBA ledger Saturday, but the DraftKings main slate consists of four contests. That still gives us a workable player pool that we can navigate to differentiate successfully in tournaments, and there are some enticing individual matchups to exploit throughout the night.
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Slate Overview
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.
Listed spreads/totals are from DraftKings Sportsbook and current as of Saturday, 11/1 @ 12:00 p.m. EDT:
Minnesota Timberwolves (-5.5) at Charlotte Hornets (O/U: 230.5)
Golden State Warriors (-10.5) at *Indiana Pacers (-5) (O/U: 230.5)
Orlando Magic (-8.5) at Washington Wizards (O/U: 235.5)
Houston Rockets (-5.5) at *Boston Celtics (O/U: 225.5)
*Denotes team on second night of back-to-back set
Projected totals look more appealing for DFS purposes than spreads Saturday, although we could certainly end up with four competitive games given the night-to-night unpredictability of the NBA. The best game environment for our purposes may well prove to be the Magic-Wizards clash if Washington outperforms the line, while the Timberwolves-Hornets battle would be due to see its line and total expand and narrow, respectively, if LaMelo Ball is ruled out for Charlotte.
Injury Situations to Monitor
For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report.
LaMelo Ball, CHA (ankle): QUESTIONABLE
If Ball can't suit up Saturday, Collin Sexton could take over primary ball-handling duties, while Tre Mann would likely make a spot start.
Anthony Edwards, MIN (hamstring): OUT
In Edwards' ongoing absence, the T-Wolves backcourt is likely to consist of Mike Conley and Donte DiVincenzo, while Julius Randle should particularly enjoy elevated usage.
Brandon Miller, CHA (shoulder): OUT
In Miller's ongoing absence Saturday, rookie Kon Knueppel should continue starting at small forward.
Other notable injuries:
Bennedict Mathurin, IND (toe): OUT
Andrew Nembhard, IND (shoulder): QUESTIONABLE
Elite Players
The three highest-salaried players on Saturday's slate are LaMelo Ball ($9,800), Pascal Siakam ($9,300) and Alperen Sengun ($9,200).
Ball's status will naturally have to be closely monitored due to his questionable tag, but if he's cleared, he'll come into Saturday's contest with tallies of between 45 and 84.8 DK points in his last four games.
Siakam is averaging 48.6 DK points per contest as the last star standing for Indiana, and even though he'll be on the second night of a back-to-back set Saturday, he played a relatively modest 30 minutes Friday.
Sengun has scored between 40.8 and 71.2 DK points in three of his first four games, as well as a solid 39 in the one other contest during that season-opening sample.
Expected Chalk
Other likely chalk plays include:
Paolo Banchero, ORL ($8,900)
Banchero is still rounding his shot into form, but he's scored 44.2 DK points or more in all but one game thus far, which should make him very popular at his salary.
Stephen Curry, GSW ($8,800)
Curry is shooting 41.9 percent from three-point range over his first five games, and the 50-plus DK-point upside he offers should keep him highly rostered at his salary.
Kevin Durant, HOU ($8,700)
Durant has eclipsed 45 DK points twice in his first four games, and he should have plenty of attention from DFS players at his salary for a marquee matchup with the Celtics.
Jaylen Brown, BOS ($8,600)
Brown continues to sport the highest usage rate of his career while shouldering the majority of the load for the Celtics, which has led to an even safer floor than usual and an average of 42 DK points per contest.
Julius Randle, MIN ($8,500)
Randle is taking on plenty of extra work himself with Anthony Edwards sidelined, and he's scored no fewer than 42.8 DK points in any of his first five games.
Mid-Range Money
Jonathan Kuminga, GSW at IND ($6,200)
Kuminga has been playing his complementary role in the Warriors' attack to near perfection, generating 33.7 DK points per contest while shooting a career-best 53.7 percent, including 43.8 percent from behind the arc. The versatile wing even has a career-high 76.2 percent success rate from the line at the moment, and he's shot 50.0 percent or better in all but one game. The Pacers have played some feisty defense despite their winless record, but Kuminga has flashed a solid floor and should be involved in a game the Warriors are comfortable favorites in due to the injury-decimated Indiana roster.
Collin Sexton, CHA vs. MIN ($6,000)
Sexton has been a nice fit in the Hornets' backcourt, averaging 29.8 DK points over his first five games on the strength of 18.5 points, 4.8 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 1.0 steals per contest. The veteran guard is also shooting a career-best 58.1 percent, including 60.0 percent from distance, and Saturday, there's a chance he takes the floor without LaMelo Ball due to the latter's ankle injury. Sexton sports a 27.2 percent usage rate and average of 48.2 DK points per 36 minutes with Ball off the floor, numbers that would make the former an absolute bargain at his current salary.
Key Values
Bilal Coulibaly, WAS vs. ORL ($5,800)
Coulibaly hit the floor running in his season debut against the Thunder on Thursday, scoring 39 DK points in just 24 minutes thanks to his well-balanced line of 16 points, eight rebounds, four assists, three blocks and one steal. The talented wing drained half his 12 shot attempts as well, and he should be due for a bump in minutes Saturday. The Magic typically present as a tough defensive matchup, but Orlando has been a bit more generous than usual in the early going and are allowing 48.9 percent shooting, including 49.8 percent on the road.
Wendell Carter, ORL at WAS ($5,400)
Carter makes for an intriguing play on the other side of the Magic-Wizards tilt, as the veteran big man has opened the season with four tallies of 26 DK points or better in his first six games. That sample includes totals of 32.5 and 35.5 in two of his last three contests, and after starting off the season 0-for-2 from behind the arc, Carter is spacing the floor nicely with a 63.6 percent success rate from deep (7-for-11) over his subsequent four contests. The Wizards are allowing the fourth-most DK points per game (63.0) to centers so far this season, along with a robust 61.5 rebounds per contest and a 40.0 percent success rate from deep in their first two home games.
Tari Eason, HOU at BOS ($4,500)
Eason is filling his usual bench role to open the season, one that typically affords him minutes in the mid-20s on average and a fair amount of opportunity to stuff the stat sheet. The veteran was off to a sluggish start in his first two games before picking up the pace considerably in the subsequent pair of contests, providing 40.3 and 28.8 DK points in the latter sample on the strength of 18.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.0 steals on 60.9 percent shooting, including 70.0 percent from behind the arc. Houston has played a light schedule thus far and comes in with two days of rest against a Celtics squad on the second night of a back-to-back set, giving Eason a solid chance of delivering a strong return on a salary that's in no way commensurate to the upside he can offer.
