NBA DFS Picks: Yahoo Plays and Strategy for Wednesday, January 4

NBA DFS Picks: Yahoo Plays and Strategy for Wednesday, January 4

This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.

After a quiet Tuesday, the NBA storms back with 12 games on the schedule Wednesday. Unfortunately, we'll be missing several star players because of injuries. The Suns have a tough matchup against the Cavaliers on the road and will remain without Devin Booker (groin). The Pelicans will have their depth tested with Brandon Ingram (toe) and Zion Williamson (hamstring) out for their game against the Rockets. Finally, the Bucks, who will be playing the second game of a back-to-back set after beating the Wizards on Tuesday, will remain without Khris Middleton (knee) when they take on the Raptors. Let's try to wade through all the injuries to highlight some players to consider for your Yahoo lineups and a few to avoid.

GUARDS

Ja Morant, MEM at CHA ($44): Morant is on a heater right now, scoring at least 32 points in four of his last five games. He shot 50.4 percent from the field during that stretch while also averaging 5.0 rebounds and 8.8 assists. The Grizzlies and the Hornets rank in the top 10 in the league in pace of play, which should afford Morant plenty of opportunities to stay hot.

Trey Murphy III, NO vs. HOU ($16): The absences of Ingram and Williamson mean that the Pelicans will be without two of their best scorers. Murphy should step into plenty of minutes and shot attempts, making him a great option against a Rockets team with the third-worst defensive rating in the league. Across 14 games in which Murphy has logged at least 30 minutes, he has averaged 16.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals.

Guard to Avoid

Tyrese Maxey, PHI vs. IND ($23): Maxey remained a member of the 76ers' second unit Monday, but the good news was that he played 27 minutes. The problem was he shot just 5-for-14 from the field. He is 9-for-24 from the field since returning from injury and has appeared off the bench in both games. Until he resumes his usual starting role and shows signs of coming out of his shooting funk, it might be best to keep him out of your lineup.

FORWARDS

Julius Randle, NY vs. SA ($43): Talk about consistently stellar production. Entering this matchup, Randle has scored at least 54.6 Yahoo points in six straight games. The Spurs have the worst defensive rating in the league, and RJ Barrett (finger) remains out for the Knicks, so Randle is in another favorable position to produce a monster stat line.

Jalen Williams, OKC at ORL ($16): The Thunder pulled off a blowout win over the Celtics on Tuesday despite Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (illness) being out. Williams played a crucial role in the win, scoring 45.6 Yahoo points over 33 minutes. He has scored at least 25.5 Yahoo points in four straight games and has been playing a lot with injuries forcing the Thunder to go small. Regardless of Gilgeous-Alexander's status, Williams can provide value at this cheap salary.

Forward to Avoid

Mikal Bridges, PHO at CLE ($23): The absence of Booker should lead to added scoring opportunities for Bridges. However, he is only averaging 10.3 shot attempts over the last six games. That contributed to him scoring 22.9 Yahoo points or fewer three times. Add that to a difficult matchup against a Cavaliers team with the best defensive rating in the league, and Bridges looks to have limited upside.

CENTERS

Steven Adams, MEM at CHA ($24): Adams has been a rebounding machine, hauling in at least 21 boards in back-to-back games. He is averaging 11.2 rebounds per game for the season, which is on pace to be the highest mark of his career. Expect him to control the glass in this matchup, with the Hornets allowing the second-most rebounds per game in the league.

Mo Bamba, ORL vs. OKC ($11): Moritz Wagner and Franz Wagner will be serving their suspensions for a previous altercation with the Pistons. To complicate matters for the Magic, Bol Bol was placed in the league's health and safety protocols Tuesday. All of that should result in additional playing time for Bamba, who has averaged 12.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.2 blocks over 10 games in which he has logged at least 20 minutes.

Center to Avoid

Rudy Gobert, MIN vs. POR ($24): Gobert's recent decline in production has been concerning, especially since Karl-Anthony Towns (calf) is still out. Over his last four games, he is averaging just 9.3 points and 7.5 rebounds. His block output has decreased significantly this season, and he just doesn't seem comfortable with his new team. There's no need to take a chance on him during a busy slate with so many other appealing center options.

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. Mike Barner plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: mbarner, DraftKings: mbarner51.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mike Barner
Mike started covering fantasy sports in 2007, joining RotoWire in 2010. In 2018, he was a finalist for the FSWA Basketball Writer of the Year award. Mike also won the 2022-23 FSGA NBA Experts Champions league. In addition to RotoWire, Mike has written for Sportsline, Sports Illustrated, DK Live, RealTime Fantasy Sports, Lineup Lab and KFFL.com.
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