After the NBA stepped aside on Monday to allow basketball fans to focus on the NCAA Championship Game, the professionals are back with a stacked 14-game slate on Tuesday. UConn defeated Purdue, 75-60, in the Title Game on Monday night, and UConn has had a huge impact on both the NBA and in daily Fantasy basketball throughout the last decades. Bulls center Andre Drummond played one season at UConn before going pro and has been one of the most dominant true centers in the league, supplying NBA DFS lineups with points, rebounds and blocks.
Drummond has a double-double in three straight games, averaging 12.3 points and 14.7 rebounds over that span, so should daily Fantasy basketball players consider using him in NBA DFS lineups against the Knicks on Tuesday? Nearly every team takes the court tonight, providing one of the deepest NBA DFS player pools of the year. With star options such as Luka Doncic, Victor Wembanyama and Jayson Tatum available, there are plenty of ways to form your NBA DFS strategy. Before making your NBA DFS picks, be sure to check out the NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stacks, and top daily Fantasy basketball picks from SportsLine's Mike McClure.
McClure is a DFS professional with more than $2 million in career winnings. He's also a predictive data engineer at SportsLine who uses a powerful prediction model that simulates every minute of every game 10,000 times, taking factors like matchups, statistical trends and injuries into account.
This allows him to find the best NBA DFS values and create optimal lineups that he shares only over at SportsLine. They're a must-see for any NBA DFS player.
On Thursday (when McClure last made picks), McClure highlighted Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson as one of his top picks in his NBA DFS player pool on both sites. The result: Brunson had 35 points, two rebounds, 11 assists and three steals, returning 61 points on DraftKings and 59.9 points on FanDuel. Anybody who included him in their lineups was well on the way to a profitable day.
McClure has turned his attention to NBA action on Tuesday and locked in his top daily Fantasy basketball picks. You can only see them by heading to SportsLine.
Top NBA DFS picks for Tuesday, April 9
For Tuesday, one of McClure's top NBA DFS picks is rostering Raptors forward RJ Barrett, who is listed at $7,700 on DraftKings and $8,000 on FanDuel. Barrett is averaging 25.3 points, seven rebounds and five assists over three games since returning from missing three weeks. He's been an offensive leader for Toronto since his midseason acquisition from New York, but he's elevated his performance since returning. Barrett is averaging 21.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists over 30 games in Toronto since being traded, and those would all be season-long career highs for Barrett.
Barrett is in his fifth NBA season after being selected No. 3 overall in 2019 by the Knicks. The Toronto native is back home playing with the Raptors, and that additional motivation has shown itself through his play. The Raptors enter on a two-game winning streak as they are 2-1 and averaging 119.3 points over Barrett's three games since his return. Toronto will be without Immanuel Quickley (rest), so they'll rely on Barrett even more against the Pacers, who allow the fourth-most points per game (120.2).
Another part of McClure's optimal NBA DFS strategy includes rostering Spurs point guard Devonte' Graham ($4,000 on DraftKings and $3,700 on FanDuel). Graham played a season-high 35 minutes on Sunday and had nine points, three rebounds and six assists in a 133-126 double-overtime loss to the 76ers. The 29-year-old had 20 points and five assists over 25 minutes the game before against the Pelicans on Friday as the Spurs clearly want to give him opportunities to play and prove himself late in the season.
Late in the season is the chance for a coaching staff to evaluate talent in an otherwise lost season. Graham is in the third year of a four-year contract that is partially guaranteed for next season. He could be playing for his next contract if the Spurs don't bring him back, so he'll be extremely motivated to perform any time he sees extended minutes. McClure sees value in Graham as one of the cheapest players in the NBA DFS player pool for Tuesday as San Antonio faces an utterly depleted Memphis team, whose starting lineup in its last game consisted of three rookies and a pair of players on two-way contracts. See McClure's other NBA DFS picks right here.
How to set your NBA DFS lineups for Tuesday, April 9
McClure is also targeting a player who could go off for massive numbers on Tuesday because of a dream matchup. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is here.
Who is DFS pro Mike McClure putting in his optimal NBA DFS lineups for Tuesday? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from a professional DFS player who has over $2 million in career winnings, and find out.
