Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Friday, March 21st

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2025-03-21 22:23:14 Premium Content Part of the product NBA DFS

A daily fantasy sports OG, Notorious has been roaming the DFS streets ever since they were invented. He has racked up multiple live final seats and several six-figure tournament wins in his DFS career and has long been one of the top NBA DFS minds in the industry. On weekends, Taylor Smith takes the reins. Their Core Plays LIVE article will zoom out on the slate as a whole, zoom in on the best NBA DFS picks, and constantly update as news breaks. Whether you are diving into the slate 5 hours before it starts or 5 minutes before it starts, Core Plays LIVE has everything you need for your DraftKings and FanDuel lineups.

Happy Friday!

We have finally made it to the weekend. I plan to spend most of mine watching March Madness and the end of the Valspar Championship. We have a whopping 10 games on the schedule tonight. FanDuel and DraftKings never seem to agree on the slate size, and that’s the case once again tonight. All 10 games are included on FanDuel, while only the first 7 games are included on DraftKings.

I will be on Crunch Time again this evening, so you can catch my final thoughts on the show. We’ll be live at 6:15 PM ET.

Let’s dive into the team previews.

NBA DFS Picks: Core Plays LIVE for Friday, March 21st

• 10-game main slate on FD, 7-game main slate on DK
  - 7:00 PM ET – Orlando Magic at Washington Wizards
  - 8:00 PM ET – Houston Rockets at Miami Heat
  - 8:00 PM ET – New Orleans Pelicans at Minnesota Timberwolves
  - 8:00 PM ET – Charlotte Hornets at Oklahoma City Thunder
  - 8:00 PM ET – Philadelphia 76ers at San Antonio Spurs
  - 8:30 PM ET – Detroit Pistons at Dallas Mavericks
  - 9:30 PM ET – Boston Celtics at Utah Jazz
  - 10:00 PM ET – Cleveland Cavaliers at Phoenix Suns
  - 10:00 PM ET – Denver Nuggets at Portland Trail Blazers
  - 10:30 PM ET – Memphis Grizzlies at Los Angeles Clippers
• Front end of a back-to-back: Wizards
• Back end of a back-to-back: Hornets
• NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA Starting Lineups
• NBA Injury Report
• Scroll to FanDuel and DraftKings Rankings & Core Plays

Editor’s Note: Looking for more places to play? Check out our Underdog Fantasy promo code and PrizePicks promo code, two of the best DFS apps available today.

News Updates

2:00 PM ET

Andrew Wiggins is expected to play for the Heat. Jordan Clarkson is questionable for the Jazz, while Jaden Springer has been ruled out. Desmond Bane is questionable for the Grizzlies.

Team Previews

Orlando Magic (at WAS)

We kick off tonight’s slate with the Magic, who draw one of the best possible matchups for fantasy production. They come into tonight’s game against the Wizards with a team total that is 7 points higher than their season average. Jalen Suggs and Moe Wagner are out, while Cole Anthony is questionable.

Even with Anthony in the projections, Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner have positive RGValues. Banchero has been the more productive of the two recently, as he has averaged nearly 60 fantasy points in his last 4 games. If Anthony is out, Banchero and Wagner should both see small usage boosts. Wendell Carter is only $4,700 on DraftKings and should push for around 30 minutes. He’s a strong lineup filler despite a modest projection.

Washington Wizards (vs. ORL)

The Wizards have a brutal matchup against the Magic, who are one of the best defensive teams in the NBA. Washington comes into the game with a team total that is well below their season average. Malcolm Brogdon, Saddiq Bey, Bilal Coulibaly, Corey Kispert, and Marcus Smart are all out.

Even with the injuries and a push for the team to play their young players, it’s hard to trust anyone on the Wizards right now. Jaylen Martin currently projects as a decent value play after topping 20 fantasy points in back-to-back games, but he’s more of a lineup filler than a lineup starter. Tristan Vukcevic is worth a look in tournaments given his solid per-minute production (1.26 DK / 1.26 FD).

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