Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Thursday, January 16th

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2025-01-16 22:51:32 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 Thursday!

This week’s PGA TOUR is officially underway, we have solid NBA slates over the next two nights, and then we get the NFL playoffs on Saturday and Sunday. Life is good.

As we’ve been prepping my current house to hit the market, my sister and her husband have come to help us paint a few times. I somewhat jokingly floated the idea that they should buy the house. They have two littles and are all crammed in a tiny condo. My house is in a cul-de-sac, and somehow, I don’t have neighbors on either side. The backyard is connected to a park, so it’s perfect for kids. They immediately ran with the idea and are already trying to make it happen. It would save us a ton of time, as I’m hoping to be in a new house by the time baby girl is born (late May). So, my fingers are crossed that this works out.

We only have 5 games on the schedule tonight, which is honestly a nice break from the larger slates. We are at the point of the season where everyone seems to be nursing an injury, and we have constant late scratches every night. Oh, how I miss the days of no late swap in NBA DFS. The Clippers and Rockets are playing on the second half of a back-to-back, while the Thunder are playing on the front half of a back-to-back. Let’s dive right into the slate.

NBA DFS Picks: Core Plays LIVE for Thursday, January 16th

• 5-game main slate
  - 7:00 PM ET – Indiana Pacers at Detroit Pistons
  - 7:00 PM ET – Phoenix Suns at Washington Wizards
  - 7:30 PM ET – Cleveland Cavaliers at Oklahoma City Thunder
  - 10:00 PM ET – Los Angeles Clippers at Portland Trail Blazers
  - 10:00 PM ET – Houston Rockets at Sacramento Kings
• Front end of a back-to-back: Thunder
• Back end of a back-to-back: Clippers, Rockets
• NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA Starting Lineups
• NBA DFS Injury Report: The Situation Room
• Scroll to FanDuel and DraftKings Rankings & Core Plays

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News Updates

This section will be updated as injury news is released throughout the day.

Team Previews

Indiana Pacers (at DET)

We start the slate with the Pacers, who have quite a lengthy injury report. Bennedict Mathurin has been ruled out, while Tyrese Haliburton, Aaron Nesmith, and Quenton Jackson are all listed as questionable. A matchup against the Pistons is a slightly favorable one, but the Pacers come into the game with a team total that is 2 points lower than their season average. As it stands right now with Haliburton in the projections, he and Pascal Siakam are the only 2 players with positive RGValues. If Haliburton ends up being out, Andrew Nembhard would likely slide over and start at point guard, while T.J. McConnell (1.17 DK / 1.20 FD) would see a significant uptick in playing time.

Detroit Pistons (vs. IND)

The Pistons are still without Jaden Ivey as they host the visiting Pacers. This is a good matchup on paper, as Indiana is 7th in pace and 21st in points allowed per game. Let’s take a look at who has benefited the most with Ivey off the floor this season:

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