Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Tuesday, April 1st

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2025-04-01 22:34:02 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 Tuesday!

We are officially 9 days away from the start of the Masters and 12 days away from the end of the NBA regular season. I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for some playoff basketball. It finally started to get warm here in Utah (by warm, I mean 50-60 degrees) only to have it snow overnight. To make matters worse, the forecast for the rest of the week doesn’t look any better (thanks, Kevin Roth).

We only have 7 games on the schedule tonight, but FanDuel and DraftKings still can’t agree on a main slate size. FanDuel has all 7 games on their main slate, while DraftKings only has the first 6 games on their main slate. This is the part of the season where motivation comes into play, so make sure you know where each team is in the standings. I’ll do my best to include motivations in the team previews.

7 games on a Tuesday. Let’s dive into them.

NBA DFS Picks: Core Plays LIVE for Tuesday, April 1st

• 7-game main slate on FD, 6-game main slate on DK
  - 7:30 PM ET – Portland Trail Blazers at Atlanta Hawks
  - 7:30 PM ET – Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks
  - 7:30 PM ET – Phoenix Suns at Milwaukee Bucks
  - 8:00 PM ET – Orlando Magic at San Antonio Spurs
  - 8:00 PM ET – Toronto Raptors at Chicago Bulls
  - 8:00 PM ET – Golden State Warriors at Memphis Grizzlies
  - 10:00 PM ET – Minnesota Timberwolves at Denver Nuggets
• Front end of a back-to-back: Hawks, Knicks, Spurs, Nuggets
• Back end of a back-to-back: Magic, Grizzlies, Bulls
• NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA Starting Lineups
• NBA Injury Report
• 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

Portland Trail Blazers (at ATL)

The Blazers draw an elite matchup against the Hawks and come into the game with a team total that is 6 points higher than their season average. They haven’t officially been eliminated from playoff contention, but it’s probably better to lose at this point. Deandre Ayton, Robert Williams, Jerami Grant, and Scoot Henderson are all expected to miss the game, while Anfernee Simons is listed as questionable.

Simons is a big injury to monitor here, as he currently projects as a tremendous point-per-dollar option. The price continues to come down, and you can’t ask for a better matchup than the Hawks. If he’s out, Deni Avdija and Shaedon Sharpe will become elite plays in all formats. This would also provide a boost for Toumani Camara and Dalano Banton. I rarely say this, but don’t be afraid to get exposure to the Blazers.

Atlanta Hawks (vs. POR)

The Hawks draw a slightly favorable matchup against the Blazers, who are missing some of their key defenders. The Hawks are battling for positioning in the Play-In Tournament, so they still have the motivation to win games. They will be without Jalen Johnson, Clint Capela, Larry Nance, and Keaton Wallace.

Trae Young has topped 50 fantasy points in 4 of his last 7 games and has done it in some difficult matchups. He has a favorable matchup at home in one of the best game environments on the slate. I don’t target Young often, but he’s on my short list of expensive targets. Caris LeVert, Onyeka Okongwu, and Zaccharie Risacher are best suited as large-field tournament plays.

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