Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Tuesday, January 21st

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2025-01-21 23:27:01 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!

With golf starting a day early this week, I had to get all of my PGA DFS content up this morning. I’m starting this article a little later than usual, so I’ll save the anecdotal introduction for another day. We only have 5 NBA games on the schedule this evening. The Knicks are the only team playing on the front end of a back-to-back, and the Nets are the only team playing on the second half of a back-to-back.

I hope everyone’s week is going tremendously well so far. Let’s dive into the team previews.

NBA DFS Picks: Core Plays LIVE for Tuesday, January 21st

• 5-game main slate
  - 7:30 PM ET – New York Knicks at Brooklyn Nets
  - 7:30 PM ET – Portland Trail Blazers at Miami Heat
  - 7:30 PM ET – Orlando Magic at Toronto Raptors
  - 10:00 PM ET – Philadelphia 76ers at Denver Nuggets
  - 10:30 PM ET – Washington Wizards at Los Angeles Lakers
• Front end of a back-to-back: Nets
• Back end of a back-to-back: Knicks
• NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA Starting Lineups
• NBA DFS Injury Report: The Situation Room
• 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

2:20 PM ET – Tyler Herro is now listed as questionable.

Team Previews

New York Knicks (at BKN)

We kick the slate off with the Knicks, who are expected to have both Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart in the lineup. They’ll be at full strength against the Nets, who are one of the worst defensive teams in the league. The Knicks are used to playing at a snail’s pace, so they won’t mind the matchup. They come into the game with a team total that is a point lower than their season average. There’s not a single player that really pops in the projections, but a case can be made for all five of the starters. My favorite is Jalen Brunson, who has averaged 50 fantasy points over his last 4 games.

Brooklyn Nets (vs. NYK)

If you are on the Nets roster, there’s a good chance you have already been ruled out of tonight’s game. De’Anthony Melton, Bojan Bogdanovic, Cam Thomas, Ben Simmons, Trendon Watford, and Ziaire Williams are all out against the Knicks, who are 25th in pace and 8th in defensive rating. While the matchup isn’t great, the Nets are shorthanded and playing at home, while the Knicks are playing in the second half of a back-to-back. D’Angelo Russell is seeing limited minutes, but he has topped 40 fantasy points in 2 of his last 3 games and is worth a look in tournaments. Nic Claxton and Noah Clowney are both intriguing options if you are entering multiple lineups for this slate.

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