NBA DFS Expert Survey: Thursday, December 18th

by Justin Bailey (Jbails26) Last Updated 2025-12-18 19:05:42 Premium Content Part of the product NBA DFS

Our panel of experts is here to give you their insights on NBA DFS today for the 12/18 main slate on DraftKings and FanDuel. They’re ready to answer key questions that will assist you in making those crucial lineup-building decisions. Curious to know headChopper’s favorite tournament play? Or perhaps you’re wondering about Noto’s favorite salary saver? Read their thoughts below!

NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings & FanDuel Expert Survey for Thursday, December 18

Who is your favorite player to spend up for in cash games?

Notorious: Luka Doncic
headChopper: Luka Doncic
Dean78904: Luka Doncic

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What is your preferred tournament format (e.g. large-field, single-entry) to play on this slate? How do you plan to beat that field of opponents? What tactic or strategy will set you apart?

Notorious: I prefer small-field and single-entry tournaments. My plan of attack tonight is to be overweight on the Magic, who have already ruled out Jalen Suggs and Franz Wagner. Anthony Black has averaged just under a fantasy point per minute this season and should see an uptick in usage and playing time. Paolo Banchero has yet to have a ceiling game since returning from injury, but he logged 35 minutes his last time out. He sees a matchup boost with Aaron Gordon out for the Nuggets.

headChopper: I’m playing 20 lineups in large-field tournaments. It’s a big-boy slate, so there should be plenty of variance. As of early afternoon, there doesn’t appear to be a player with massive pOWN% (unless news breaks later), so I don’t think it’ll be difficult to build lineups that aren’t duplicated. I like getting different on some builds with a player like Kawhi Leonard, who should see an uptick in production without James Harden, but the pOWN% hasn’t caught up yet – likely because of the brutal matchup.

Dean78904: I only make a few main lineups and mostly focus on single-entry and smaller-field type of contests. The current plan is to build my main lineup around a LAL/UTA game stack, as both teams will be missing key players. Luka Doncic and Keyonte George are my main building blocks, with Kyle Filipowski, Jaxson Hayes, and Marcus Smart being my favorite secondary pieces. ORL/DEN would be my next favorite game, and I’d want to build around Nikola Jokic, Anthony Black, and Desmond Bane.

Who is your favorite contrarian play (when considering price, matchup, projected ownership, etc.) on the board and why?

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