Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Friday, December 26th

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2025-12-26 22:52:53 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. So, who better to walk you through the madness of an NBA DFS slate? Core Plays LIVE will zoom out on the slate as a whole, zoom in on the best plays, and constantly update as news breaks. Whether you are diving into the slate 5 hours before it starts or 5 minutes before it starts, you’ve come to the right place.

Happy Friday!

I hope everyone had the best Christmas possible, and I hope everyone is ready to get back at it tonight. My two favorite presents were a fresh new pair of Jordan 1s and a coupon book that my son made for me. I remember doing this for my parents when I was little, so it was really fun opening it up and reading all of the coupons. Some of the highlights were going to the store with me for a week without complaining, letting me pick dinner for a whole week, letting him come golfing with me, and letting him come running with me. I’m not a huge presents guy (other than some new Jordans, of course), so I love a heartwarming gift.

I love Christmas as much as anyone. I have my decorations up in mid-November, I love Christmas music, and I watch plenty of Christmas movies. I also try to make some type of plans with every friend and every member of my family. Perhaps I overdo it during the Christmas season, but it makes the post-Christmas cooldown that much better. There’s something so satisfying about no more plans, no more presents, and no more decorations. I love having a clean slate heading into the new year.

We have 9 NBA games on the schedule. The first 7 games are included on the DraftKings slate, while all 9 games are included on the FanDuel slate. I won’t be on Crunch Time, so I’ll be able to update this article and the rankings tables all the way through lock. We have a handful of more days to beef up our 1099s that we are hopefully getting from FanDuel and DraftKings.

Let’s dive into the slate!

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NBA DFS Top Picks: Core Plays LIVE for Friday, December 26th

Slate Overview

• Slate size – FanDuel: 9 games, DraftKings: 7 games
  - 7:00 pm ET – Toronto Raptors at Washington Wizards
  - 7:00 pm ET – Miami Heat at Atlanta Hawks
  - 7:00 pm ET – Charlotte Hornets at Orlando Magic
  - 7:00 pm ET – Boston Celtics at Indiana Pacers
  - 7:30 pm ET – Philadelphia 76ers at Chicago Bulls
  - 8:00 pm ET – Milwaukee Bucks at Memphis Grizzlies
  - 8:00 pm ET – Phoenix Suns at New Orleans Pelicans
  - 9:30 pm ET – Detroit Pistons at Utah Jazz
  - 10:00 pm ET – Los Angeles Clippers at Portland Trail Blazers
• NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA Starting Lineups
• NBA Injury Report
• Scroll to FanDuel and DraftKings Rankings & Core Plays

News Updates

1:00 PM ET

Bam Adebayo is now doubtful for the Heat. Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez, and Norman Powell have some of the highest RGValues on the slate.

Justin Champagnie is now questionable for the Wizards.

Mouhamed Gueye will play for the Hawks.

Team Previews

Toronto Raptors (at WAS)

We kick off tonight’s slate with the Raptors, who draw the best matchup in all of NBA DFS. The Wizards are 8th in pace and in the bottom 3 in rebounding rate, points allowed per game, and defensive rating. The Raptors have a team total that is 4 points higher than their season average. RJ Barrett and Jakob Poeltl are out, while Scottie Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles are questionable.

Before we dive into the players, let’s see who benefits the most with Barnes and Barrett off the floor:

As it stands with Barnes in the projections, he, Immanuel Quickley, Brandon Ingram, and Sandro Mamukelashvili all have positive RGValues. If Barnes ends up being out, the Raptors immediately become the top team on the slate to stack. Quickley, Ingram, and Mamukelashvili would all become core plays, while Jamal Shead would likely draw the spot start (or at least see a significantly bigger role off the bench). If Barnes is active, I’ll still look to Quickley and Mamukelashvili as priorities on this slate.

Washington Wizards (vs. TOR)

The Wizards always give us a great game environment, but they are often on the losing end of blowouts. They are 7.5-point underdogs against the Raptors, who are top 4 in both points allowed per game and defensive rating. Washington’s team total is 3 points lower than their season average. Corey Kispert and Cam Whitmore are out.

The Wizards don’t project well in the context of tonight’s slate, as none of their players have positive RGValues. However, if we are stacking the Raptors, we’ll want this game to be competitive and high-scoring. For that to happen, we’ll likely need a ceiling performance or two from the Wizards. Bub Carrington is cheap and has topped 28 fantasy points in 3 of his last 4 games, while Kyshawn George is the cheapest that he’s been since the start of the season.

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