Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Friday, January 23rd

by Taylor Smith (tcsmith031) Last Updated 2026-01-23 23:42:44 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. On weekends, Taylor Smith takes the reins. So, who better to walk you through the madness of NBA DFS slates on DraftKings and FanDuel? 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’m in for Noto today to walk you through a nice 6-gamer on DraftKings and FanDuel. Both sites are mercifully aligned for this one, and, luckily, the Utah Jazz will not be in action. We’ve already got quite a bit of injury news to deal with, and, because it’s the NBA, we know there will be more on the horizon.

Let’s dive on in.

NBA DFS Top Picks on DraftKings and FanDuel: Core Plays LIVE for Friday, January 23rd

Slate Overview

• 6-game main slate
  - 7:00 pm ET – Houston Rockets at Detroit Pistons
  - 7:30 pm ET – Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
  - 7:30 pm ET – Sacramento Kings at Cleveland Cavaliers
  - 7:30 pm ET – Phoenix Suns at Atlanta Hawks
  - 8:00 pm ET – New Orleans Pelicans at Memphis Grizzlies
  - 8:00 pm ET – Indiana Pacers at Oklahoma City Thunder
• NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA Starting Lineups
• NBA Injury Report
• Scroll to FanDuel and DraftKings Rankings & Core Plays

News Updates

Here’s where I’ll provide news updates.

Team Previews

Houston Rockets (at DET)

The Rockets fell in an extra session in Philadelphia last night, and tonight they find themselves in the Motor City for the latter half of a brutal back-to-back set. Houston is a 4.5-point underdog here with a measly 106.5 total, which is the 3rd-lowest mark on the slate. Games involving the defensively sound Rockets tend to be lower-scoring slogs. The same is true of games involving the Pistons. In related news, the 216.5 game total here is the lowest on the board. Steven Adams and Fred VanVleet are still out for Houston, while we’re calling Aaron Holiday questionable. We’ll see if anyone new pops up on the injury report.

Nothing really stands out here. Can you fire up Alperen Sengun, Kevin Durant, or Amen Thompson in GPPs? Always. The Pistons are just very tough defensively – especially around the rim – which could make life particularly tough for Sengun and Thompson. I’d be most inclined to roll the dice on KD, who’s playing monster minutes every night. I’m just not dying to pay a premium for him on this slate given the circumstances. Reed Sheppard is cheap, but he often finds himself in Ime Udoka’s doghouse. Jabari Smith on FanDuel ($5,800) is probably the most appealing piece on the Houston side overall, but even he’s a filler play, at best.

Detroit Pistons (vs. HOU)

The Pistons have the rest advantage over the visiting Rockets in this one, but Cade Cunningham is questionable after missing the last game with a hip injury. Caris LeVert is doubtful. Cade did make shootaround, but we’ll see if he plays. Detroit is notoriously shady with injury statuses. Luckily, it’s the first game of the night. Detroit’s 111 implied team total certainly doesn’t stand out relative to the rest of the slate.

If Cade suits up, I don’t expect a minutes limit after such a short absence. He’s never a bad play given his ability to stuff the stat sheet; there are just better ways to spend salary on this slate. Houston’s defense hasn’t been quite as stingy lately, but he may still have to deal with Amen Thompson here. If he’s out, we’ll likely see another start for Daniss Jenkins with Marcus Sasser serving as the primary backup. Jenkins would be the better play as the starter, though he’d also pull significantly more ownership. Cunningham sitting would also clear more usage for Tobias Harris, who’s a passable midrange option in any scenario.

I don’t think it’s a great spot for Jalen Duren either, but the absence of Adams does weaken the Rockets’ paint defense and rebounding. There is a lot of cheap value at center on this slate, and paying up for someone like Duren is an interesting way to flip the build in tournaments.

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