Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Monday, December 29th

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2025-12-29 23:05:25 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 Monday!

I hope everyone had a great weekend. This is the time of year when I have no concept of what day it is. Without sports, it would be even worse. I could have sworn the day after Christmas was Monday, but alas, it was not. The kids are out of school for 8 more days, which means I have 8 more days to keep them entertained. Breaks like this always remind me that teachers are way underpaid.

My life feels like a reality TV show right now. If you know me, I am level-headed, I get along with everyone, and I steer clear of drama at all costs. However, all kinds of drama have found me in recent weeks. I won’t get into any specifics, but it’s been enough to last a lifetime. I’m an eternal optimist, so I’m always looking for ways to turn bad into good. Perhaps I can bring in some cameras and actually make a reality show. It’s juicier than the drama you’ll see on other shows. ChatGPT helped me out with some potential names:

Noto Asked for None of This

Noto & Everyone Else’s Problems

Keeping It Together with Noto

Noto: Caught in the Crossfire

Be on the lookout for one of these titles to hit your favorite streaming service in the next few months. All kidding aside, we have a 10-game main slate to break down tonight. Let’s dive right into it.

NBA DFS Top Picks: Core Plays LIVE for Monday, December 29th

Slate Overview

• 10-game main slate
  - 7:00 pm ET – Milwaukee Bucks at Charlotte Hornets
  - 7:00 pm ET – Phoenix Suns at Washington Wizards
  - 7:30 pm ET – Orlando Magic at Toronto Raptors
  - 7:30 pm ET – Denver Nuggets at Miami Heat
  - 7:30 pm ET – Golden State Warriors at Brooklyn Nets
  - 8:00 pm ET – Minnesota Timberwolves at Chicago Bulls
  - 8:00 pm ET – Atlanta Hawks at Oklahoma City Thunder
  - 8:00 pm ET – Cleveland Cavaliers at San Antonio Spurs
  - 8:00 pm ET – Indiana Pacers at Houston Rockets
  - 8:00 pm ET – New York Knicks at New Orleans Pelicans
• NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA Starting Lineups
• NBA Injury Report
• Scroll to FanDuel and DraftKings Rankings & Core Plays

News Updates

This section will be updated as injury news is released throughout the day.

Team Previews

Milwaukee Bucks (at CHA)

We start tonight’s 10-game slate with the Bucks, who travel to Charlotte to take on the Hornets, who are bottom 10 in both points allowed per game and defensive rating. The Bucks are small favorites and have a team total that is 3 points higher than their season average. Taurean Prince is out, while Gary Trent is questionable.

With Giannis Antetokounmpo back from injury, we can safely avoid Kevin Porter Jr., Ryan Rollins, and Bobby Portis at their elevated price points. As for Giannis, he played 24 minutes and scored 44 fantasy points against the Bulls the other night. We have him projected for 28 minutes, so he’ll need to be extremely efficient to pay off his price tag. The Bucks are in a good spot as a whole, but I’m not prioritizing them in cash games or tournaments.

Charlotte Hornets (vs. MIL)

The Hornets have a nice matchup at home against the Bucks, who are below the league average in rebounding rate, points allowed per game, and defensive rating. The Hornets are small underdogs and have a team total that is surprisingly 4 points lower than their season average. Kon Knueppel, Ryan Kalkbrenner, Mason Plumlee, and KJ Simpson are all out.

Let’s see who benefits the most with Knueppel and Kalkbrenner off the floor this season:

LaMelo Ball doesn’t project well given his low minute projection (27), but he has seen massive usage and FP/min. boosts with those two off the floor. He’s a sneaky play, especially in large-field tournaments. Brandon Miller and Miles Bridges also see major usage boosts, while Tidjane Salaun should see an uptick in minutes. I’ve tagged Moussa Diabate as a core play in each of his last 3 games, and he has yet to disappoint. He has scored 33, 38, and 36 fantasy points during that stretch. He’s firmly in play once again with Kalkbrenner and Plumlee out.

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