Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Wednesday, January 14th

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2026-01-14 21:07:49 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 NBA DwFS 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 Wednesday!

I hope everyone is having a great week so far. Our oldest got braces today, and he was both so nervous and so excited. I have never seen so much metal in a little mouth. Is it just me, or did braces become cool? When I was a kid, nobody wanted braces. Now, all of the kids are excited to get them.

We have 7 games on the schedule, and all of the games are included on the main slates for both FanDuel and DraftKings. There’s something so great about having matching slates, although that’s not the case this weekend for the NFL Divisional Round.

I’ll be on Crunch Time tonight, so we’d love to have you join us and ask questions in the chat. The more active the chat, the more fun we have on the show. GrindersLive starts at 5:00 PM ET, while Crunch Time goes live at 6:15 PM ET. I’ll drop a YouTube link when it’s available.

Editor’s Note: Looking for more places to play? Check out our Underdog promo code and PrizePicks promo code, two of the best DFS apps available today.

NBA DFS Top Picks on DraftKings and FanDuel: Core Plays LIVE for Wednesday, January 14th

Slate Overview

• 7-game main slate
  - 7:00 pm ET – Toronto Raptors at Indiana Pacers
  - 7:00 pm ET – Cleveland Cavaliers at Philadelphia 76ers
  - 8:00 pm ET – Utah Jazz at Chicago Bulls
  - 8:00 pm ET – Brooklyn Nets at New Orleans Pelicans
  - 9:30 pm ET – Denver Nuggets at Dallas Mavericks
  - 10:00 pm ET – New York Knicks at Sacramento Kings
  - 10:30 pm ET – Washington Wizards at Los Angeles Clippers
• NBA DFS Optimizer
• NBA Starting Lineups
• NBA Injury Report
• Scroll to FanDuel and DraftKings Rankings & Core Plays

News Updates

1:20 PM ET

Lauri Markkanen is now doubtful. You can see who benefits the most in the screenshot below, but I have much more interest in Keyonte George, Jusuf Nurkic, and Kyle Filipowski.

Team Previews

Toronto Raptors (at IND)

We kick the slate off with the Raptors, who draw a favorable matchup on the road. The Pacers are 10th in pace and 23rd in points allowed per game this season. Toronto’s team total is nearly identical to their season average. RJ Barrett, Ja’Kobe Walter, and Jakob Poeltl are out, while Sandro Mamukelashvili is questionable.

Scottie Barnes, Brandon Ingram, and Immanuel Quickley all have similar per-dollar projections. They all have positive RGValues and should all see a small boost in usage with Barrett out. I wouldn’t call any of them core plays, but they are each viable depending on your roster construction. Collin Murray-Boyles has flashed some serious upside recently and could have a path to 35 minutes if Mamukelashvili is ruled out. After struggling as the chalk on Monday, Jamal Shead is an intriguing bounce-back candidate at low projected ownership.

Indiana Pacers (vs. TOR)

The Pacers draw a tough matchup at home against the Raptors, who are top 7 in 3-point percentage allowed, defensive rating, and points allowed per game. Indiana’s team total is nearly identical to their season average. Obi Toppin, Isaiah Jackson, and Bennedict Mathurin are out.

I’m not prioritizing anyone on the Pacers in my small-field and single-entry tournaments. However, there are a couple of intriguing large-field tournament targets. Andrew Nembhard has scored at least 37 fantasy points in 5 straight games and should check in at low ownership. Pascal Siakam has scored over 44 fantasy points in 4 of the last 6 games. He’s had a usage rate of at least 32% in 3 of the last 4 games with Mathurin out of the lineup.

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