Core Plays LIVE: NBA DFS Picks for Wednesday, March 18th

by Derek Farnsworth (Notorious) Last Updated 2026-03-18 18:18:29 Premium Content Part of the product NBA DFS

A daily fantasy sports OG, Notorious has been rotaming 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 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 Wednesday!

March Madness kicks off tomorrow, which is always one of my favorite 4-day stretches of the year. We also have the Valspar Championship starting tomorrow morning for those of you who like to play PGA DFS. And as I’ve mentioned a few times, the MLB regular season starts next week. Ah, life as a sports fan is good.

We have 9 games on the schedule tonight. FanDuel has included all of the games on its main slate, while DraftKings has left the last game off its main slate. I’ll be on Crunch Time tonight with Beer to answer questions and give our final thoughts on the slate. We will be live at 6:15 PM ET.

Let’s dive into tonight’s large slate.

NBA DFS Top Picks on DraftKings and FanDuel: Core Plays LIVE for Wednesday, March 18th

Slate Overview

• Slate Size – FanDuel: 9 Games, DraftKings: 8 Games
  - 7:00 pm ET – Golden State Warriors at Boston Celtics
  - 7:30 pm ET – Oklahoma City Thunder at Brooklyn Nets
  - 7:30 pm ET – Portland Trail Blazers at Indiana Pacers
  - 8:00 pm ET – Utah Jazz at Minnesota Timberwolves
  - 8:00 pm ET – Los Angeles Clippers at New Orleans Pelicans
  - 8:00 pm ET – Toronto Raptors at Chicago Bulls
  - 8:30 pm ET – Denver Nuggets at Memphis Grizzlies
  - 8:30 pm ET – Atlanta Hawks at Dallas Mavericks
  - 9:30 pm ET – Los Angeles Lakers at Houston Rockets (not on DK slate)
• 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

Golden State Warriors (at BOS)

We kick off tonight’s slate with the Warriors, who head to Boston for a brutal matchup against the Celtics. On the season, Boston is dead last in pace and 1st in points allowed per game. Golden State’s team total sits at just 102 points, which is 13 points lower than their season average. To make matters worse, this game features a 12-point spread. Jimmy Butler, Steph Curry, Al Horford, and Moses Moody are out, while L.J. Cryer and Quinten Post are questionable.

Even though the Warriors are missing some key players, they are one of the easiest teams to cross off our list of potential targets. They have the worst matchup on the board, they are massive underdogs on the road, and there’s not a single player on the roster with an RGValue better than 5.5.

Boston Celtics (vs. GSW)

The Celtics draw a home matchup against the Warriors, who are 16th in pace and 12th in points allowed. Boston’s team total is 114 points, which is nearly identical to their season average. I prefer Boston’s side of this game, but there are certainly better environments for DFS production. Nikola Vucevic is out.

Jaylen Brown hasn’t slowed down since the return of Jayson Tatum. In fact, he has topped 55 fantasy points in 2 of the last 3 games. I’m still hesitant to pay a premium for him (especially in a potential blowout), but he’s worth a look in large-field tournaments. On a per-dollar basis, I do prefer Tatum, who has played 32 minutes in back-to-back games. The issue with Tatum is that he’s not going to see any garbage time run, so we’ll need the Warriors to keep the game competitive. With Vucevic out, Neemias Queta has a clear path to 30 minutes. He’s priced up, but he’s more than capable of having a ceiling game in this matchup.

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