PrizePicks NBA Player Picks Today: Value on Russell, Turner, and Thompson
Just 5 NBA games on the board on this Monday night, though we could see some pre-lock moving and shaking with a number of key players listed as questionable. There’s always value to be found in the pick’em streets, and below are a few of our favorite PrizePicks plays for Monday, November 27th.
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Remember, you can also keep tabs on the best PrizePicks picks of the day with our Fantasy Pick’em Tool. We’re constantly updating this throughout the day in order to account for the latest news, but there’s still value to be found earlier in the afternoon as well.
NBA PrizePicks Predictions Today
D’Angelo Russell More Than 27 Fantasy Points
The Lakers will head to Philly to take on the 76ers in one of the better real-life matchups on the slate. D’Angelo Russell is putting together a nice little season for LA, as he comes into this one averaging 16.9 points, 6.2 assists, and 3.5 rebounds per on efficient shooting from both the field and 3-point country. D-Lo is also averaging a shade under 32 minutes a night.
The playing time, however, has been a little less consistent of late. Russell is averaging a shade under 30 minutes so far in November, while he’s topped the mark just once in his last 5 games. Darvin Ham seems to have no qualms with riding the hot hand in the backcourt, and we’ve occasionally seen Austin Reaves close games over Russell off the bench.
Russell is still productive, contributing 1.06 FP/min. By that math, he should still have a path to topping 27 fantasy points tonight, even if he only sees 25-27 minutes against the Sixers. The minutes projection is admittedly volatile, but we do have D-Lo at 30 minutes in this one.
- Play: Russell – More Than 27 Fantasy Points
Myles Turner More Than 34.5 Fantasy Points
The Pacers have taken their game to another level this season, and there’s plenty of fantasy goodness to go around. Indiana ranks first in the league in both pace and offensive rating, while they’re toward the bottom of the league in defense. Naturally, playing this kind of breakneck style leads to shootouts. The Pacers are averaging a whopping 128.8 points per game. That’s the highest mark in the NBA. They’re allowing 125.5 points per game. That is also the highest mark in the league.
Indiana is a healthy 13-point home favorite over the visiting Blazers tonight, and their 126.25 implied team total is, predictably, the highest of the 10 teams in action this evening. Myles Turner typically gets overshadowed by the exploits of Tyrese Haliburton, but Indiana’s franchise center is quietly putting together another standout season of his own. Turner’s 1.33 FD FP/min average is even higher than the number he posted a season ago (1.22), and he’s typically out there for 27-30 minutes a night.
This Portland team will almost surely finish near the bottom of the league in defensive rating, and Turner’s ability to rack up blocked shots makes more than 34.5 fantasy points look like the way to go on PrizePicks tonight. The Blazers are yielding 6.9 blocks per game this season, which is tied for the highest average in basketball.
- Play: Turner – More Than 34.5 Fantasy Points
Ausar Thompson Less Than 12.5 Points
Wizards-Pistons should be a popular target for DFS players tonight. This is a high-total game between what may be the league’s 2 worst teams, and Detroit is listed as a slight 2.5-point favorite at home. You won’t often see a team riding a 14-game losing streak listed as a favorite, but, hey, the Wizards are probably just as awful.
Ausar Thompson won’t win Rookie of the Year in a loaded class, but he has been one of the league’s most impressive new arrivals. He’s quickly emerged as a jack-of-all-trades, contributing 11.1 points, 9.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and about 3 combined blocks + steals per game. Thompson has also immediately become the Pistons’ best wing defender.
This matchup against Washington may boost his scoring output, but 12.5 points looks a bit lofty. Thompson isn’t a primary source of usage for this team (18.4%). The recent promotion of Jaden Ivey gives the starting unit another score-first option in the backcourt, while Alec Burks is back from an injury.
After routinely pushing for 40 minutes with Ivey and Burks out injured earlier this month, Ausar has been hovering closer to 30 minutes in recent games. He’s also proven to be fairly foul-prone, which obviously doesn’t help his chances of staying on the floor. Thompson has failed to crack even 10 real points in 5 of his last 6 games.
- Play: Thompson – Less Than 12.5 Points