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Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid missed Thursday’s morning shootaround with an illness and a sore leg, but that didn’t stop him from scoring 27 points, grabbing 19 rebounds and dishing out six assists in a big win over Memphis. Embiid shot just 7 of 25 from the floor, though, making him an interesting candidate for Saturday’s NBA DFS lineups. Team James Harden had 31 points, seven goals and seven assists in the win over the Grizzlies, when Philadelphia overcame a 17-point deficit. Should you be snagging Embiid or Harden from Saturday’s NBA DFS player pool?
The 76ers have a tough matchup against an elite Boston defense that ranks sixth in the NBA in points allowed per game. The Celtics are also one of the league’s highest-scoring offenses, giving DFS players plenty of options in this first-ever matchup between Eastern Conference rivals. Before you make any NBA DFS picks for Saturday, be sure to check out SportsLine’s Mike McClure’s NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stocks and top daily fantasy basketball picks.
McClure is a DFS professional with more than $2 million in career winnings. He is also a predictive data engineer at SportsLine who uses a powerful predictive model that simulates every minute of every game 10,000 times, taking into account factors like matchups, statistical trends and injuries.
This allows him to find the best DFS NBA values ​​and create the best lines that he only shares at SportsLine. They are a must see for any NBA DFS player.
On Friday, he highlighted Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert as one of his top NBA DFS picks on DraftKings and FanDuel. The result: Gobert posted a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds to return 38.50 points on DraftKings and 40.0 points on FanDuel. Anyone who included him in their team was well on their way to a profitable day.
Now, McClure has turned his attention to Saturday’s NBA action and is locked in as a top daily fantasy basketball pick. You can see them just by heading to SportsLine.
Top NBA DFS picks for Saturday, February 25
One of McClure’s top NBA DFS picks for Saturday is Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who is listed at $11,700 on DraftKings and $11,800 on FanDuel. The two-time reigning MVP posted his third triple-double in his last four games when he had 24 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists against a stout Cleveland defense on Thursday. Jokic is just two triples short of becoming the sixth player to hit 100 in his career.
One of his previous three double-doubles this season came against Memphis, who will face him on Saturday night. The Grizzlies have struggled recently, losing 10 of their last 14 games, including Thursday’s loss to Philadelphia. They struggled to slow down the 76ers offense, and will face another tough task with Jokic in this game.
Another part of McClure’s optimal NBA DFS strategy includes Jazz small forward Talen Horton-Tucker’s roster ($5,500 on DraftKings, $5,900 on FanDuel). He enjoyed his second start of the season Thursday, tallying nine points, seven rebounds, six assists and two steals against Oklahoma City. Horton-Tucker filled in for the injured Collin Sexton (hamstring), who is set to be sidelined again on Saturday night.
Horton-Tucker also had a strong first half of the season, scoring 15 points, grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out seven assists in 32 minutes against Memphis last week. The 22-year-old’s production immediately picked up after Sexton’s injury. McClure identified Horton-Tucker as a value pick to include in Saturday night’s NBA DFS lineups.
How to set your NBA DFS lineups for Saturday, February 25
McClure is also targeting a player who could go out for a huge number on Saturday because of a dream game. This choice could be the difference between winning your tournament and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is here.
Who is DFS with Mike McClure submitting his best NBA DFS lineups for Saturday? Visit SportsLine now for the best NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice and stocks, all from a professional DFS player with more than $2 million in career winnings, and find out.
