NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Wednesday, April 12

NBA DFS Picks: DraftKings Plays and Strategy for Wednesday, April 12

This article is part of our DraftKings NBA series.

Slate Overview

TOR at CHI: Raptors won the season series 2-1, winning both games at home to start and finish the series, while the Bulls picked up the win in the second meeting, in Chicago. 

OKC at NOP: Pelicans won the series 3-1, with two wins on the road and one at home. The Thunder picked up their win in the final meeting of the season, in New Orleans, on March 11. 

For the latest spreads and over/unders, visit RotoWire's NBA Odds page. There you can also find player props, futures, picks, articles and sportsbook bonus codes.

Injuries to Monitor  

For all the latest updates, visit RotoWire's NBA Injury News page and our comprehensive NBA Injury Report       

NOP - Larry Nance (ankle): Questionable / Jose Alvarado (leg), Zion Williamson (hamstring): OUT

Elite Players

Guards

CJ McCollum, Pelicans ($7,900) vs. Thunder 

McCollum only played in two of the four meetings between the Pelicans and Thunder, and he averaged 21.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 9.5 assists and 1.0 blocks, including shooting 46.7 percent from long range in those outings. He should continue to stand out offensively, as the Thunder give up the league's ninth-most points and fourth-most free throws per game to point guards 

OG Anunoby, Raptors ($6,900) vs. Bulls 

Anunoby averaged 17.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.3 steals through three encounters with the Bulls this season. He faces a favorable matchup with a size advantage over the Bulls' backcourt, and he also should prosper from long range, as they gave up the league's second-most three-pointers per game during the regular season. 

Forwards/Centers

Brandon Ingram, Pelicans ($10,000) vs. Thunder 

Aside from the injured, Zion Williamson (hamstring), Ingram led the Pelicans, averaging 24.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists during the season. He only played in one game against the Thunder, and finished with 34 points, four rebounds and one assist in a road win. He should continue to stand out offensively, as the Thunder gave up the league's eighth-most three-pointers and fifth-most free throws during the regular season. 

Pascal Siakam, Raptors ($9,400) vs. Bulls 

Siakam only played in one game against the Bulls this season, and he finished with 20 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a steal, in 34 minutes of action. He should excel with a very favorable matchup, as the Bulls lack size in the frontcourt and are expected to start, 6'6", DeMar DeRozan at power forward. The Bulls also gave up the league's third-most rebounds and sixth-most free throws per game to opposing power forwards this season. 

Jonas Valanciunas, Pelicans ($6,800) vs. Thunder 

Valanciunas averaged 11.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 22 minutes per game over four encounters with the Thunder during the season. He should make an impact in a must win game, as the Thunder gave up the league's fourth-most rebounds and fourth-most free throws to opposing centers during the regular season. 

Expected Chalk 

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder ($10,500) at Pelicans 

Gilgeous-Alexander was impressive all season, including averaging 33.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.3 steals across three games against the Pelicans. He also finished the season on a high note, with more than more than 40 DK points in each of his last 10 appearances, including six with more than 45. He should continue to shine against the Pelicans, who allowed opponents to shoot an average of 47.2 percent from the field and gave up the league's eighth-most free throws per game to opposing point guards during the season. 

Value Picks

Alex Caruso, Bulls ($3,900) at Raptors 

Caruso averaged 4.8 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.6 blocks across his final five appearances of the regular season, including a high of 26.5 DK points. He faces a tough matchup against the length of the Raptors' wing players, but he mustered an average of 4.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.7 blocks across three meetings during the regular season. 

Gary Trent, Raptors ($4,200) vs. Bulls

Trent closed the season with an impressive performance totaling 30.8 DK points. He averaged 17.4 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.6 steals during the regular season, including an average of 16.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 2.0 steals over three games against the Bulls. 

Patrick Williams, Bulls ($4,800) at Raptors 

Williams had a strong finish to the season, averaging 10.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.3 blocks and 1.1 steals over the final 10 games. He also averaged 10.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.3 blocks in three meetings with the Raptors. He will likely see significant minutes against the Raptors, as the Bulls are undersized in their starting lineup and should benefit from his support. 

Chris Boucher, Raptors ($4,500) vs. Bulls 

Boucher remains a go-to option off the bench as he closed the season in good form, averaging 9.8 points and 5.1 rebounds in 21 minutes per game over 10 games. He should find room to make an impact against the Bulls, who gave up the league's highest field-goal percentage to opposing bench players during the regular season.

Jaylin Williams, Thunder ($4,300) at Pelicans 

Williams closed the season on a solid run, averaging 5.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists across 10 outings, including a high of 28 DK points. He faces a tough matchup against the Pelicans' frontcourt but needs to step up to keep his squad competitive.

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Dan Bruno plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: FanDuel: duelingdan.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dan Bruno
Dan has been writing all things NBA for RotoWire since 2014. He is an active fantasy sports player, with a love for DFS. Dan is a certified Coach with the Ontario Basketball Association and is a recreation professional in his home city.
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