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FanDuel Daily Fantasy Picks and Helper: NBA Finals Game 4 (Celtics at Mavericks)

Aidan Cotter
Aidan CotterAidanCotterFD

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FanDuel Daily Fantasy Picks and Helper: NBA Finals Game 4 (Celtics at Mavericks)

Since NBA DFS is easier to predict than baseball or football, it would likely get plenty of votes as the best sport to play on FanDuel. Basketball players usually stick to the same minutes and produce at roughly the same rate. Sounds easy, right? Trust me -- it's not!

As a result, NBA daily fantasy is highly reliant on a player's opportunity, so you'll need to ensure that you're up to date with key injuries. Our projections -- which are powered by numberFire -- update throughout the day to reflect current news. You can also turn to numberFire for player news updates as well as a matchup heat map and lineup optimizer to help give you an edge.

On top of all that, here at FanDuel Research, we'll come at you each day with this NBA DFS primer, which breaks down some of the day's top plays at each position.

Let's dive into Game 4's Boston Celtics-Dallas Mavericks single-game slate on FanDuel.

NBA Finals Single-Game DFS Picks for Celtics-Mavericks

Game 4 Preview

All NBA odds are via FanDuel Sportsbook.

Date and Time: Friday, June 14th at 8:35 p.m. ET

Spread: Celtics -1.0 (-112)

Total: 211.5 (-108/-112)

Studs to Target

Luka Doncic ($17,500) -- Luka Doncic managed just 43.2 FanDuel points (FPs) in Game 3. That was just the third time he failed to reach 46 FPs this postseason -- but the second time in three games this series. He still put up 27 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds but shot only 11-of-27 and fouled out midway through the fourth quarter. Still, his 65.7-FP performance in Game 2 was a reminder that he's in a tier of his own ceiling-wise. There's logic in saving salary with one of Boston's stars at your 2x MVP slot, but those are just contrarian builds. Luka's upside still makes him the top option.

Jaylen Brown ($15,000) -- Current Finals MVP favorite Jaylen Brown has proven to be a matchup nightmare for Dallas. Brown had his best fantasy performance of the postseason in Game 3, notching 30 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists en route to 51.6 FPs. He's now outscored Jayson Tatum ($16,000) in two of three games this series, so it's hard to justify rostering Tatum at a higher salary -- though he has led Boston in shot attempts all three games. Consequently, I can get behind either as contrarian MVPs, but there's enough value at the bottom to pair one of them with Doncic in the 1.5x STAR or 1.2x PRO slots.

Mid-Range Options

Derrick White ($11,500) -- Neither Derrick White nor Jrue Holiday ($11,000) had particularly impactful fantasy performances in Game 3, although White at least cracked 30 FPs for the seventh time in his last eight games. That kind of consistency is much-needed on a slate where I'm trying to roster two high-salary studs at the top. White continues to fill up the box score on a nightly basis and now ranks third on the Celtics in scoring (17.5 points per game) and assists (4.4) while pacing them in stocks (2.1). Notably, he has multiple blocks in four of the last five games and +185 odds to record 2+ blocks in Game 4. Those stellar periphery numbers give him a sound floor every night and make Derrick White an ideal mid-range target for the 1.2x PRO slot.

Al Horford ($9,500) -- With Kristaps Porzingis active for Games 1 and 2, Al Horford only saw 29 and 28 minutes, respectively. With the unicorn back on the bench for Game 3, Big Al's minutes shot back up to 36 -- closer in line to the 33.1 minutes per game he'd averaged the two rounds prior. Horford wasn't especially impressive across those 36 minutes, but he did rack up three stocks and nail two three-pointers, finishing with 24 FPs. He's now made multiple threes in two of three games this series and five of his last eight overall. Horford sports -140 odds for 2+ made threes in Game 4. His floor-spacing and defense make Horford a reliable salary for Game 4.

Value Plays

Dereck Lively ($9,000) -- Taking salary into consideration, Dereck Lively has to be my favorite play of the slate... assuming Porzingis sits again. Lively was trending up with 31.1 FPs in their Conference Finals closeout win before the Celtics shut him down in Boston. He flipped the script in Game 3, scoring more points (11) and grabbing more rebounds (13) than he did in the first two games combined. That netted him 34.1 FPs -- less than six shy of Kyrie Irving, whose 39.6 FPs came via 35 real-world points. Oh, and Lively still hasn't blocked a shot this series despite averaging 1.2 per game in the first three rounds. I'd be hard-pressed to make an MVP Luka build without Lively in it.

Derrick Jones ($8,000) -- Derrick Jones Jr. saw a postseason-low 15 minutes in Game 3, finishing with 10.1 FPs. That allowed Tim Hardaway Jr. ($6,500) to play big minutes for the first time in a month, but he finished 0-for-5 from the floor and with a -16 point differential. I'd be shocked to see THJ get that much run again, and Jones Jr. played well enough in the first three rounds to warrant another shot at home. It's worth nothing that he's shooting 46.4% from three at home this postseason, compared to 29.0% on the road. Derrick Jones Jr. has -135 odds for 1+ made three and +410 odds for 2+ made threes in Game 4. He offers much-needed relief with three high-salary options at the top.


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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author’s advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.

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