NBA DFS: DraftKings, FanDuel daily Fantasy basketball picks for Friday, Feb. 2 include Kawhi Leonard

The best word to describe Friday’s NBA schedule may be mismatched. Of the 10 games on the slate, seven contests have one team favored by at least eight points with three spreads of double-digits. How should daily Fantasy basketball players view this when making NBA DFS lineups on sites like FanDuel and DraftKings? Does this signal even greater performances by top options in the NBA DFS player pool, or could one-sided outcomes mean some studs don’t play much in the fourth quarter, and that limits their NBA DFS totals?

The Thunder are 16-point favorites over the Hornets in the largest spread on Friday. How should this affect using Oklahoma City options such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Chet Holmgren in NBA DFS lineups? The Nuggets are 12-point favorites over the Trail Blazers, so should you pluck Nikola Jokic from the NBA daily Fantasy player pool? Before making your NBA DFS picks, be sure to check out the NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stacks, and top daily Fantasy basketball picks from SportsLine’s Jimmie Kaylor.

Kaylor is a DFS and betting expert for SportsLine, who won a DraftKings Millionaire Maker contest in 2022. He uses a combination of his background as a former college and professional athlete and his keen eye for statistical trends when making his picks and locking in his DFS lineups. Kaylor enters the 2024 calendar year with multiple five-figure tournament cashes on his DFS resume.

Kaylor’s approach allows him to find the best NBA DFS values and create optimal lineups that he only shares on SportsLine. They’re a must-see for any NBA DFS player.

On Wednesday (when Kaylor last published picks), Kaylor highlighted Rockets guard Jalen Green as one of his top picks in his NBA DFS player pool on both sites. The result: Green had 34 points with four rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks, returning 53 points on DraftKings and 53.8 points on FanDuel. Anybody who included him in their lineups was well on the way to a profitable day.

Kaylor has turned his attention to NBA action on Friday and locked in his top daily Fantasy basketball picks. You can only see them by heading to SportsLine.

Top NBA DFS picks for Friday, February 2

For Friday, one of Kaylor’s top NBA DFS picks is Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard ($8,800 on DraftKings and $9,500 on FanDuel). Leonard had 31 points, nine rebounds, four assists, four steals and a block in a 125-109 win over the Wizards on Wednesday. He’s posted at least 30 points in back-to-back contests while taking 25 field goal attempts in each game as he’s aggressively looking for his shot as of late. Leonard has shot at least 53% from the field in five straight contests, averaging 25.6 points during that stretch.

The 32-year-old is averaging 23.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists this season. The Clippers play the Pistons, who could go down as one of the worst teams in NBA history. The Pistons are 6-41 this year and are coming off a 128-121 loss to the Cavaliers on Wednesday. Opponents are shooting 49.3% from the field, the sixth-highest in the NBA this season, against Detroit, and with Leonard’s efficiency as of late, Kaylor expects another big performance from the six-time All-Star on Friday.

Another part of Kaylor’s optimal NBA DFS strategy includes rostering Heat center Bam Adebayo ($8,400 on DraftKings and $8,700 on FanDuel). Adebayo has four double-doubles in his last six games, including 16 points and 11 rebounds in a 115-106 win over the Kings on Wednesday. The 26-year-old is averaging career-highs in points (20.6) and rebounds (10.6) in his seventh NBA season.

The Heat play the Wizards, who have the worst scoring defense in the NBA (124 ppg). Washington is coming off a 125-109 loss to the Clippers, and the Wizards are allowing 58.1 points per game in the paint, which is the second-highest in the league. Teams are also shooting 49.6% from the field, the fourth-highest in the NBA, against Washington. Both of these bode well for the 6-foot-9 Adebayo who does most of his scoring in the paint and is shooting better than 50% from the field this year. See Kaylor’s other NBA DFS picks right here.

How to set your NBA DFS lineups for Friday, February 2

Kaylor is also targeting a player who could go off for massive numbers on Friday because of a dream matchup. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is here.

Who is DFS pro Jimmie Kaylor putting in his optimal NBA DFS lineups for Friday? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from a professional DFS player who won a DraftKings Millionaire Maker contest, and find out.