Fantasy Basketball Picks and Betting Tips for Sunday

With the playoff atmosphere arriving in football, the NBA counters with a series of interesting matchups for Sunday's nine-game slate. The schedule offers some balance today, as we are presented with a trio of compelling Eastern Conference matchups to consider, as well as some unique meetings between cross-conference foes.

The two best teams playing today, the Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics, both play feeble opponents from the opposite conference, taking away some interest in those rosters for DFS and prop purposes given their respective spreads today add up to 30 points.

We do find some more friendly games in the sense of closer spreads and healthy totals, such as the Sacramento Kings and DeMar DeRozan visiting the Chicago Bulls in a game with a total nearing 240. The Milwaukee Bucks are in Madison Square Garden for a Manhattan matinee against the New York Knicks. Both teams have high offensive ceilings to consider.

Injuries influence the day in that we don't have either Luka Doncic or Kyrie Irving available for the Dallas Mavericks as they take on the Denver Nuggets. The Brooklyn Nets are sitting just about everyone who has a proven scoring touch for today's tilt in Salt Lake City, which will be interesting.

Let's take a closer look at the players and matchups for Sunday and find some fantasy and betting angles of interest.

Sunday's Stream Team

• Kelly Oubre Jr., SG/SF, Philadelphia 76ers (Rostered in 43.0% of ESPN leagues): Oubre is a chaos creator on both sides of the court, always willing to leave the floor or hit the floor. The results have included a nice blend of scoring, steals, and a recent rise in rebounding for one of the league's worst rebounding teams. The Magic, meanwhile, are still depleted when it comes to big wings.

• Quentin Grimes, SG, Dallas Mavericks (14.1%): Getting shares of Grimes, Spencer Dinwiddie, and Dereck Lively II could prove rewarding today given the Mavericks will empower them to starting-caliber, if not star-level, roles in today's matchup with the Nuggets. Grimes, of the trio, brings shooting, scoring, and a nice recent spike in assist production.

• Cole Anthony, PG, Orlando Magic (9.5%): A sluggish start to the season for Anthony is now shifting into a hot stretch for the microwave combo guard. He earns that descriptor for an ability to score in bunches, meanwhile he's delivering awesome steal and block numbers in a recent run of more minutes. The 76ers' guards remain undersized or unable to create past Tyrese Maxey, aiding Anthony's upside on both sides of the ball.

• Peyton Watson, SF/PF, Denver Nuggets (4.4%): The rare combo forward with the block rate of a big center, Watson brings unique numbers to the floor in what has been an expanded role in recent weeks. On a team that needs more turnover creation on defense and off-ball work on offense, Waton brings a fun skill set to the floor against Dallas.

• Keon Johnson, SG, Brooklyn Nets (4.9%): There isn't much of a precedent for Johnson as an offensive cog in the NBA, but we might gain some evidence today. The team isn't playing either Cam CDJohnson or Cam Thomas, while D'Angelo Russell is sidelined, as well. Johnson could have his hands on the ball a good amount for Brooklyn this evening.

McCormick's bets for Sunday

• Pascal Siakam over 18.5 points (-115): The Pacers aren't a top-heavy offense, per se, but Siakam does stand well above the frontcourt depth chart in offensive skills. To this end, he's in a great spot to score today even as he faces a brilliant Cleveland defensive frontcourt. The angle is just how well he uses the midrange and deeper looks to open the floor and get his shot off. The pace and points are inviting in a matchup with top offenses.

• P.J. Washington over 16.5 points (-120): Doncic is fourth in the league in usage, while Irving is heliocentric himself. This means the ball will need somewhere to go without them, which signals lots of touches and shots for Washington. This gifted stretch big has seen his scoring and usage spike whenever his star peers are off the court, setting him up for great opportunity rates today.

• DeMar DeRozan over 23.5 points (-105): A return to Chicago spells a narrative angle for DeRozan to have increased usage and touches, but I'm interested more in just how well he attacks parts of the floor the Bulls struggle to contest, such as around the nail and when working in the post. The gifted veteran scorer will only visit Chicago once this season, making this a fun one-off angle to consider.

• Denver Nuggets -5.5 vs. Dallas Mavericks (-110): The Nuggets are in the top nine in both defensive and offensive efficiency over their past five games. The Mavericks, as you've read several times now, are without their top two creators. While I admire the depth Dallas now has and the ability to keep this line and game competitive in the face of major missing pieces, Denver's recent stretch of play combined with the sheer lack of late-game magic available to the Mavericks makes this a compelling play.