Much of the Utah Jazz's success this season has been due to the strong play of Donovan Mitchell. The two-time All-Star is day-to-day with an ankle injury and may not be available on Thursday night when the Jazz take on the Atlanta Hawks. If Mitchell is unable to play, Jordan Clarkson becomes an intriguing option in Thursday's NBA DFS player pool. Defense was an afterthought for the Hawks last season, and it hasn't been a top priority so far in 2021 either.
Clarkson averaged 19.5 points and seven rebounds in 26.5 minutes played over two games against the Hawks last season. The reigning Sixth Man award-winner has been off to a bit of a slow start in 2021, but the presumed added volume against a team that lags defensively should be just the remedy he needs. Before including Clarkson or anyone else in your NBA DFS picks for Thursday, be sure to check out the NBA DFS advice, player rankings, stacks and top daily Fantasy basketball picks from SportsLine's Mike McClure.
McClure is a DFS professional with nearly $2 million in career winnings. He's also a predictive data engineer at SportsLine who uses a powerful prediction model that simulates every minute of every game 10,000 times, taking factors like matchups, statistical trends and injuries into account.
This allows him to find the best NBA DFS values and create optimal lineups that he shares only over at SportsLine. They're a must-see for any NBA DFS player.
On Wednesday, McClure listed Raptors guard Fred VanVleet as one of his top picks on both sites. The result: VanVleet had 33 points, six assists, a steal and a block to return 49.6 points on FanDuel and 50.25 points on DraftKings. Anybody that included him in their lineups was well on the way to a profitable day.
Now, McClure has turned his attention to the Thursday, November 4 NBA DFS slate and locked in his top daily Fantasy basketball picks. You can only see them by heading to SportsLine.
Top NBA DFS picks for Thursday, November 4
Leading McClure's top NBA DFS picks for Thursday is Cade Cunningham ($4,000 on DraftKings and $4,600 on FanDuel). The first overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft missed the first four games of the season and is easing into the flow of things. However, in the two games that he's played, he's had the second-highest usage percentage on the team behind veteran Jerami Grant.
Cunningham has been hampered by the fact that he hasn't made a single one of his 14 attempted three-pointers so far in 2021. He's only attempted 22 shots at all so far this season and has been finding his rhythm after starting the year with an ankle injury. Detroit hosts Philadelphia on Thursday, who will be on the second game of a back-to-back, and let the Chicago Bulls' combination of Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan score 64 points on Wednesday. So, Cunningham should have a chance to break out.
Another key in McClure's optimal NBA DFS strategy includes rostering Philadelphia guard Matisse Thybulle ($3,600 on DraftKings, $4,400 on FanDuel). In the absence of Ben Simmons, the 76ers have seen an uptick in production from their role players to start the season. Thybulle played 38 minutes in Wednesday's win against Chicago and should get another extended look against one of the league's worst teams in Detroit.
Thybulle is playing above his career averages in points per game, field goal percentage and rebounds, but is making his biggest impact for daily Fantasy basketball owners with hustle stats. In Wednesday's win against the Bulls, he had three steals and two blocks. So far in this season, he leads the team with 2.5 steals per game and is second with 1.5 blocks per game. He should continue to be a disruptor on Thursday against the Pistons, who have been blocked 6.3 times per game -- fourth most in the NBA.
How to set NBA DFS lineups for Thursday, November 4
McClure is also targeting a player who could go off for massive numbers on Thursday 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.
So who is DFS pro Mike McClure putting in his optimal NBA DFS lineups for Thursday? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from a professional DFS player who has almost $2 million in career winnings, and find out.
