NBA DraftKings DFS Picks: Best Plays for October 28, 2026

Overall slate thoughts

LaMelo Ball, Franz Wagner and Jabari Smith Jr. are our preferred starting points for Wednesday’s nine-game DraftKings NBA slate. Tari Eason is the value we want to investigate before defaulting to a minimum-priced center. Giannis Antetokounmpo is our preferred premium alternative, while Nikola Jokic requires a more deliberate stars-and-savings build.

The October 28 slate begins at 7 p.m. ET, and every game in this player pool starts by 8 p.m. ET. This is not the full NBA schedule: San Antonio-Utah, Oklahoma City-Dallas and Lakers-Clippers are outside this slate. There is no late West Coast game available to rescue an unresolved lineup decision.

The central question is not simply who benefits from an absence. It is which player’s existing role, salary and eligibility make the extra opportunity worth buying. We prefer a balanced lineup with multiple credible paths to production over paying for two superstars and guessing that two bench centers suddenly play full games. Early-season samples remain tiny. We separate regulation from overtime, exclude preseason results and do not turn an efficient night into a projection.

Game	Tip-off ET	What matters for our builds
Charlotte at Detroit	7 p.m.	Schroder’s playing time and Miller’s shot volume; Duren and Isaiah Joe are out for Detroit.
Miami at Atlanta	7 p.m.	Giannis is a premium alternative, not an automatic double-star stack.
Philadelphia at Indiana	7 p.m.	Embiid versus the cheaper Huff construction; Indiana’s backcourt decisions.
Washington at Cleveland	7 p.m.	Mitchell’s scoring role versus Harden’s less expensive playmaking.
Orlando at Toronto	7:30 p.m.	Wagner first, Bane for shooting upside, Barnes as a tournament return.
Denver at New Orleans	8 p.m.	Respect Jokic’s ceiling without treating the previous overtime result as a baseline.
Golden State at Minnesota	8 p.m.	Ball’s role change; Podziemski offers a sensible opposing piece.
Houston at Milwaukee	8 p.m.	Smith and Eason before an unverified Capela workload.
New York at Chicago	8 p.m.	Alvarado is out for New York; Chicago’s center minutes are not automatically settled.

Use our NBA research center alongside the analysis below. We are not assigning unsupported ownership percentages. Tournament differentiation should come from a coherent combination of players and game scripts, not from declaring every unfamiliar name low-owned.

Core Plays

LaMelo Ball, MIN, $7,700, PG

Ball has 25 assists and 49 shot attempts through four games; Monday’s 31 minutes came in overtime.

Edwards’ absence makes Ball our preferred Minnesota creator, but this is a bet on a changed offensive role, not an established 35-minute floor. We want the player who can create both his own scoring chances and teammates’ baskets. The counterargument is that the extra work can spread across several wings, and playing time can still disappoint. Ball fits better beside affordable forwards than as the first piece of an automatic four-player Minnesota stack.

Franz Wagner, ORL, $8,300, SF

Wagner has 57 field-goal attempts and 19 assists through three games; Sunday’s 23-shot performance came with 13 rebounds.

With Orlando’s absences, Wagner is our first choice to combine scoring responsibility with passing and rebounding. His SF-only eligibility also fills a less forgiving roster spot before we use flexible guards elsewhere. We prefer him to treating every inexpensive Magic player as equally useful. Bane is a viable companion, but a third Orlando perimeter player creates more competition for the same possessions than our primary build needs.

Jabari Smith Jr., HOU, $6,500, PF/C

Smith played 33 to 39 minutes in all four games; Monday brought 12 rebounds and five assists.

This is the Houston frontcourt investment we can justify without inventing a new rotation. His existing workload matters more than merely identifying an empty spot on a depth chart. PF/C eligibility lets us keep him at power forward while deciding whether to spend or save at center. We like Smith with Eason because their combined $11,100 cost leaves room for stronger creators elsewhere. That is not a claim that both receive every rebound and shot vacated by an injured teammate.

GPP Plays

Giannis Antetokounmpo, MIA, $10,200, PF

Antetokounmpo has attempted 79 shots and 37 free throws through four games, including Monday’s 29-point, 14-rebound, 11-assist performance.

Giannis is our preferred pivot from the balanced construction when we want a premium ceiling without committing $12,000 to center. The $1,800 saving versus Jokic can replace a speculative punt with an established rotation player. His scoring, rebounding and creation offer several ways to justify the spend, but Miami still has other players to feed. We would normally choose Giannis or an expensive Miami teammate rather than pay for both and weaken the last three roster spots.

Nikola Jokic, DEN, $12,000, C

Jokic’s 35-point, 15-rebound, 10-assist game against New Orleans required 44 minutes in overtime.

The rematch is attractive, but copying that box score would be the wrong analysis. Jokic consumes 24% of the salary cap, leaving about $5,429 per remaining player. We want a lineup where those seven spots remain believable if the game ends in regulation. Derik Queen, $5,800, PF/C, is an optional opposing piece: Queen collected 25 rebounds across three games, but played only 25 minutes in Saturday’s overtime meeting with Denver. The eligibility works beside Jokic, but the matchup and uncertain center split make Queen a tournament choice rather than an automatic value.

Joel Embiid, PHI, $8,400, C

Embiid has played 33, 34 and 36 minutes in his three appearances, attempting 27 free throws.

At $3,600 below Jokic, Embiid is the center-first alternative that does not demand a severely weakened supporting cast. Indiana’s missing starting center is a useful matchup consideration, but the stronger argument is the price relative to Embiid’s demonstrated workload. The risk is not erased by his absence from the current injury report: we still need ordinary pregame confirmation, and Haliburton’s absence adds uncertainty to how competitive this game stays.

Tyrese Maxey, PHI, $8,700, PG, is a legitimate alternative, not just an Embiid-out play. Maxey has taken 88 shots across four games, including 22 and 23 in the two most recent games Embiid played. We prefer choosing one Philadelphia premium first, then assessing the full lineup. Using both can work in a high-scoring, competitive game, but it is a concentration decision rather than a free correlation bonus.

Brandon Miller, CHA, $7,800, SF

Miller has attempted 92 shots and 45 threes in four games; he played 36 minutes in three of them.

This is a volume bet rather than a chase of the latest scoring total. Charlotte’s depleted backcourt provides a reason for the offense to keep leaning on him, while the shooting-heavy profile leaves a wide range of outcomes. We prefer Schroder’s saving in the main example, but Miller is the higher-scoring alternative when the rest of the lineup can absorb an expensive SF. Detroit has ruled out Duren and Isaiah Joe, with Ausar Thompson probable; confirm the starting lineups before treating the matchup as settled.

Desmond Bane, ORL, $6,800, SG/SF, and Scottie Barnes, TOR, $8,300, SF/PF

Bane has attempted 28 threes through three games but collected only four assists. Bane is our shooting-upside complement to Wagner, not a substitute for Wagner’s broader contribution profile. The $1,500 saving and SG/SF flexibility are useful, but cold shooting can expose the limited playmaking cushion. We are comfortable pairing them without adding a third Magic scorer.

Barnes missed all 12 shots Sunday after collecting 28 points and 14 rebounds Friday. Barnes is the tournament return if you believe Orlando-Toronto stays close and the production concentrates in the primary forwards. We are not calling him low-owned because of one ugly game. The appeal is a different lineup construction with scoring and non-scoring upside, not a promise of an automatic bounce-back.

Brandin Podziemski, GSW, $6,500, PG/SG

Podziemski played 33 minutes in each of two regular-season appearances, taking 31 shots combined.

Podziemski is our preferred balanced return to Ball. The case rests on an existing role rather than assuming every missing Warrior possession belongs to Stephen Curry. Curry still competes for shots, and two appearances are not enough to declare the rotation permanent. We nevertheless prefer this two-team pairing to filling another slot with a Minnesota player whose benefit depends on the same unresolved redistribution.

Kevin Durant, HOU, $7,500, SF: Durant attempted 32 free throws over four games, playing 37 minutes in three of them. He is the direct-scoring alternative to the Smith-Eason pairing. Choose Durant with one Houston frontcourt value when you want more individual offensive ceiling, rather than automatically adding him to every Rockets-heavy build.

Cleveland alternatives: Donovan Mitchell, $8,600, SG, has the scoring-oriented case: Mitchell has attempted 55 shots through three games, including Monday’s overtime win. James Harden, $7,400, PG, offers the cheaper facilitating route: Harden has 21 assists and 37 shot attempts through three games, one of which went to overtime. We lean Mitchell if specifically paying for a scoring ceiling, Harden if the $1,200 improves another position. Neither requires a forced Washington return, and neither belongs in a lineup simply because the opponent looks appealing.

Value Plays

Tari Eason, HOU, $4,600, SF/PF

Eason played 27, 31 and 33 minutes after an ejection ended his opener at three.

That distinction matters: the shortened opener is not evidence of a normal three-minute role. Eason is our preferred economical Houston piece because he already had a rotation place and can occupy either forward slot. Smaller Houston combinations are plausible, but not announced facts. We want the affordable playing-time path, not a forecast that defensive events repeat every night.

Dennis Schroder, CHA, $5,600, PG

Schroder played 38 and 36 minutes in Charlotte’s last two games, following a 20-minute outing in a 47-point loss.

The bad box score does not necessarily mean the role disappeared. Schroder gives us a lower-cost way into Charlotte’s available ballhandling, especially when Miller’s SF price conflicts with Wagner. The limitation is positional: PG-only means we should place him early in the roster-building process, not discover at the end that the cheaper guard cannot fill SG. We prefer his established role to a speculative minimum-salary guard unless news materially changes the latter’s job.

Terrence Shannon Jr., MIN, $3,700, SG/SF

Shannon played 20, 22, 23 and 24 minutes through four games; the latest included overtime.

Shannon is the inexpensive Minnesota wing we prefer investigating first. He did not need an injury to enter the rotation, and the salary creates meaningful room elsewhere. We still want starting and closing-lineup information before pushing the expectation higher. Ayo Dosunmu, $5,200, SG/SF, is an alternative when the extra $1,500 buys a credible larger role, not simply because both players share the same injury headline.

Jay Huff, IND, $3,800, C

Huff played 21 and 23 minutes in the last two games, recording three blocks Sunday and none Monday.

Huff is a salary-relief option, not a safe projection disguised as value. Zubac’s absence creates an opening, but Larry Nance Jr. remains an alternative and the Embiid matchup can create foul trouble. The appeal is that a modest workload can still help at this salary, with shooting and blocks offering upside. The downside is a quiet line when those events do not arrive. We use him in the example to demonstrate the trade-off, not to claim a secure 30-minute assignment.

DeMar DeRozan, DEN, $5,500, SG/SF: DeRozan played 24 to 29 minutes and attempted 15 free throws across three games. Cameron Johnson’s doubtful status makes DeRozan worth considering, but it does not announce a starting job or a guaranteed workload increase. He is a reasonable alternative when you want to avoid another minimum-priced punt while retaining flexible wing eligibility.

Injury-related thoughts

The October 28, 6:15 p.m. ET official NBA injury report is the basis for these availability distinctions. An omitted player is not a confirmed starter, and an older salary-file tag is not the final decision.

• Minnesota: Edwards and DiVincenzo out. Golden State: Butler, Moody and Porzingis out; Lendeborg available.
• Orlando: Banchero, Suggs, Isaac and Penda out; Anthony Black available after the earlier personal-reasons designation. Toronto: Leonard out.
• Houston: Sengun, Adams and Smart out. Prioritize evidence of actual playing time over automatic center-minute redistribution.
• Charlotte: Knueppel, White and Grant Williams out. Detroit: Duren and Isaiah Joe out; Ausar Thompson probable. Starting roles and workloads still need confirmation.
• Indiana: Zubac, McConnell and Haliburton out; Nembhard, Nesmith and Toppin available. Nembhard’s clearance with Haliburton out makes him more relevant, but confirm his role and any workload limit.
• Denver/New Orleans: Cameron Johnson doubtful; Missi out; Poole available.
• Miami/Atlanta: Larsson, Landale and Aaron Wiggins available; Fontecchio out.
• Washington: Dybantsa available. Chicago: Claxton out, Awaka and Patrick Williams questionable. New York: Jose Alvarado out with a left ankle sprain.

With Nembhard available and Haliburton out, do not carry forward the earlier both-guards-out case for Quenton Jackson, $3,900, PG/SG: Jackson played 27 minutes Monday but attempted only three shots and recorded four assists. His role still needs confirmation; Nembhard’s clearance removes the assumed double-absence opening.

High-risk/high-reward plays

Anthony Black, ORL, $5,900, PG/SG: Available after the earlier personal-reasons designation; clearance does not establish his minutes. Black’s lone appearance this season produced five made threes on seven attempts and six fouls in 26 minutes. The depleted rotation offers a plausible role, but this is not a reliable multi-game shooting baseline. He is an alternative to Bane or a different Orlando construction, not a reason to jam three Magic guards and forwards into every lineup.

Clint Capela, HOU, $3,100, C: Capela played eight, 11 and four minutes in three regular-season appearances. The cheap price only helps if the minutes arrive. Even a starting announcement would not guarantee the workload necessary to make him preferable to Smith or Eason. We keep him out of the primary example unless concrete rotation news changes the case.

Paul Reed, DET, $5,900, C: Reed scored 22 points on 9-for-12 shooting and committed five fouls in 26 minutes Tuesday. Duren is out, but this is not a free-square salary; confirm Reed’s starting role and the frontcourt rotation. John Collins, $6,300, PF/C, is not an automatic safer answer either: Collins took four shots Tuesday after attempting 15 in each of the previous two games. We want to see the actual frontcourt situation rather than recycle yesterday’s picks at higher prices.

Chicago’s center opportunity: Jalen Smith, $5,200, C, is worth watching with Claxton out, but Smith played 19 to 24 minutes across Chicago’s first four games. The current price needs more than an assumption that the remaining minutes are all his. Resolve Awaka’s availability and the rotation before paying for a workload that has not yet been demonstrated.

Lineup construction and example

Our preferred starting shape is balanced: Ball plus Wagner, Smith and Eason, with one affordable center and an opposing guard from Golden State. It buys several meaningful roles without depending on an unconfirmed minimum-salary starter. A Giannis construction is the first premium alternative; an Embiid build is the first center upgrade. A Jokic build should be judged by its weakest three slots, not only by Jokic’s ceiling.

The following is an illustrative DraftKings Classic lineup, not an entered contest or a promise of returns. Its salaries and positions match this specific October 28 player pool. Revisit availability and starting lineups before each player’s game locks.

Slot	Player	Team	Eligible positions	Salary
PG	Dennis Schroder	CHA	PG	$5,600
SG	Desmond Bane	ORL	SG/SF	$6,800
SF	Franz Wagner	ORL	SF	$8,300
PF	Jabari Smith Jr.	HOU	PF/C	$6,500
C	Jay Huff	IND	C	$3,800
G	LaMelo Ball	MIN	PG	$7,700
F	Tari Eason	HOU	SF/PF	$4,600
UTIL	Brandin Podziemski	GSW	PG/SG	$6,500
Total				$49,800

$200 remains. Leaving it unused is preferable to forcing a worse-fitting player. The example has eight unique players from six teams and five games, with legal PG, SG, SF, PF, C, G, F and UTIL assignments. Huff is the clearest risk: if his role looks weaker, rebuild the center spending rather than treating a $200 cushion as sufficient insurance.

The two Orlando players express different production paths, while Smith and Eason provide an affordable frontcourt pairing. Ball-Podziemski is a competitive-game pairing across opponents. Those combinations can succeed together, but they are not guaranteed positive correlations. We do not need a full game stack on a nine-game slate.

Keep late flexibility: Schroder and Huff lock at 7 p.m.; Bane and Wagner at 7:30. Put later starters in G, F and UTIL when eligibility permits. The example already puts Schroder at PG and the later-starting Ball at G, leaving more possible guard replacements. Smith can move between PF and C before those slots lock, but Huff occupying C at 7 p.m. removes that center-swap route afterward. Do not plan a swap involving a game outside this nine-game player pool, and do not assume a questionable player’s replacement will cost the same or fit the same position.

Choose the lineup’s risk deliberately. One affordable center with an understandable downside is different from four speculative values whose minutes all depend on news breaking perfectly.