Cooper Flagg and 4 Others Project Elite Output as NBA DFS Picks (January 8th)

We love these five NBA Players in the four-game NBA DFS Slate for tonight, January 8th.

Jan 6, 2026; Sacramento, California, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg (32) reacts after missing a shot next to Sacramento Kings forward Precious Achiuwa (9) in the second quarter at the Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images | Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

It is my favorite time of the day — time that we lock in our Best Daily DFS Picks. Last night, we led our picks with Derik Queen. He seemed to perform quite well for us early on, before falling victim to game script. The same went for Alex Sarr. Some things fall out of our control, but we maintain the same process and when the stars align, I am confident that we will exceed expectations for some big hits.

Cooper Flagg, PG,SG,SF (DAL) — $8,400 (FanDuel) | $7,500 (DraftKings)

Cooper Flagg is the only player this season ranking top 10 in clutch PTS, REB, & AST.

Unreal clutch gene for a 19-year-old rookie. pic.twitter.com/fwbcYLpUcD

— Real App (@realapp) January 7, 2026

Flagg is Top-4 on the Mavericks in Usage Rate, % of Team Points Scored, and Assist Rate. He lacks a bit of elite defense, but he can provide as a Top-8 Defensive Option. It is not all that bad, by any means.

To hit 5x of salary, Flagg must achieve (42) FanDuel Points and (38.5) DraftKings Points. Flagg has had at least (40) FanDuel and DraftKings Points in 8 of his last 13 Games, achieving 60+ Points twice.

In this matchup, Flagg is the listed Starting Point Guard, and the Jazz are 30th versus the position. However, he does play multiple positions so we look towards the Jazz' overall defensive rating. Good for us, they are also 30th in Defensive Rating.

Tre Jones, SG,PG (CHI) — $6,200 (FanDuel) | $6,100 (DraftKings)

Jones is operating in an offense that is without Josh Giddey. The play-style of Jones makes him a very natural replacement to Giddey. This slots Jones to press on (30) Minutes per Game, above his (26.8) Minute per Game Average.

The Heat are 26th versus Shooting Guards, but 1st in Field Goal Percentage Allowed. We pivot to check where the Heat are very bad categorically. This finds them to be 29th in Assists Allowed and 26th in Free Throws Allowed. This bodes well for Jones as he has an elite (34.0%) Assist Rate, and likely elevating as Giddey has a (44.1%) Assist Rate.

Jones is also great at drawing fouls at a (27.9%) Rate. Sean Wright also heads this referee crew tonight, and he ranks 14th/116 officials in Foul-Called Rate (High).

Anthony Edwards, SG/SF (MIN) — $9,500 (FanDuel) | $9,500 (DraftKings)

Anthony Edwards is 23 points away from 10,000 career points 👀 pic.twitter.com/P8BHCYdaTk

— Wolves Lead (@TWolvesLead) January 7, 2026

He is more expensive, but worth a splash. This is just a four-game slate, so we must press where we see fit. Edwards provides elite upside at-cost, fully capable of reaching 7x. To help the matter, this is a projected close, competitive game, that only favors the projected minutes to be played for Edwards.

The Cavaliers will be a middling battle for Edwards to take on. They are 13th in Defensive Rating, and that is where we are best to look as Edwards will fly around to all parts of an NBA court, surely more than the average player. He will see the entire defense, and he will be able to score being a Top Player in the NBA.

Edwards has a (30.6%) Usage Rate and (33.8%) of Team Points While on the Court. He is the guy, and he should provide big things in a game as such.

Pascal Siakam, PF/C (IND) — $8,400 (FanDuel) | $8,400 (DraftKings)

Siakam seems to lack 50+ Point Upside all that often, be it is very achievable in this matchup. We have the perfect storm, and I find Siakam to not just see elevated upside, but a very high floor.

The Pacers take on the Hornets in a game that has a (3.5) Point Spread to Charlotte. However, the Hornets also play here on a back-to-back. That should only help the Pacers in their scoring projection. The Hornets are also 22nd in Defensive Rating and they are 26th versus Power Forwards, being Siakam's primary position. He has a >28% Usage Rate, so it will be heavy-Siakam tonight.

Any lacking big-output games will be a result of the Pacers poor 6-31 record. This game should setup to be their most favorable matchup of the season.

Nikola Vucevic, C (CHI) — $7,600 (FanDuel) | $8,200 (DraftKings)

Generally, we would want to avoid back-to-back's. However, we have many teams playing in a back-to-back, the Bulls being one of them. Vucevic shows us lower risk than usual given the array of team injuries (Zach Collins, Jalen Smith). Patrick Williams is the only true backup to Vucevic and, in an effort to be competitive, Vucevic will have to play high-volume tonight. This should not be an issue for the experienced veteran.

Against Centers, the Heat are 28th in Field Goal Percentage Allowed and 27th in Rebounds Allowed. As for Vucevic, he is 4th in Usage Rate (21.3%) and 2nd in Rebound Rate (32.2%) He will be highly involved in this offense.

The most important factor of all is the upside. Does Vucevic have it? Yes, he does. Vucevic has at least (44.5) FanDuel Points over his last three games. To hit 5x of salary, he must mark (39.2) FanDuel Points — very achievable.