Once again, Joel Embiid is battling knee pain and another potential long-term absence will have a significant impact on the NBA DFS player pool in a challenging 2024-25 NBA season for the Philadelphia 76ers. Embiid averaged more than 30 points per game in each of the prior three seasons but he scored fewer than 20 points in back-to-back contests. Even on the rare occasions where he’s been active this season, Embiid has rarely returned value at his NBA DFS price for daily Fantasy basketball players.

The 76ers play the Bulls and Embiid entered the day questionable. If he can’t play, are there other 76ers players in the NBA DFS player pool you should consider for your NBA DFS strategy such as Guerschon Yabusele, Kelly Oubre Jr. or Quentin Grimes? Before making any NBA DFS picks, 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 more than $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 on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel and create optimal lineups that he shares only over at SportsLine. They’re a must-see for any NBA DFS player.

On Friday, McClure highlighted Cavaliers guard Ty Jerome as an under-the-radar play as one of his top NBA DFS picks from the NBA DFS player pool on both sites. The result: Jerome had 19 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals, returning 30.8 points on DraftKings and 30.6 points on FanDuel to return strong value for NBA DFS lineups. Anybody who included him in their lineups could have been well on the way to a profitable day.

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

Top NBA DFS picks for Monday, February 24

For Monday, one of McClure’s top NBA DFS picks is Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who is listed at $12,000 on DraftKings and $12,800 on FanDuel. The reigning NBA MVP is on pace to do something even he’s never done over his three-time MVP career, average a triple-double. Jokic is third in the league in points (29.4 ppg) and rebounds (12.7) while second in assists (10.2) and he’s coming off a triple-double where he showed his dominance despite only taking seven shots. He had 12 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in a 23-point victory over the Lakers on Saturday.

The Nuggets play the Pacers in a matchup of two teams who play at a top-seven pace in the league. The Nuggets vs. Pacers matchup has an over/under of 245.5 points, according to the latest NBA odds from the SportsLine consensus, which is significantly larger than any other game on Monday’s NBA schedule. Jokic averaged 28 points, 12.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists in two games against the Pacers last season.

Another part of McClure’s optimal NBA DFS strategy includes rostering 76ers guard/forward Kelly Oubre Jr. ($5,500 on DraftKings and $6,700 on FanDuel). Oubre had 14 points and five rebounds over 38 minutes on Saturday and McClure expects him to be a prime breakout candidate with the 76ers injury woes. Tyrese Maxey (finger) is questionable and Philadelphia will be without role players like Eric Gordon (wrist), Kyle Lowry (hip) and Jared McCain (knee). 

Oubre has averaged more than 10 ppg in each of his last eight seasons as a serviceable veteran player who can amass more production as needed. The 76ers play the Bulls, who are allowing the second-most points (120.6 ppg) this season, and Oubre had 22 points and 12 rebounds against Chicago earlier this season. See McClure’s other NBA DFS picks right here.

How to set your NBA DFS lineups for Monday, February 24

McClure is also targeting a player who could go off for massive numbers on Monday 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 Mike McClure putting in his optimal NBA DFS lineups for Monday? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NBA DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from a professional DFS player who has over $2 million in career winnings, and find out.