Top Sites For NBA Pick’em & DFS December 2024
NBA DFS gives you an opportunity to win money by playing entertaining games and contests. For example, you could chase a life-changing fortune in a multimillion-dollar event or simply try doubling your entry through a double-up contest. If using your basketball expertise to win money sounds exciting, then you might want to know about the best NBA DFS apps for player props.
As you may know, NBA daily fantasy sports have moved beyond simple tournaments and cash games. Many DFS apps now offer more unique contests similar to prop bets in sports betting. They’re excellent alternatives if you don’t have legal sports betting sites in your state. Even if you do have access to legal online sportsbooks, you might like NBA DFS for something new.
That said, we’ll cover basketball pick’em and player props and how they relate closely to sports wagering. You can also see our list of the best NBA DFS apps and the unique games they offer.
Our Top Picks For NBA DFS
What Games Can I Find On NBA DFS Sites?
Daily fantasy sites have broadened their horizons regarding game selection. The industry collectively offers many game types from the season’s opening tip-off to the NBA Finals. Some contests that you’ll find at various NBA daily fantasy sites include Best Ball, double-up, matchups, pick’em, and traditional tournaments.
Of course, the specific games will vary based on your chosen site. One operator might focus on NBA player props, while another may provide variations of these games (e.g., matchup props). You can use this page as a guide on which sites offer what type of contests.
NBA Pick’em And Fantasy Player Props Contests
DFS sites have borrowed elements from the sports betting world to create pick’em contests. Pick’em requires you to choose the over or under on player stats, such as points, rebounds, and three-pointers. For example, you might pick Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum to get over 8.5 rebounds.
Pick’em is very similar to prop bets available at legal online sportsbooks. It’s a perfect substitute for sports betting if you don’t have regulated sportsbooks in your state. Daily fantasy NBA player pros are also worthwhile when you’re looking for a break from placing sports wagers.
Traditional NBA DFS Contests
Traditional DFS games see you create a lineup while staying under the given salary cap. For example, a certain site might require you to draft an eight-player team while keeping under a $50,000 cap. Rather than making predictions on stats (e.g. rebounds, assists) like with NBA player props, you’re trying to find value in players and get the most out of your lineup.
These contests break down into two main camps, including cash games and tournaments. A cash game (e.g., double-up, 50/50) pays half the field. Tourneys pay 10-20% of the field, with the top finishers collecting the biggest payouts.
Our picks for the best NBA DFS sites offer a mixture of traditional and pick’em games. Some of our top sites even blend pick’em and traditional elements into a single contest. For example, you might create a tournament lineup by selecting totals (a.k.a. over/under) on each player.
Best NBA DFS Sites
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- Underdog Fantasy
- Sleeper Fantasy
- PrizePicks
- Vivid Picks
- Betr Picks
- Boom Fantasy
- ParlayPlay
Top Sign-Up Bonuses At NBA DFS Sites
Underdog Fantasy
Underdog Fantasy NBA Pick’em Games
Underdog Fantasy burst onto the DFS scene with A-list investors like Kevin Durant, Mark Cuban, BlackRock, and Corner Ventures. It has experienced much success, expanding to 41 states and Canada (except Ontario). Underdog is adept at providing unique and entertaining NBA DFS contests—including one worth up to $10 million. You can find out more on these NBA games and how they work below.
Pick’em
Underdog splits its pick’em contests into two categories: Higher/Lower and Rivals. Higher/Lower consists of deciding if a player will go over or lower than the given stat line (e.g., over/under 21.5 points). It works must like a player prop bet at online sportsbooks. Rivals involves choosing one player to get more of a stat than another. For example, you might think that Domantas Sabonis has the edge on Rudy Gobert for rebounds.
Underdog Fantasy Pick’em Payout Table
| Number of Picks | Standard Upside | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Two | 3x | ||
| Three | 6x | ||
| Four | 10x | ||
| Five | 20x | ||
| Six | 25x | ||
| Seven | 40x | ||
| Eight | 80x |
Battle Royale
Battle Royale is a day-long contest that ends when all the day’s games conclude. You can enter these contests for between $3 and $300, with higher entries offering bigger prizes. Battle Royale sees you draft 3-12 players (varies by contest) in hopes of landing one of the highest-scoring lineups.
Best Ball
Best Ball consists of leagues for the regular season (October-April) or NBA Playoffs (April-June). The regular season leagues are especially notable because they can offer massive prize pools. For example, the $10 NBA contest “The Dance” features a $500,000 prize pool. You don’t have to worry about trades or wavier wire moves with Best Ball. Instead, you draft a team at the start of the season and check to see if you win money at the end.
Underdog Fantasy Bonus Offer
You can pick up the Underdog Fantasy bonus when depositing $10 or more and using the promo code “PROPS1.” This offer matches your first deposit by 50% up to $250. You may withdraw winnings from the bonus after meeting 1x wagering requirements on the deposit and bonus. Remember that you have a limited time to clear wagering requirements at 60 days.
Why Underdog Fantasy
Odds are you can enjoy Underdog Fantasy in your state, given that it’s available in 41 states plus Canada. This widespread availability provides access to some of the industry’s best NBA daily fantasy games, including Best Ball, Battle Royale, and pick’em. Best Ball is especially popular due to its massive prize pools reaching up to $10 million.
- For a full rundown on Underdog Fantasy, check out our review.
- You can perfect your fantasy props strategy by reading this guide to Underdog Fantasy Pick’em strategy.
- For a more detailed look at the Underdog Fantasy sign-up bonus, check out our guide to the Underdog promo code.
Sleeper Fantasy
Sleeper NBA DFS Games
Sleeper Fantasy provides many features that make it stand out compared to other NBA daily fantasy sites. It offers customizable leagues, channels (news, trade advice), fighting mascots, and voice chats during drafts. Therefore, you might like this app for the features just as much as the games. Speaking of which, let’s discuss the NBA contests available at Sleeper Fantasy.
Sleeper Picks
Sleeper Picks games are equivalent to Underdog Fantasy Pick’em games and other player prop contests you’ll find at the top NBA DFS apps.
The Sleeper Picks contests cover almost every big name in the NBA on a given game night. Pick at least two over/unders, and win if all of your picks hit. You can win up to 100x on Sleeper Picks NBA games.
Leagues
You will find season-long leagues available up until the NBA’s tip-off in late October. These leagues have plenty of custom options, including more/less flex positions, larger/smaller benches, extra points for specific stats, and more. They also let you invite friends or just play against strangers. Features like voice chat and fighting mascots make league play all the more exciting.
Game Pick
Game Pick sees you select one game for each of your players that week. The goal is to choose the contest where each specific player has the best odds to succeed. For example, you might feel that Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker will do well against the Dallas Mavericks.
Lock-In
This contest works similar to Game Pick because it takes place during the week and involves trying to pick each player’s best game. However, Lock-In differs by letting you see player performances before deciding to lock games or pass. You might have Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell score 19 points on Monday, for example, and wait to lock in a later performance. If you do not lock in a game, that player’s final contest of the week will automatically count.
Sleeper Bonus Offer
The Sleeper Fantasy bonus matches your first deposit by 100% up to $100. You must deposit at least $10 and use the “PROPS” code to qualify. You’ll need to meet 1x wagering requirements on the bonus and deposit before withdrawing bonus funds.
Why Sleeper
Sleeper offers more than a standard daily fantasy NBA experience thanks to its features. You can expect everything from mascots battling during contests to important stats and player information. Sleeper Fantasy also provides many league options and entertaining weekly contests, including Game Pick and Lock-In.
- Check out our Sleeper Fantasy Promo Code and Review guide.
Boom Fantasy
Boom Fantasy NBA Pick’em Games
Launched in 2015, Boom Fantasy was one of the DFS pioneers of NBA player props. It’s still going strong thanks to a variety of interesting contests, including Toss-Ups, Favorites, and Long Shots. We’ll discuss what makes each of these games unique below.
Toss-Ups
This pick’em contest offers Over/Under and Matchups tabs. With Over/Under, you choose whether a player will go over or under a stat—much like prop bets in sports betting. Matchups involves picking which player will win a stat head to head, and they often assign a spread to one side. For example, an assists matchup might feature Tyrese Haliburton vs. Nikola Jokic (+2.5), where Jokic is spotted 2.5 assists. Therefore, these contests have prop and spread betting elements.
Favorites
Only one side of an over/under is available with Favorites. For instance, you may see Jalen Suggs over 1.5 steals (no under option listed). Boom Fantasy gives you better odds with Favorites, versus normal prop wager odds at betting sites. An example could be LaMelo Ball over 2.5 three-pointers, he averages 3.5 three-pointers. Given the superior odds, you win less with successful Favorites entries versus other contest types.
Long Shots
This game is like a parlay wager with long odds of winning. Long Shots involves choosing three players to perform far better than they normally do. For example, you might pick Draymond Green over 15.5 points (he averages 9.7 PPG). You’re obviously taking a bigger risk with Long Shots, so Boom offers higher payouts for these contests. You get 10x your entry for two correct choices and 40x for three.
Boom Fantasy Bonus Offer
You can get up to a $100 No Sweat Entry through the Boom Fantasy bonus. You qualify by depositing $10 or more and using the “PROPS” promo code. If you lose your first contest, the No Sweat Entry provides a matching refund up to $100. Assuming you play a $50 Toss-Ups game and lose, for example, you would get a $50 refund.
Why Boom Fantasy
Although only available in 23 states, Boom Fantasy is worth considering if it’s offered in your jurisdiction. The Boom Fantasy bonus (No Sweat Entry) is unique compared to other DFS sites on this list. Boom also offers an interesting prospect in Long Shots, where you can win up to 40x your entry fee.
- Learn more about this NBA DFS app with our Boom Fantasy Review.
ParlayPlay
ParlayPlay NBA DFS Games
Like the name implies, ParlayPlay fashions its NBA DFS contests like parlay wagers at sportsbooks. You place 2-4 players on a More/Less ticket and two players on a Hit It entry. As covered below, More/Less and Hit It both offer large payouts on wins. You must guess all legs correctly to win Hit It (like parlays bets), while More/Less pays for 1-2 correct picks.
Hit It
This game requires picking a stat range for two different players. You earn 2x your entry for one correct selection and 6x for two right guesses. Here’s an example of the stat ranges that you choose from:
- Points for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- 0-20
- 21-25
- 25-30
- 31-35
- 36-40
- 41+
More/Less
More/Less combines aspects of NBA player props and parlay wagers. You decide if 2-4 players will get more or less (over/under) of a statistic. Your payout depends upon how many player props you add and correctly predict:
- 2-for-2 ticket = 3x payout
- 3-for-3 ticket = 5x
- 4-for-4 ticket = 10x
ParlayPlay Bonus Offer
You get a $5 ParlayPlay no-deposit bonus when you sign up for an account using the “PROPS” code. This no-deposit offer is a $5 risk free entry, which means you get $5 free to play. Next on the order is the ParlayPlay deposit bonus, which is a 100% match up to $100. You can withdraw winnings from this bonus after meeting 1x wagering requirements.
Why ParlayPlay
If you like NBA parlays and prop bets, then you’ll want to check out ParlayPlay. Available in 26 states (plus D.C.), this DFS app offers two unique parlay-style contests with Hit It and More/Less. You earn larger prizes when getting more right guesses, topping out with a 10x payout in More/Less (4-for-4 on picks).
- Be sure to look at our ParlayPlay review by clicking here.
Mojo Fantasy
Mojo Fantasy NBA Pick’em Games
Mojo combines daily fantasy NBA with trading markets. You’ll likely find Mojo Fantasy interesting if you trade cryptocurrencies and/or stocks. To play, you buy shares of basketball players at the beginning of contests. The goal is to buy low and sell high as the game rages on. For example, you might purchase Walker Kessler at $0.40 per share and sell later at $0.75. This concept is different than other DFS sites, so we’ll further explain the contests below.
Double-up
You make trades throughout the event while trying to move ahead of opponents. You’ll collect double the entry if your portfolio finishes in the top half.
In the Green
You win part of the prize pool if your portfolio finishes with a positive balance. Your share of the prize pool depends upon how well you rank among players who are in the green.
Moon Shot
This free-to-play game awards Mojo Bucks to the top finishers, with previous Moon Shots delivering tens of thousands of dollars to the field. You need to select player props to compete in Moon Shot.
Mojo Fantasy Bonus Offer
The Mojo Fantasy bonus matches your initial deposit by 100% up to $100. You can grab this offer by depositing $10 or more and using the code “PROPS.” Wagering requirements are 1x on the Mojo bonus.
Why Mojo Fantasy
You will only find Mojo Fantasy in 19 states at the time of writing. Assuming you can play here, you’ll enjoy an interesting blend of stock trading and NBA player props. We especially like In the Green because it incorporates so many trading aspects into DFS.
- Check out our Mojo Fantasy review.
Top DFS Apps In Other Sports
- Best NFL DFS Apps
- Best MLB DFS Apps
- Best NASCAR Fantasy Apps
- Best UFC Fantasy Apps
- Best PGA DFS Apps
- Best College Football DFS Apps
- Best NHL DFS Apps
- Top Apps For DFS Pick’em
NBA DFS FAQ
What does DFS stand for in NBA?
DFS stands for daily fantasy sports regarding the NBA. It offers a unique blend of contests, including tournaments, cash games (e.g., 50/50), player props, matchup games, and more. The tournaments and cash games fall into the traditional side of daily fantasy. NBA player pros and matchups are newer to the scene and include sports betting elements. You enter DFS contests by paying an entry fee and competing against one or more opponents. Your ability to pick winners will determine whether you earn a payout.
What is the best NBA DFS site?
Underdog Fantasy is the best NBA DFS site from an overall perspective. It’s more widely available than other DFS props sites (41 states) and has some of the biggest and most entertaining games. Regarding the latter, Best Ball contests are great for the regular season or NBA Playoffs. The annual expected Best Ball Mania prize pool is $10 million with a $3 million top payout. Underdog’s Battle Royale and pick’em games are entertaining alternatives to Best Ball.
What are NBA DFS games?
An NBA DFS game can either involve building lineups or selecting over/unders on player props (a.k.a. pick’em). Lineup building comes into play during traditional tournaments or cash games (e.g., double-up). The goal is to create a team that can record a high score and finish in the money. Pick’em requires you to make decisions on player props (usually over/under). More correct over/under choices moves you closer to winning.
What are NBA pick’em games?
An NBA pick’em game revolves around predictions on player stats. The most common format requires you to choose the over/under on a certain statistic. For example, you might make a decision on Luka Doncic over/under 31.5 points. This format is quite similar to prop bets at sports betting sites. Most NBA daily fantasy pick’em contests see you put 2-5 players on a ticket, which adds a parlay element too.
What site has the best NBA pick’em and fantasy prop contests?
Underdog Fantasy is the best NBA DFS site for pick’em and player props. Its popularity begins with a unique mixture of contests, including Best Ball, Battle Royale, and pick’em. Best Ball is perhaps the most interesting due to large prize pools and small entries. Pick’em gives you an opportunity to enjoy NBA player props in two different DFS formats (Higher/Lower and Rivals).
What is the best site for NBA player props?
Underdog Fantasy is our top pick for NBA player props due to its variety. You can enjoy two types of prop bet-style contests, including Higher/Lower and Matchups. The latter revolves around choosing one player to beat another in a given stat. Higher/Lower is similar to player prop bets because it sees you choose the over/under for players’ stats. Other Underdog Fantasy contests beyond props include Battle Royale and Best Ball.