FanDuel daily picks: Fantasy basketball lineup-January 4
High Salary PG
Russell Westbrook-Oklahoma City Thunder (10,700): Westbrook had a quiet game against Charlotte on Saturday posting 33.7 fantasy points after reading off four straight with at least 52 fantasy points. He still had 16 points, six boards, and seven assists, but his recent run of production made his Saturday night seem like a letdown. Tonight, he’ll look to bounce back in a good matchup against the Kings who allow the third-most fantasy points in the NBA to opposing PG. Westbrook will need to go off to produce anywhere near his value, but I think he’ll do just that tonight against Sacramento. ∗∗∗∗ (See final slide for explanation of the stars after each selection)
Kemba Walker-Charlotte Hornets (8,800): Walker burned me badly the last time the Hornets and Warriors met. He struggled to hit anything and finished with just four points, three assists, and two rebounds in 31 minutes. While that burn is still a little fresh to go back into the same matchup, Walker has been playing well enough lately that I’m giving it a shot especially if the Warriors are as short-handed as they were on Saturday. Walker’s recent form has been excellent as he has carried the Hornets offense without Nicolas Batum and Jeremy Lin. He has averaged 27.8 points, 5.6 assists, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.8 steals over his last five games and has at least 42 fantasy points in four of those five contests. Walker has shown he can put up monster numbers when he is given a heavy workload which I expect he will tonight as the Hornets try to keep things close in Oakland. ∗∗
Rajon Rondo-Sacramento Kings (7,800): Rondo had 15 points and 15 assists in the Kings big win on Saturday over Phoenix. He has at least 14 assists in four of his last five games and has at least 32 fantasy points in each of those four contests and seven of his last nine overall. Rondo and the Kings will have their work cut out for them in Oklahoma City, but the Thunder do allow the seventh-most fantasy points in the NBA to opposing PG. Since his price has dropped back down to a manageable level under 8K, Rondo is worth a look tonight even though he’s not the score-first PG that normally is the way to go in fantasy basketball. ∗∗∗
Ricky Rubio-Minnesota Timberwolves (7,700): The point guard whose game most resembles Rondo’s multi-category, pass-first approach is Ricky Rubio who is also a good play tonight as the T-Wolves take on the Sixers and Ish Smith. Even Smith’s biggest proponents don’t tout his defense, so Rubio should be able to produce a nice line tonight. He has at least 37 fantasy points in four of his last five games and has at least seven assists and multiple steals in each of those last five games. Based on matchup, I’d give him a slight edge over Rondo although I think both are solid, low-risk plays tonight.∗∗∗∗
Mike Conley-Memphis Grizzlies (6,700): Conley has scored at least 15 points in seven straight games and in nine of his last ten. He has added enough peripherals to get to at least 26 fantasy points in each of his last seven games and should be set up for success tonight against the Blazers playing for the second night in a row who may again be without Damian Lillard. Conley is dealing with his own injury and showed up on the injury report questionable with back soreness. He’s too risky to leave in if we don’t get clarity before the early games tip, but he is an option I like if he’s cleared to play in Portland against the Blazers. With Lillard-∗∗, No Lillard-∗∗∗, No clarity on injury before 7:00-too risky to play.
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