FanDuel daily picks: Fantasy basketball lineup-December 2
High Salary SF
LeBron James-Clevleand Cavaliers (9,700): Depending on your perspective LeBron is either struggling or overdue for a big game. He has posted just 25.8 and 28.5 fantasy points in his last two contests while the Cavs lost blowouts to both the Bucks and Clippers. Tonight, he’ll lead the Cavs to Chicago where he’ll have to wear a Cubs uniform to pay off a World Series bet. Hopefully, he’ll be salty enough to drop a big number on the Bulls and his buddy Dwyane Wade after that. However, it’s a big salary to invest in after back-to-back burns.∗∗
Jimmy Butler-Chicago Bulls (8,800): On the other side of the early ESPN game, Jimmy Butler has also been a bit of a letdown over his last two games although he hasn’t been held under 30 fantasy points like LeBron. Butler had just 37.3 fantasy points against the Sixers last Friday and 31.8 fantasy points against the Lakers on Wednesday after putting up 55+ fantasy points in each of his two previous games. This will be the first meeting between the Bulls and Cavs this season, but last year, Butler averaged 19.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.7 steals in his three games against Cleveland. He’s cheaper than LeBron and comes with less risk, but the matchup isn’t a great one for him. ∗∗∗
Rudy Gay-Sacramento Kings (7,200): Gay and the Kings are in Boston tonight to face the Celtics who are allowing the fourth-most fantasy points per game to opposing SF so far this season. Even with Jae Crowder back, they have struggled defensively, which could allow Gay to post good nubmers. He has at least 25 fantasy points in each of his last five games and posted an impressive 22-8-8 for 45.6 fantasy points against Brooklyn last Sunday before just 27 on Monday in Washington. Like all the Kings, he should be well rested after Wednesday’s “rain-out,” so look for him to play a lot of minutes in what could be a high-scoring game tonight. ∗∗∗∗
Wilson Chandler-Denver Nuggets (6,300): Chandler returned to the bench on Wednesday as Danilo Gallinari returned for Denver, but Chandler still managed to contribute 24.4 fantasy points on 17-7-0 in his 29 minutes. He had posted 51.2 and 42.6 fantasy points in the two games that Gallinari was sidelined, but with Gallo and Will Barton back he won’t be asked to carry as much of the scoring load. He’s still a solid mid-range play in what should be a high-scoring game against a potentially tired Houston team, but Chandler’s reduction in usage makes him high-risk at this point.∗∗
Andrew Wiggins-Minnesota Timberwolves (6,000): Wiggins was on fire early in November, but he hit a bad scoring and shooting slump as the month wound down. He looked to be starting to turn the corner on Wednesday against New York finishing with 19-7-4 and 34.4 fantasy points. He has the potential for 40+ or even 50+ fantasy points, but his non-scoring numbers are too inconsistent and his shooting slump to recent to make him a lock at this price. However, I do like his upside a lot at Madison Square Garden tonight. ∗∗
Danilo Gallinari-Denver Nuggets (6,000): After a three-game layoff, Gallinari jumped right back into the Nuggets rotation and played 36 minutes on Wednesday with 17-4-4 and a block for 27.8 fantasy points. He has at least that many fantasy points in each of his last five full-strength games, and should be able to get to 30+ fantasy points again tonight against the road-weary Rockets who rank in the top ten in most fantasy points allowed to opposing SF after allowing Kevin Durant to go off against them last night.∗∗∗
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