Fantasy Basketball: DraftKings NBA Picks for February 17

Jan 24, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; General view of Draft Kings logo on an advertising LED screen during the Denver Broncos game against the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship football game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos defeated the Patriots 20-18 to advance to the Super Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports DraftKings /

DraftKings NBA Picks for February 17

We have the NBA All Star break over the next week, which means that things will be pretty quiet around here. We will still have our hockey and EPL picks, and we will keep you updated on the NBA trade circuit and what that means, but DraftKings will be mostly a quiet place.

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However, DraftKings isn’t leaving us completely hanging! They created a contest that features players from the NBA Futures game and the All Star game. Only two players are priced at over $10,000, so we should be able to build some interesting lineups!

Of particular note is that you can throw out most stats against opponents. The All-Star Game is an entirely different animal. There is less defense and more offense, and it will be the same way in the futures game.

I will still build two lineups, but instead of giving a lot of the players that I’m looking at, I will just provide the lineups themselves with the reasoning behind the picks.

If you would like to try DraftKings for the first time, use this link for the referral bonus! It is good for $20 worth of free entry tickets. We have plenty of advice on the site to help you turn that into a solid bankroll!

Feb 10, 2017; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) gets the ball hit away from him by New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) in the first half at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports /

In the first lineup, I am going to try for a balanced approach. That means leaving off Westbrook and Harden. There are plenty of bargains to be had, but in this slate more than any, this is all a crap shoot. All Star games are very unpredictable.

PG: Stephen Curry ($8,100): Everyone likes dynamic plays and long threes. Curry is capable of both. It will be interesting to see where the East plays Giannis, but judging by their lack of size, it wont be at the point. That means Curry will have Kyrie Irving on him. Irving is a guy that doesn’t play much defense in games that mean something. He will be invisible in an exhibition like this.

SG: DeMar DeRozan ($5,500): DeRozan has been electric in All Star games past. His shooting ability and athleticism lend themselves well to a game like this. And he is one of the cheaper starters on either side.

SF: Carmelo Anthony ($5,200): For one night only, Melo will know what it feels like to play with talent around him. All kidding aside, LeBron James has said that he isn’t going to over-exert himself. The King will get in a couple of highlight reel plays, then watch the festivities from the bench. That means plenty of playing time for Melo.

PF: Karl-Anthony Towns ($9,600): Here is the only Futures player I have, simply because Towns will be a man among boys in this game. He could be in the big boy All Star game and no one would complain. The second lineup will feature more from this game, but here, I’m going after Towns. Especially since he abused Nikola Jokic just a couple of games ago.

C: DeMarcus Cousins ($6,000): The East has Kevin Love and Paul Millsap for bigs. That’s it. One of them can’t even play! Who is going to make Cousins work for his shots? I have a feeling that all of the West big men could have a huge game, though the caveat here is that the All Star game becomes mostly a guard-centric ordeal. That is the only reason I’m not stack Boogie/Brow/DeAndre.

G: Isaiah Thomas ($4,900): Thomas is in here because of his late game heroics. If this game is close into the fourth, you know Thomas will be in there for most, if not all, of the quarter.

F: Kawhi Leonard ($6,200): James will likely play less than half the game, which means Kawhi will be tangling with the defensively bored Carmelo Anthony for most of the game. The West can dominate the interior if they so choose. Let’s hope they do with this lineup!

UTIL: Paul George ($4,100): George is one of the few players on the East that can play down low as well. If the West starts destroying them on the interior, George could see quite a few minutes. Millsap will still have to man center most of the time, which leaves PF open for the likes of George.

Feb 15, 2017; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) reacts after a play against the New York Knicks during the second quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /

The second lineup will have a couple of high priced guys followed by value picks.

PG: Russell Westbrook ($9,400): Why Westbrook over Harden? Well, he’s going to have a huge chip on his shoulder. Even larger than usual because of being snubbed for the starting nod. Just because he isn’t starting doesn’t mean he wont play at least 30 minutes.

SG: Buddy Hield ($5,100): Sharpshooters thrive in exhibition type games. Hield is one of the best perimeter shooters in the league already, but the rest of his game isn’t ready for the NBA. However, I think he gets a chance to show off his main skill here tonight.

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SF: Dario Saric ($5,300): Saric has been Philadelphia’s best player in February, and we aren’t even scratching the surface of what he is capable of. He has the skill set to dominate this game. This is going to be fun to watch!

PF: Marquese Chriss ($4,000): This is a bit of a dart throw, but Chriss is an exciting player. He will see more court time than he usually does in a crowded Phoenix frontcourt. This game could focus more on the bigs because of the wealth of them for both sides. I’m curious to see what Chriss can do.

C: Anthony Davis ($7,900): I discussed the East’s lack of depth up front for the first lineup. Davis is starting, and could really have a huge game here if the West decides to attack the rim.

G: James Harden ($10,100): You didn’t think I would forget about Harden completely, did you? Oklahoma City fans will get a chance to see what might have been with him and Westbrook on the court at the same time.

F: Paul Millsap ($3,300): Millsap is one of the best bargains around because he is going to play a lot of minutes. The East is thin up front, and 30 minutes at this price is going to be one hell of a bargain.

UTIL: Isaiah Thomas ($4,900): The fourth quarter assassin is my only overlap of the two lineups.

Next: NBA Mid-Season Awards

Stay tuned for our FanDuel picks, and our picks for NHL and the PGA tour! We even have some EPL picks coming your way! Once again, make sure to follow our Twitter feed leading up to tipoff!