DraftKings NBA Picks for March 2
By Mike Marteny
DraftKings NBA Picks for March 2
We are down to just three games in our main DraftKings tournament tonight. That doesn’t mean that there is a lack of star power though. How many studs can we fit in our lineup? How many do we want to?
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The money line was very low again last night, at just 239.5 points. That is not even an average of 5x value! My lineup was derailed by Rodney Hood‘s scratch two minutes after lock time and poor night from Terrence Ross and Cory Joseph.
The winning lineup was at just 332 points, a total than many of us have reached at least once this year. The stack of Anthony Davis and Nikola Jokic paid off big.
I can’t stress enough how important it is to watch our Twitter feed right up until lock time. We will try and relay the information out to you as soon as we can, along with any lineup changes. If you aren’t able to do that, my best advice is to lay off of anyone that may be injured.
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!
Point Guards
Best Bets:
Russell Westbrook ($13,300): What? Is Westbrook’s price really this high? Well, yeah. Portland is the worst team in the league against point guards, and Westbrook is on an unprecedented roll right now. He has at least 70 DraftKings points in eight of the last nine games. He has 30 triple-doubles in 61 games! The Blazers held him to 93 DraftKings points over two meetings this year, but blowouts have limited Westbrook to just 31 minutes per game. The blowout risk is the only thing that might move anyone off of Westbrook.
Damian Lillard ($8,500): Some people will be on to Stephen Curry with Kevin Durant out, but it didn’t help his production on Tuesday. Green benefitted much more! Lillard has 83.75 DraftKings points in two meetings with the Thunder, so his production is a lot closer to Westbrook’s than his price is. Lillard is a suitable fade option if you aren’t a believer in Westbrook hitting 70 again.
Honorable Mention:
Kemba Walker ($8,400): Walker has at least 5x value in five of his last six games. Tonight he gets an up-tempo Suns team that increases the stats of just about any point guard that takes the court against them. They were torn up by Mike Conley (again) on Tuesday. Walker should have no issues hitting 5x value, and could get much more.
Eric Bledsoe ($8,100): After a mid-February swoon, Bledsoe has averaged 47.4 DraftKings points over the last five games. Charlotte is solid defending the point, but with the way Bledsoe is playing right now, he should still be around 5x value, and wont be as highly owned as the higher rated options. You can gain some separation without sacrificing much in the way of points.
Dark Horse:
Rajon Rondo ($5,300): How much longer are the Bulls going to keep entertaining this nonsense? The Bulls are still in the playoff hunt, yet they keep rolling with youngsters Jerian Grant and Cameron Payne at the point, even when both have struggled mightily of late. The absence of Michael Carter-Williams has afforded Rondo more playing time, and he has done a whole lot with it. He scored a season high 19 points on Tuesday in just 24 minutes! He has been over 5x value in every game since the All Star Break. Okay, Chicago. You got your point across. You should still be trying to win with Wade and Butler there. This is a playoff team if they move Rondo back into the starting lineup.
My picks: Lillard(PG), Walker(G); Westbrook(PG), Rondo(G)
Shooting Guards
Best Bets:
Klay Thompson ($7,200): Thompson put up 40.25 DraftKings points on the Bulls in the first meeting, but the Bulls were without Wade in that contest. Expecting such on outburst from Thompson again is a bit out of line, but he could hit 5x value none the less. He is a risky play, but you have to think more shots will open up with Durant out.
Nicolas Batum ($7,100): Batum was an atrocious 2-13 from the floor against the Lakers on Tuesday, but all of his other numbers were solid. You can just chalk it up to an off night. He should see plenty of great looks against Phoenix tonight. Expect Batum to get back over 5x value tonight.
Honorable Mention:
Dwyane Wade ($7,000): Wade missed out on the first meeting against Golden State. That allowed Rondo and Butler to have better stats. The explosion by Rondo on Tuesday slowed Wade a bit, but he was still close to 5x value. He has been a consistent force for the Bulls for most of the last month, but may be better suited for cash games since his upside isn’t on display unless Butler is out.
Devin Booker ($6,500): Booker has his worst game in over a month against Memphis on Tuesday. His subpar shooting (3-11) didn’t help, but it was his last of assists and rebounds that is particularly concerning. Booker had stepped up his all-around game recently. This was a big step in the wrong direction. Can he rebound against the middle of the pack Hornets?
Dark Horse:
Alan Crabbe ($3,200): Marco Belinelli and Jeremy Lamb cannibalize each other’s value, and it is nearly impossible to discern who will get value on a given night. One of them always does. However, Crabbe has seen an uptick in playing time with Evan Turner out. He has topped 5x value in each game since the All Star Break. He plays enough minutes that he can usually beat 5x value out of his court time, but he does little more than add bench scoring. He is slightly more safe than rolling the dice on Belinelli or Lamb.
My pick: Batum(SG), Belinelli(UTIL); Crabbe(SG)
Small Forwards
Best Bets:
Jimmy Butler ($8,900): Butler was a miserable 3-13 from the floor against the Nuggets on Friday. So why use him tonight? Well, it should be a major plus not having to tangle with Kevin Durant defensively. Butler is a giant risk, but he does have substantial upside. Especially with Durant out.
T.J. Warren ($5,500): Warren has at least 5x value in eight of the last ten games, and has even seen his production increase a little with P.J. Tucker out of the picture. Warren isn’t the kind of guy who will put up 50 DraftKings points, but if you are looking for a sure 25-30, he is your man.
Honorable Mention:
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist ($5,100): MKG finished a strong February with a whimper with below average games against the L.A. teams. Can he get back on track against the Suns? Kidd-Gilchrist isn’t much of a scorer, so he may not benefit as much from playing the Suns as others do. However, more shots means more misses which means more rebounds, so MKG could get back on track in a hurry!
Andre Iguodala ($4,900): Iguodala should have had better numbers with Durant out, but that wasn’t the case on Tuesday. His minutes were up over 30, but his production left much to be desired. However, the Wizards are tough against small forwards. The same can’t be said for the Bulls.
Dark Horses:
Maurice Harkless ($4,800): Harkless has benefitted the most from the absence of Evan Turner. He has averaged 28.7 DraftKings points per game without Turner around, which makes him close to 7x value. He has virtually no upside, but he is a sure thing and frees up a lot of money to spend on point guards tonight.
Denzel Valentine ($3,200): Valentine has averaged 23.5 DraftKings points per game since Doug McDermott was traded. He has yet to become a huge part of the offense, but his other additions to the stat sheet make him a very low risk at this price, and he has the potential for a big night at any time.
My Pick: Warren(SF), Valentine(F); Harkless(SF), Valentine(F), Iguodala(UTIL)
Power Forwards
Best Bet:
Draymond Green ($8,000): Green abused the Bulls frontcourt for 44 DraftKings points in the first meeting, and could be in line for even more tonight. The Bulls shipped out Taj Gibson, and the Warriors are without Durant. Green has a healthy 52.5 DraftKings points on Tuesay without Durant. That could be his new normal since that is where Green was last year without Durant on the team.
Honorable Mention:
Al-Farouq Aminu ($5,000): A subpar night on Tuesday against Detroit can be forgiven seeing how Detroit is strong up front. Aminu has life a little easier against the Thunder tonight, and could get back to his normal 5x production, though the addition of Taj Gibson makes the Thunder tougher than they were.
Marvin Williams ($4,900): The Hornets are electing to work Cody Zeller back into the fold slowly, which means that Williams still has some value for the time being. He still put up over 6x value against the Lakers, and enjoys a similarly enticing matchup with the Suns tonight.
Dark Horses:
Marquese Chriss ($4,200): Chriss is much better when matched up with a bigger team. He struggled against the Bucks, especially since the Suns went smaller to counteract them. Charlotte is larger up front just like a Memphis team that Chriss hit 5x value against on Tuesday. Chriss looks like a solid option tonight, and we are all aware of how much upside Chriss has.
David West ($3,000): His bench role should increase a little with Durant out. He put up 17.25 DraftKings points on Tuesday, which is well over 5x value at his price. West doesn’t have any upside left, but he is a strong bench player on a strong team whose minutes are pretty much guaranteed right now. Use West if you need salary relief.
My pick: Green(PF); Green(PF)
Center
Best Bets:
Frank Kaminsky ($7,200): Kaminsky continues putting up huge lines against weaker frontcourts, and since the Suns are phasing out Tyson Chandler, they certainly qualify. Even if Zeller picks up his playing time, I doubt it’s at the expense of Kaminksy. He has been about the only consistent force in the frontcourt lately for the Hornets.
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Jusuf Nurkic ($5,600): Nurkic is reaching his potential with Portland, and is somehow still priced this low. He had a poor game against the Raptors in which he was limited by foul trouble, but aside from that he has played well against everyone, even the mighty Jazz. I know the Thunder are solid up front, but if the Jazz couldn’t hold him under 5x value, I really doubt the Thunder do. The only thing that can limit Nurkic is fouls.
Honorable Mention:
Enes Kanter ($5,200): Kanter has been more consistent than Steven Adams since his return to the court. He has 67.5 DraftKings points over the last two games against the likes of the Jazz and Pelicans, two huge teams up front. He wont have much of a problem with anything Portland has to offer.
Alan Williams ($4,400): Williams has outperformed Alex Len even though he ins’t starting….yet. Williams has averaged 30.5 DraftKings points per game since they removed Tyson Chandler from the rotation. The Suns are still stuck on Len, but it’s hard to ignore what Williams is doing right in front of their faces.
Dark Horse:
Zaza Pachulia ($4,300): Pachulia has averaged 25.6 DraftKings points per game since his return to the court. He is a solid, but unspectacular option up front. He is an excellent cash game player, but doesn’t have the upside you usually want in GPP formats.
My pick: Nurkic(C); Kaminsky(C)
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!