DraftKings NBA Picks April 18

We are on to the second games of the first round series, but we only have three games on tap. That’s still enough to play on DraftKings! The first games are all over, so we should have more of a basis of what to expect in the coming games. At least I hope so.

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The money line was at 259 last night. I was just a hair short. I blame the Spurs blowing out Memphis again. That kept LaMarcus Aldridge short of value. Of course, the pathetic SG situation didn’t help, but everyone lost there.

The winning lineup was all the way down to 304.5. We can hit that, right? The bargain play of James Ennis catapulted him to the top on a night where everyone was on the Cavs and Mike Conley.

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PG: Chris Paul ($9,200): Paul was arguably the best player in this set of games in Game 1 against Utah. Jimmy Butler was good, but not Chris Paul good. Paul obliterated 5x value. Butler and Giannis Antetokounmpo didn’t hit it, and both their prices are higher. The Clippers can’t afford to go down 2-0 heading to Salt Lake City. Expect Paul to come up big.

SG: Dwyane Wade ($6,200): Wade didn’t have a very good game against Boston by his standards in Game 1, and the Bulls still won. We know what Wade can do, and we know his history in the playoffs. He is secondary to Butler now, but I do expect a better game from him tonight, and he was at 5x value anyway!

G: Malcolm Brogdon ($5,200): Brogdon is about as cheap a starter as you will find. He not only shut down Kyle Lowry, he racked up 30 DraftKings points of his own in Game 1. Expect another 6x value game from Brogdon tonight.

UTIL: Khris Middleton ($6,000): It came down to Middleton or Avery Bradley for this slot, and I am leaning towards Middleton. He was marginally better than Bradley, but the reasoning here is that Boston has Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown to help absorb minutes. Middleton played 41 minutes in Game 1. I will go with the quantity to turn into quality here.

SF: Joe Johnson ($5,100): Johnson came up huge all over the court, including hitting the game winning shot in Game 1. With Rudy Gobert out, there will be more shots to go around, and plenty of playing time for Johnson, who can play anywhere but the point. Look for the veteran to have another great game for the price.

PF: Blake Griffin ($7,600): I faded the Clippers against the Utah D in Game 1. I shouldn’t have. That means you should since I’m using them tonight. All kidding aside, the Jazz are less formidable without Gobert in the middle. Favors is a solid defender, but he rarely plays more than 32 minutes. He will have to, or someone else will have to step up in the paint. That makes Jeff Withey a nice long shot pick. Just be aware that his time didn’t increase that much after Gobert went down in the first quarter of Game 1.

F: Bobby Portis ($4,600): Porter was a man among boys in the Boston frontcourt in Game 1. We all know that Boston’s weakness is power forward. Portis exploited it for all it was worth. The Celtics may figure out how to slow him down, but I really doubt they stop him entirely.

C: Greg Monroe ($5,200): Monroe still isn’t starting in the playoffs, but we don’t much care. He still plays at least half the game, and he is a beast when he is in there. Monroe had a double-double in just 26 minutes in the Game 1 blowout north of the border. Expect at least this good of a game from Monroe tonight.

Next: FanDuel Picks and Pivots - NBA Playoffs

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