DraftKings Early NBA picks December 9: Build around DeAndre Jordan

CHARLOTTE, NC – DECEMBER 04: Dwight Howard #12 of the Charlotte Hornets reacts after a play against the Orlando Magic during their game at Spectrum Center on December 4, 2017 in Charlotte, North Carolina.(Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

DraftKings Early NBA picks December 9: Build around DeAndre Jordan

There are two early games on Saturday, so we have split DraftKings tournaments. We have to get creative to gain separation in this one with just four teams to choose from. There is all sorts of value here, but we may not even need to roster the players that we want.

Point Guards

Best Bets:

Lou Williams ($7,600): Williams has expanded his repertoire to include more passes as well. As a result, Williams has back to back games of more than 40 DraftKings points. That is certainly possible again today against the Wall-less Wizards.

Austin Rivers ($6,300): Dragic has only hit 5x value twice in the last 12 games. He is simply priced too high on DraftKings. Of course, this short slate is not about value, but who can score more points. I still like Rivers of Dragic there. Rivers has at least 35 DraftKings points in five of his last seven. Dragic has that many in one of the past seven.

Honorable Mention:

Tyler Johnson ($4,400): With all due respect to Lou Williams, Johnson may be the best pure shooter at the position. With the way Dragic has been struggling, Johnson has been called upon to jump start the offense on more than one occasion. He is a solid bargain play with decent upside, but his minutes are not guaranteed.

Dark Horses:

Tomas Satoransky ($3,900): It’s the week old dilemma: which point guard to use with Wall out. Frazier is the starter, but is very undersized and a defensive liability. I would think that the last thing the Wizards would want would be for Williams to get in a groove, so I like the better defender in Satoransky to see more of the minutes tonight. Of course, either one is a risk.

My pick: Williams(PG), Rivers(G)

WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 18: Bradley Beal #3 of the Washington Wizards enters the game in the second half against the Philadelphia 76ers at Capital One Arena on October 18, 2017 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /

Shooting Guards:

Best Bet:

Bradley Beal ($8,400): Beal is going to be almost universally owned, and with good reason. Beal has 104.25 DraftKings points over the last two games. He has picked up a lot of the scoring void left with Wall out, and also handles the ball a little more. His value lies in scoring though. Beal is 34-59 from the floor with 85 points over the last two games.

Honorable Mention:

Dion Waiters ($6,000): Waiters is still pretty inconsistent, but he has the ability to put up points in a hurry. On most slates I would avoid him, but on a small one like this, his ability to put up a ton of points in a short period of time make him a nice dice roll in GPP tournaments. I wouldn’t touch him in cash games though.

Caris LeVert ($5,400): LeVert’s versatility has allowed him to pick up minutes all over the place with Russell out and Booker dealt. LeVert thrashed the Thunder for a career best 52.25 DraftKings points on Thursday night. This could be the last chance to play LeVert at this price. He may only get better!

Dark Horses:

Allen Crabbe ($4,500): Crabbe is an intriguing play against the Heat. We know that the minutes will be there with Russell out. We also know that the Heat don’t defend the wing very well. Dinwiddie is going to have a rough go of it against the stout defense of Dragic, so someone else will have to pick up the slack. Crabbe is well equipped to do just that. He put up 24 DraftKings points on the sound defense of the Thunder. This is looking like a really good matchup here.

Joe Harris ($3,800): The minutes are there for Harris, but he doesn’t always produce with them. He has played at least 25 minutes in all but one game in the past eight. However, Harris has also been below 5x value in three of those games. Still, he is cheap enough, and hasn’t completely tanked, hitting at least 4.5x value every game. Harris is a sold value play, but has little upside.

My pick: Beal(SG), LeVert(UTIL)

WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 1: Otto Porter Jr. #22 of the Washington Wizards celebrates in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Pistons at Capital One Arena on December 1, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /

Small Forwards:

Best Bet:

Otto Porter ($6,800): Consistency is an issue for Porter, but he should have a pretty easy go of it against the Clippers without Blake Griffin. He will get some combination of Wesley Johnson, Gallinari, and whoever they throw in at power forward to deal with. This looks to be a great matchup for Porter this afternoon.

Honorable Mention:

DeMarre Carroll ($5,500): Carroll has been much more consistent in Brooklyn this year. He is a solid piece of the offense and a really good rebounder at the three position. Miami is in the middle to bottom of the pack everywhere but point guard, so a Nets stack is not a horrible idea. Especially since they are a man down until Okafor suits up.

Kelly Oubre ($5,300): We have seen what Oubre can do when given minutes. The minutes are there with Wall out, and Oubre continues to be a very good source of value while his price is in this range. Oubre has still hit 5x value in most games where Beal goes off. This looks like another good situation for Beal, so Oubre wont have a huge game, but he has decent upside.

Dark Horses:

Danilo Gallinari ($5,200): Gallinari played 25 minutes in his return and looked pretty good out there except for his horrendous shooting. I think we all know his stroke will come back. When it does, he is going to destroy value. It may happen tonight against Washington. It may not. But at this price, it’s worth it to find out.

Josh Richardson ($4,800): As Richardson has become a larger part of the offense, Waiters has tailed off. Right now, Richardson is the guy to have. He has at least 6x value in four of the last five games. He is also $1,200 cheaper than Waiters, so Richardson seems to be the one to go with. However, we run the risk of Waiters storming back in any given game.

My pick: Gallinari(SF), Richardson(F)

TARRYTOWN, NY – AUGUST 08: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson #24 of the Brooklyn Nets poses for a portrait during the 2015 NBA rookie photo shoot on August 8, 2015 at the Madison Square Garden Training Facility in Tarrytown, New York.(Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images) /

Power Forwards

Best Bets:

James Johnson ($5,700): Johnson has been moved to the starting lineup for now. It didn’t help his output against the Spurs, but they are a tough team. Brooklyn is much weaker up front, especially without Trevor Booker. Though if Johnson is starting, it could end up helping Winslow more. Still, I think Johnson breaks out of his funk tonight. The matchup is right.

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson ($5,600): RHJ has 68 DraftKings points over his last two games since returning to his full compliment of minutes. Hollis-Jefferson’s emergence on offense has made him a very good DFS play this year. That is magnified on a small slate like this one.

Honorable Mention:

Markieff Morris ($5,200): Morris had his best game against his former team in three tries on Thursday. He is back at it tonight against a weakened Clippers front. It finally appears as though Morris is completely healthy. This is about as good of a matchup as you will get for Morris, and the price is definitely right.

Dark Horses:

Jarrett Allen ($3,400): Allen was picking up more minutes even before Trevor Booker got dealt. His output against the Thunder change that much, but so long as he is playing half the game, Allen will see plenty of chances and should at least come close to 7x value at this price.

Jamil Wilson ($3,200): The Clippers continue to shuffle their lineup at power forward in the quest to replace Griffin. Right now, the wheel is on Jamil Wilson after the Montrezl Harrell experiment was mostly a failure. That said, Wilson played just 16 minutes in his first start. He is far from a sure thing, but all it will take is for one of these guys to get hot, and Wilson had flashes in his first start of being a good option. This could be a place to get separation, but it could easily ruin your lineup.

My pick: Morris(PF)

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 25: Tyler Zeller #44 of the Brooklyn Nets poses for a portrait during Media Day at HSS Training Center on September 25, 2017 in the Brooklyn Borough of New York. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /

Center:

Best Bet:

DeAndre Jordan ($7,100): As expected, Jordan has put up bigger numbers with Griffin out. He has averaged 38.8 DraftKings points per game with Griffin out, and one of those was against the Jazz and another against Dallas. He is in a great spot here against the Wizards. He is one of the guys I will be building around today.

Honorable Mention:

Kelly Olynyk ($5,300): Olynyk has averaged 28 DraftKings points per game with Whiteside out. That puts him over 5x value. Olynyk has been far more productive than Adebayo so far because he is a more well-rounded player. I like Olynyk against the Brooklyn front that is a man down at the moment.

Marcin Gortat ($5,100): Gortat’s remarkable consistency from years past is suspiciously absent so far this season. He is capable of big games -we have seen him go over 40 DraftKings points a few times- but the instances have been unpredictable. He has a great matchup with the Clippers, but can he do great things with it this time?

Dark Horse:

Tyler Zeller ($3,500): Zeller should have one more start before Okafor suits up for the Nets. Zeller picked up the start on Thursday and put up 22.5 DraftKings points in 25 minutes. That is a very solid return for his price tag. If you need to dip into this tier, Zeller should be your first choice.

My pick: Jordan(C)

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