DraftKings NBA picks December 14: Will LeBron dominate yet again?

We have a fairly active Thursday with five games in our DraftKings tournaments. There is still plenty of star power available tonight. Where can we find some value to roster both stars?

Point Guards

Best Bets:

Dennis Schroder ($7,200): Schroder had 42.5 DraftKings points in the first game against the Pistons this year. This is a bit of a risk since Schroder came in way under value against The Knicks and Cavs, two teams he should have done well against. Schroder’s inconsistency makes him a bit of a risk.

Lonzo Ball ($7,000): Ball looked good in his Madison Square Garden debut. Now he gets another marquee matchup with Cleveland. Ball has had some terrible games. That alone makes him a big risk. However, this is a light night, and he seems to perform under brighter lights.

Honorable Mention:

Spencer Dinwiddie ($6,700): Dinwiddie was a bench player in the first meeting with the Knicks. He still put up 21.5 DraftKings points in 22 minutes. With Dinwiddie’s minutes in the 30’s, he should hit 5x value without much of an issue.

J.J. Barea ($5,600): Barea put up 27.25 DraftKings points in the first game against Golden State. It has been Yogi that is seeing the larger uptick in minutes with Dennis Smith Jr. out, but Barea has more consistent value. I think I would rather use Barea in cash games right now and take a shot on Yogi in GPP formats.

Jordan Clarkson ($5,000): Clarkson’s role is strictly defined. That makes him great for cash game formats, but due to Clarkson’s ability to put up a lot of points in a little time, he is a GPP play as well.

Dark Horses:

Yogi Ferrell ($4,600): Ferrell has at least 5x value in four of the five games with Smith out. The Mavs are going to keep using him for 33-37 minutes, which makes it pretty hard for Farrell to not be worth his price. He is one of my favorite value plays tonight.

George Hill ($4,200): Hill would seem to be the safer pick if you want to use a Sacramento guard against Minnesota, who is weak at the point. There is risk involved with both, but Hill has outscored Fox in each of the last three games. Fox held the distinction in five of the seven games prior. This really is a crap shoot.

Frank Ntilikina ($3,800): Ntilikina is finally ramping up his minutes. This is a tricky situation because Jarrett Jack has also been playing pretty well lately. The Knicks seem committed to getting Frank on the court though, even playing him off the ball at times. Ntilikina has four straight games of more than 5x value, and has increased his output in all but one game. I would play Frank over Jack right now.

My pick: Schroder(PG), Dinwiddie(G), Ntilikina(UTIL); Ferrell(PG), Clarkson(G)

Shooting Guards:

Best Bets:

Jimmy Butler ($8,700): Butler continues to put up huge numbers for the Timberwolves. The Pelicans are the only team that has held Butler under 40 DraftKings points in the last nine games. Butler has cracked 45 in seven of the other eight. He is an elite play right now.

Klay Thompson ($6,900): This doesn’t look like a good matchup for Thompson, but he has at least 30 DraftKings points in 12 of his last 13 games. Thompson has been one of the most consistent daily fantasy players since the beginning of November. He is a strong cash game play right now, and I wouldn’t rule him out in GPP’s if you’re laying off Butler.

Honorable Mention:

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope ($6,000): The Cavs have struggled to defend the perimeter all season, and that takes another hit with Wade out. KCP has at least 25 DraftKings points against everyone not named Denver over the last three weeks. This looks like a great matchup for the Lakers in general and KCP in particular.

Caris LeVert ($5,400): LeVert has seen a sizeable uptick in minutes with D’Angelo Russell out. He has done a lot with his newfound run as well. LeVert has at least 5x value in six of the last seven games. LeVert’s ability to play a few different positions keeps him on the court for long enough for him to hit value.

Buddy Hield ($5,200): Hield is far from the most consistent guy you can throw out there, but his ability to hit in the mid 30’s or above off the bench make Hield a GPP favorite. He can also run your entire lineup, so look out.

Dark Horses:

Wesley Matthews ($4,600): Matthews has seen an uptick in scoring with Smith out. That could bode very well for tonight’s matchup with Golden State. Matthews racked up 32 DraftKings points in the first tilt with the Warriors. He has also scored at least 6x value in each of the last three games. Matthews looks like a nice bargain play tonight.

Bogdan Bogdanovic ($3,900): Bogdanovic puts up more consistent numbers than Hield does, but he also doesn’t have the ability to put up huge numbers like Hield does either. Bogdanovic is a strong value play in cash game formats, and his consistency at this price leaves him open for GPP use as well.

My pick: Butler(SG), Matthews(F); Caldwell-Pope(SG)

Small Forwards:

Best Bet:

LeBron James ($11,900): James has four straight games with at least 60 DraftKings points. Surprisingly enough, Ingram’s breakout season has applied to defense as well. The Lakers have allowed the second least points to small forwards on the season. Do you dare fade LeBron? I’m not sure I do.

Kevin Durant ($11,300): Durant has 197 DraftKings points in three games with Stephen Curry out. He is carrying the Warriors on his back right now. Even though Dallas is tough against small forwards, Durant is playing too well to fade right now. He is a suitable alternative to James if you don’t want to figure out a way to use both.

Honorable Mention:

Harrison Barnes ($6,700): Barnes has been between 28 and 40 DraftKings points in every game for the last ten games. This is approaching Rudy Gay‘s consistency from two years ago. Barnes is a strong play, but he lacks upside and falls a shade below value more often than not. However, on a short slate, Barnes could be overlooked and could have a solid day against his former team.

Taurean Prince ($5,700): Prince has at least 28 DraftKings points in each of the last four games. The Hawks are looking for consistency behind Schroder. Bazemore hasn’t done anything consistently. Maybe Prince can.

Kyle Kuzma ($5,500): Kuzma has maintained a strong role even with Nance back, so you don’t have to be worried about using him. Only the Sixers have been able to hold Kuzma under 30 DraftKings points in the last five games. They held him under 10!

Dark Horses:

Stanley Johnson ($3,700): The Pistons threw Reggie Bulluck into the starting lineup back on Monday with limited success. Johnson hasn’t been great as the starter either, but at least Johnson put up around 17-20 DraftKIngs points per game. If Johnson starts, he is a solid value pick, but has little upside.

JaKarr Sampson ($3,500): That game against the Pelicans scared a lot of people off, but Sampson rebounded against Toronto with 24 DraftKings points in just 19 minutes. The recall of Labissierre cut into Sampson’s minutes, but he played well enough to carve off a solid role for this price.

My pick: Durant(SF); James(SF)

Power Forwards

Best Bets:

Kristaps Porzingis ($9,600): Porzingis put up 49.75 DraftKings points on the Nets earlier this season. The Nets haven’t gotten any stronger up front either. The only thing that can stop Porzingis here is himself. That isn’t likely to happen. Porzingis has 119.25 DraftKings points over his last two games!

Kevin Love ($7,900): The Lakers are pretty weak in the middle, which makes Love an intriguing play. Love has at least 35 DraftKings points in each of the last seven games, so he seems to have solidified his floor as well.

Honorable Mention:

Tobias Harris ($6,300): Harris turned a sweet matchup with a depleted Denver frontcourt into just 13.5 DraftKings points. Harris didn’t make a shot from the field in that game. He picked up 28 DraftKings points in the first meeting with Atlanta. This looks like another great matchup. Will Harris come through this time?

John Collins ($5,500): Collins looks on track to return tonight against Detroit,and they need him. Atlanta is still wrecked in the frontcourt. Collins was playing very well before a shoulder injury sidelined him at the very end of November. So long as Collins isn’t on a minutes restriction, he could have a big night.

Dark Horses:

Tyler Cavanaugh ($4,100): Cavanaugh has done an outstanding job with most of the front line missing. Cavanaugh has at least 25 DraftKings points in three of the last four games. So long as Collins doesn’t take too many minutes from him, Cavanaugh should be well worth the price.

Jordan Bell ($3,600): We have seen what Bell is capable of when he has seen playing time this year. Bell looks to get another start tonight with Draymond Green doubtful for tonight. Bell has gone over 7x value in all three of his starts on the season. Bell looks like a great value once again.

My pick: Cavanaugh(PF); Porzingis(PF), Cavanaugh(F)

Center:

Best Bets:

Andre Drummond ($9,300): Drummond racked up 54 DraftKings points on Atlanta in the first meeting, and that was with Dedmon in the lineup. The Hawks don’t have anyone that can wrangle with Drummond tonight, so look for him to get back on track after two subpar games against Denver and Boston.

Karl-Anthony Towns ($9,100): Don’t look now, but Towns has three straight games with more than 50 DraftKings points. Sacramento doesn’t present much of a defensive challenge for Towns either, so he has a great opportunity to extend that streak.

Honorable Mention:

Enes Kanter ($6,600): Porzingis is the star up front, but Kanter is a good enough defender to at least come close to value even when Porzingis is on. Kanter is a constant double-double, but lacks upside with Porzingis around.

Willie Cauley-Stein ($5,100): Cauley-Stein played 30 minutes in his return on Monday, so he looks good to go. WCS has had a few really good games this season. He has a chance for another against Towns and the Timberwolves, who are in the bottom five in fantasy points allowed to centers.

Dark Horses:

Jahlil Okafor ($4,000): It’s already a week after Christmas, and the Nets haven’t even taken their new toys out of the box yet. To me, there is no plausible explanation since the Nets are so weak at center, so I will just say…..they’re the Nets. Whenever Okafor makes his Nets debut, I want him in there. He is going to blow value away if he plays more than 20 minutes.

David West ($3,600): West constantly hits right around 5x value off the bench. If you find yourself in need of a value play and don’t really care about upside, West is the guy you want.

My pick: Bell(C), Cauley-Stein(C), Bell(UTIL)

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