DraftKings daily picks: Fantasy basketball lineup – Oct. 16, 2018
High Salary SG
Players costing over $6,250
Gordon Hayward (vs. PHI, $6,5000): Needs 28.6 fantasy points. Hayward hasn’t played a meaningful minute of basketball in a year. But he’s coming back to a great situation and should be able to ease back into things. There is some risk involved with Hayward. There’s always a risk when you’re talking about a playing coming off the type of severe injury that Hayward suffered. He’s going to be rusty. There’s just no way around it. He’s also going to be restricted. Maybe not an outright minutes restriction, but some type of stamina restriction due to the fact that he hasn’t played basketball in a year. His salary is low enough to where he’s easy to fit into your lineup. And he’s a proven All-Star. But with everything working against him, and with Boston being so talented, you may want to take a wait-and-see approach. If you’re playing a high risk-high reward lineup, go for it. Diagnosis: There are more reliable options at a lower salary. Personally, I don’t trust someone who hasn’t played a game in a year and will want to see more. But I’m also someone who tends to play it safe.
Dennis Schroder (at GSW, $6,300): Needs 27.9 fantasy points. If Russell Westbrook sits out of the opener, chances are Dennis Schroder will pick up the start. I don’t read into the preseason one bit, but Schroder did have an immediate chemistry with Steven Adams. For Schroder in OKC, that’s a good start. If Westbrook does play, Schroder is going to get less playing time and opportunities to run the offense, but he will have an easier time against opposing bench units. With the Thunder’s system, Schroder is going to be a triple-double threat, especially if he starts. The points and assists will come and because OKC likes to have their point guard rebound and go, Schroder will benefit. Diagnosis: Extremely valuable if Westbrook doesn’t play. Still valuable if Westbrook plays, but the ceiling is more limited.