Fantasy Basketball Top Plays and Fades, Tuesday December 25
The Christmas Day slate is an NBA tradition and this year’s version brings us a very nice five game slate to find the Fantasy Basketball Top Plays and fades for NBA DFS!
Happy holidays to all the readers out there! Hopefully this article finds you enjoying the day however you choose and it will hopefully include some NBA fantasy success! We have a very spread out five game slate so this is a good time to remind everyone – always put the latest players you can in the G, F and Utility spots to allow yourself flexibility through the day. Especially on a slate that stretches 10 and 1/2 hours, you could need it. The other element that stands out is the pricing on DraftKings. It’s incredibly cheap for just about every player and is going to lead to some tough choices. Let’s see what the slate is offering us today with our Fantasy Basketball Top Plays!
As an extra special Christmas treat – we have Fantasy CPR FREE ROLL from our friends at FantasyDraft with ten NBA DFS tickets up for grabs!
Fantasy Basketball Top Plays – Point Guard
Top Play – Damian Lillard, Blazers
Dame might be a little more fairly priced on FanDuel than he is on DK, so maybe this is strictly about what site you play on. Lillard might be in a little bit of a slump but he should never dip below $8,000. In fairness, Utah gives up the fourth least points in the paint and that’s something that is noteworthy for a player that is 10th in drives per game. What the Jazz aren’t great at is defending the three pointer. They give up the 10th highest field goal percentage and Lillard is attempting almost eight three’s a game. At 35 minutes per game and being a 1.30 FPPM player, he should hit value with relative ease in this one.
Honorable Mention – Steph Curry, Warriors
Fade – Eric Bledsoe, Bucks
One of the first issues with Bledsoe is simply the game itself. The Bucks realistically should blow the Knicks clean out of the water in this one. Even if the game stays close, the price tag just doesn’t make much sense here. You’re talking about a player who averages about 33 DK points and need at least 40 to hit 6x. He’s third on the team in usage behind The Greek Freak and Khris Middleton but Bledsoe is slightly more expensive than Middleton on DK. New York is a run of the mill matchup as it is and there’s not much of a reason to jam Bledsoe into your lineup.
Honorable Mention – Emmanuel Mudiay, Knicks
Fantasy Basketball Top Plays – Shooting Guard
Top Plays – Klay Thompson, Warriors
Believe me, I’m not going to be the one to tell you to play this half of the Splash Brothers all that often. This matchup is just too good to pass up on because the Lakers have gotten destroyed by shooting guards all season, especially ones that can shoot the ball.
On the season, The Lakers have given up the second most points, fourth most boards, the most assists and the 10th most 3 pointers in the league. That’s incredible production and we all know that Thompson can be prone to blowup games. Even if you don’t get that, the floor seems incredibly safe and the price is very easy to make work for either site. It will be interesting to see the ownership in this game because there’s a good chance that Thompson could go a little under the radar.
Honorable Mention – James Harden, Rockets
Fade – Tim Hardaway, Knicks
I might still be a little bitter from the last time that I wrote up Hardaway but it’s also noticeable that there has been a little bit of a shift the past month or so with the Knicks. Hardaway has taken a backseat to Emmanuel Mudiay in usage and FPPM. The veteran for the Knicks sits at just 0.85 for the past month, which is a drop of 0.12 of his seasonal mark.
When you add that to the fact that Hardaway is one-dimensional on his best nights, I’m not that excited to use him against one of the best teams in the East. Milwaukee is in the top 10 in the points against category is I will not be using Hardaway with the Knicks offense running as it stands. If this game blows out, Hardaway could certainly see reduced minutes as well.
Honorable Mention – Jimmy Butler, but on FD I can get behind it since you have to play two
Fantasy Basketball Top Plays Small Forward
Top Play – Brandon Ingram, Lakers
Yes, on DK he’s not eligible for this position but they have so many dual eligible players that you can easily substitute another player. Regardless of site, Ingram is a pretty solid play because the price hasn’t caught up from him being out with an ankle injury. He’s logged 33 and 37 minutes in his two games back and heavy minutes from a player that shoots the ball double-digit times is always going to be interesting. Ingram is under the average salary of a player on both sites and simply shouldn’t be given the game and the need for him to score if the Lakers want to stay in it.
Ingram isn’t the most involved players but anyone with LeBron James isn’t going to have a crazy high usage. The Warriors have had their share of injuries but still rank in the bottom half of the league in points against. Ingram can be a little bit similar to THJ but checks in $1,300 cheaper.
Honorable Mention – Paul George, Thunder
Fade – Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks
Another Milwaukee player lands on my “fade” list and this is where fade is kind of a relative term. I plan on having at least one lineup with Antetokounmpo during Christmas, especially since he has a little revenge on his mind. The last time these teams played each other, Mario Hezonja dunked on the Freak and was fairly disrespectful afterwards. Antetokounmpo wasn’t pleased and is extra motivated for this one(in addition to being in Madison Square Garden on Christmas Day) and I want a little piece of that.
However, Greek Freak isn’t going to be a core play for me. First, he’s in the same range as other studs that are going to be in more competitive games on DK. On FD, I would rather play Durant or LeBron in the later game and George is there as well. I think Antetokoumnpo has a great game but I’m not convinced it’s good enough to justify his price.
Honorable Mention – Gordon Hayward, Celtics
Fantasy Basketball Top Plays – Power Forward
Top Play – Marcus Morris, Celtics
The power forward position is especially rough on FD because the options are pretty slim. At least with DK, you can move players around to fit a build a little bit better. In any event, Morris should be considered on both sites as he’s back from his knee injury and looked to be in solid form. He played just 20 minutes but Boston was being cautious with him in the first game back but he should be closer to his 26-28 minutes in this one and the Sixers have gotten pounded by power forwards all year-long.
They sit in the bottom six in points and rebounds given up to the position and also give up the seventh most three-point field goals. That’s something that meshes well because Morris is taking a career high 5.1 attempts a game while shooting over 40 percent. On a slate filled with studs, Morris can help get them all in a lineup.
Honorable Mention – Draymond Green, Warriors
Fade – Noah Vonleh, Knicks
No I don’t hate the Knicks but I would rather play Kevin Knox ahead of Vonleh. Knox is shooting the ball far more often than Vonleh and in that same four week period we talked about earlier, Knox has one big advantage – usage. The FPPM is actually about dead even but Vonleh has a usage under 14 percent.
The other problem is he can be a foul prone player and he’ll be Giannis Antetokounmpo through some parts of the game. The Freak drives to the hoop about 13.5 times a contest so it’s not a stretch to see Vonleh get into early foul trouble in this one. Even if he doesn’t, Milwaukee is in the top five in rebounding percentage while the Knicks are down at 20th.
Honorable Mention – Jerami Grant, Thunder
Fantasy Basketball Top Plays – Center
Top Play – Jusuf Nurkic, Blazers
The Portland big man has been wildly efficient his past two games with at least 35 DK points in under 30 minutes. He’s hit the double-double mark in both games and one of them came against this very team, the Jazz. His counterpart is Rudy Gobert, who sits at fourth in the NBA in paint touches. That means Nurkic is going to do his best to counteract Gobert down low and stands a pretty solid chance to do it.
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Utah looks great in points and rebounds given up in the paint but Nurkic runs a decent amount of pick and roll. That’s been where we attack Gobert and I’ll do it again on this slate. Nurkic is having one of his best rebounding seasons ever and has even added assists to his game a little bit. Gobert sees 31 minutes a night so as long as he’s not in foul trouble, Nurkic should match that.
Honorable Mention – Brooks Lopez
Fade – Joel Embiid, Sixers
I have plenty of respect for Al Horford as a defender and I’m not willing to pay up for Embiid in this spot. The Celtics are one of the better defensive teams as it is and Horford has a knack for keeping Embiid at bay. In their five games against each other, Embiid has averaged under 20 points and about 11.5 rebounds.
While that’s not terrible, he’s in the same range as Paul George and he’s more expensive than both Curry and Durant on DK. On FD, he’s basically the same price. Embiid bots up 10 times a game and the Celtics give up the seventh fewest points in the paint. With all three of the big names for the Sixers active, I would much rather spend my salary elsewhere on this slate.
Honorable Mention – Clint Capela, Rockets
Next. Christmas Day NBA DFS GPP Breakdown. dark
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