NBA DFS: Studs, scrubs and duds for December 5

PORTLAND, OREGON - NOVEMBER 13: Pascal Siakam #43 of the Toronto Raptors looks on against the Portland Trail Blazers in the fourth quarter at Moda Center on November 13, 2019 in Portland, Oregon. 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 Abbie Parr/Getty Images) (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /

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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – NOVEMBER 08: Pascal Siakam #43 of the Toronto Raptors in action during a NBA game against the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on November 08, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. 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 Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /

Top star players, best value picks, and guys you should stay a way from on December 5 in NBA Daily Fantasy Sports on DraftKings and FanDuel.

Welcome to Studs, Scrubs, and Duds; FanSided’s NBA DFS lineup helper.

Here’s what’s on the slate for tonight:

7 p.m. ET: Philadelphia at Washington
7:30 p.m. ET: Denver at New York, Houston at Toronto
8 p.m. ET: Phoenix at New Orleans

How this works:

Studs: Top high salary picks that you can build your lineup around.
Scrubs: Value players looking for a big night or consistent options to help fill out your lineup.
Duds: Players to avoid given their high salary and/or poor matchup.

Five players are picked on each slide, positions are not applicable, and both DraftKings and FanDuel salaries are listed.

Studs

Pascal Siakam (vs HOU – $8,400 on DK; $9,000 on FD): The Raptors continue to roll and they get a home game against a Rockets team that is more concerned about a dunk that didn’t count. Siakam is a great value play because he could and should end up with higher numbers than Westbrook and Jokic despite those two costing more. I absolutely love him on Thursday.

Jamal Murray (at NY – $6,700 on DK; $7,900 on FD): Murray can be inconsistent and the Nuggets offense is a bit all over the place but it’s the Knicks. This is one of the better matchups on the night and the Nuggets should be very motivated after the last two games. He’s at a great price compared to the rest of the high salary options and should easily outperform his salary.

Joel Embiid (at WAS – $9,700 on DK; $10,700 on FD): Harden is the top salary option but given Embiid’s matchup, he could end up with the highest total on the night. He will easily get a double-double and you should expect a big scoring output from him in this one. The only concern is a blowout because Washington may not have the offense to keep up.

Fred VanVleet (vs HOU – $6,600 on DK; $8,000 on FD): Lowry is back, which helps VanVleet’s price in a big way on DraftKings. He’s still one of the top options on Toronto and though Houston’s defense has been much better, it didn’t look great against the Spurs and benefitted from some easy matchups. He’s a reliable option on the night with a good ceiling.