DraftKings NBA Point Guards:
Best Bets:
Damian Lillard ($8,800): I’m not paying the premium for Young against the Heat, and truth be told, I likely wont for Lillard against the Knicks either. The Knicks defend the point well. That said, Lillard has at least 40 DraftKings points in the last three games. Two of those games were against teams in the top third of the league in fantasy points allowed to point guards (Lakers and Kings). I trust Lillard a lot more than Trae.
Devonte Graham ($8,400): This is a great matchup for Graham. He was a dud against Atlanta on Sunday due to a poor shooting night from the floor. Maybe dud is a bit too harsh. Graham still had 36 DraftKings points. That’s a little disappointing at the price, but if he still hits that mark when only shooting 4-17 from the floor, that shows how high the ceiling is.
Honorable Mention:
Jamal Murray ($6,700): This isn’t a great matchup on paper for Murray, but he did rack up 53 DraftKings points on Philly earlier this year. That’s not happening again, but he could come close to 40, which would be a very good return for his price range.
Kendrick Nunn ($5,400): Winslow has already been ruled out, so it’s going to be another good run for Nunn. He played a season best 42 minutes on Saturday, and though he only put up 25.75 DraftKings points, that’s still a solid 5x value. Nunn has a high floor due to the guaranteed minutes, which is exactly what I’m looking for in a value play.
Dark Horses:
Ish Smith ($5,200): Ish put up 31.5 DraftKings points in the first meeting against Charlotte, and that was coming off the bench with Thomas starting. He should see significantly more minutes this time around. Smith has 90 DraftKings points in the three games with Thomas out, and that’s against the good defenses of the Clippers, Heat, and 76ers. I could see Ish hitting 40 here.
Elfrid Payton ($4,200): The only thing we learned about the Knicks’ rotation at point guard is that they are going to play all three of them and go with the hot had. Ntilikina started and was his usual ineffective self. Payton racked up 31.25 DraftKings points in just 17 minutes. Even if Payton doesn’t start, he’s the only good commodity at point for the Knicks right now. If they start him, I’m locking him in. For now, DSJ is the odd man out because he hasn’t been able to make a jump shot.