DraftKings NBA picks December 28: Who’s the best star?

DraftKings NBA Point Guards:

Best Bets:

Luka Doncic ($11,700): Luka is one of the most exciting players in the league and he put up 77 DraftKings points on the Warriors in the first meeting. The Warriors have a little more fight to them now, so I don’t see Luka going that high again, especially in just 25 minutes. Luka was a little rusty against the Spurs after missing nearly two weeks, so I can understand a fade here, especially with the price this high.

Russell Westbrook ($9,200): Westbrook actually outscored Harden in the first meeting with the Nets, and it’s likely that happens again. The wings are good defensively in Brooklyn. Not that Dinwiddie is a poor defender, it’s just that Westbrook has to take on more responsibility. Westbrook put up 57.25 DraftKings points the first time around. I’ll take that all day for the price.

Damian Lillard ($8,700): Lately it has been a game of roulette in trying to decide whether Dame will shoot around 50% or around 30%. All of the rest of his numbers are remarkably consistent, so whether he hits value or not solely depends on if he is making his shots. Lillard put up 48.75 DraftKings points the first time around on the Lakers, in large part because he made half of his shots. Place your bets! Can Dame do it again?

Honorable Mention:

Spencer Dinwiddie ($8,000): Dinwiddie has not been below 38 DraftKings points in any game with Kyrie out. He’s not going to start here against the porous wing defense of the Rockets. The remarkable consistency makes Dinwiddie especially attractive in cash games, but he still has enough upside to use in GPP formats as well.

Elfrid Payton ($6,500): Payton put up 35.25 DraftKings points on this Wizards team on Monday despite shooting just 2-8 from the floor. Payton isn’t dependent on scoring, so he usually has a pretty high floor. The Knicks are actually starting to look like a team with direction under Mike Miller. That has resulted in more stable stats for the starters at least. Payton is a strong play against the depleted Wizards.

Tomas Satoransky ($6,000): Satoransky has four straight games of more than 35 DraftKings points. He has become a consistent producer for the Bulls, much like LaVine. The frontcourt will just have to figure itself out. The backcourt looks pretty set, and they are both still priced where they can hit value pretty easily.

Dark Horses:

Aaron Holiday ($5,700): If Brogdon is out again, Holiday could be in for another huge game against the Pelicans. They have allowed the most fantasy points to point guards of any team this season. If Brogdon plays, he’s a strong play as well so long as he doesn’t have a minutes limit. I much prefer Holiday for the price, but there’s no way he’ll live up to this tag if Brogdon is back in any capacity.

Gary Payton II ($5,600): Payton puts up such good numbers across the board that it really doesn’t make me that nervous to use him against the Knicks. Payton made his season debut against the Knicks and still put up 44.25 DraftKings points. He followed that up with a strong performance against Detroit. Washington probably isn’t going to move Ish or Isaiah out of the starting rotation, but someone’s minutes are going to diminish drastically. My money is on Ish.

Ky Bowman ($3,100): In the three games since being summoned back to the NBA team, Bowman has 48.5 DraftKings points in 66 minutes. The production is good for the price, but what stands out to me is the minutes. It’s hard to get excited about what anyone does to the Rockets, but it’s reasonable to expect Bowman to hit 5x value in any game. He has zero upside, but is a solid cash punt if you need one.