DraftKings NBA picks August 2: Getting Freaky in Orlando

DraftKings NBA forward plays:

Giannis is my top play on the slate, and I’ll have him in almost every lineup. Pairing him with Porzingis over Luka or Harden makes a ton of sense since that will likely be a less popular build and there’s a ton of value at guard.

Center was a wasteland yesterday, but it’s very strong today. A lot of that is thanks to Jusuf Nurkic returning strong. Vucevic and Ayton are strong plays in their respective matchups as well if you have the extra money.

DeRozan and Rudy Gay are good plays again, but they don’t have the upside of Jonathan Isaac or Jaren Jackson. I’m a huge fan of Jackson at the price. Same with Brandon Clarke. They both make it easy to avoid the temptation to pay up at PF.

I hinted at this earlier, but I will have zero exposure to the Kings. Orlando is a much stronger team and their rotations are the least reliable of any. That’s saying a lot considering the state of the Nets and Wizards right now. At least on those teams you have an idea of where the value will come from. You have no idea with the Kings. If you nail their players right, more power to you. I’ve quit trying.

Zach Collins is a free space again. He played a whopping 37 minutes in Friday’s restart opener. He’s not going to wow you with his stats, but he’ll nail 7x value for the price if he plays that much again.

Once again, Jarrett Allen is in a situation that he should dominate. Once again, he’ll let you down. I’d much rather use Thomas Bryant against him at a discounted price.

Jakob Poeltl is nothing special as a player, but he’s seeing a ton of minutes with LMA out. This is a bad matchup for him, but he almost can’t help 6x value playing 30 minutes a game.

There are several elite punts at any position again today. There’s no reason to take chances on the Kings and most of the Nets. There’s plenty of Portland/Washington value that’s more of a sure thing. Have fun out there and enjoy your Giannis!