Daily Fantasy Basketball 2015: DraftKings Optimum Lineup Picks for March 11
The Oklahoma City Thunder are playing Wednesday night, which means fantasy managers are inserting Russell Westbrook into their daily lineups.
When a dude earns five triple-doubles in six games, it's worth the hassle of assembling a roster around the game's most expensive superstar. By the way, he tallied 43 points, seven assists and eight rebounds in the lone bout that fell short of the milestone.
This, however, is common knowledge to anyone with a DraftKings account. Tournament participants may feel compelled to look elsewhere to break from the herd, and everyone else still needs seven more guys to create a winning combination.
Point Guard
| Russell Westbook | vs. LAC | $12,500 | Michael Carter-Williams | vs. ORL | $6,500 | |
| Chris Paul | @ OKC | $10,300 | Aaron Brooks | @ PHI | $4,800 | |
| Damian Lillard | vs. HOU | $8,200 | Ray McCallum | @ CHA | $4,200 |
Just be grateful Westbrook doesn't literally cost an arm and leg. Averaging 67.5 DraftKings points over the last 10 games, the fantasy monster remains valuable despite a sizable $12,500 price tag.
Find a way to make it work. If not, at least pay up for another stud. Facing Westbrook's Thunder, Chris Paul will bounce back from a rare off night during which he scored two points. At $8,200, Damian Lillard is a profitable play given a high-flying shootout against the Houston Rockets.
Digging deeper, Aaron Brooks is finally delivering the way gamers expected in light of Derrick Rose's absence. He has mounted 28 and 26.5 DraftKings points, respectively, during the last two games. Point guards post the third-most fantasy points against the sloppy Philadelphia 76ers, so consider Brooks a solid guard or utility play.
Ray McCallum has also warmed up to the starting spotlight, registering 12.3 points, 4.5 assists and 3.3 rebounds over the last four games. Replacing Darren Collison as the Sacramento Kings' first-stringer, the 23-year-old faces off against the Charlotte Hornets, who rank No. 24 against point guards.
Shooting Guard
| Eric Bledsoe | $7,600 | vs. MIN | Arron Afflalo | vs. HOU | $4,500 | |
| Klay Thompson | $7,100 | vs. DET | Gary Neal | @ PHO | $4,000 | |
| J.J. Redick | $5,700 | @ OKC | Lance Stephenson | vs. SAC | $3,500 |
The Minnesota Timberwolves place last in defensive rating and DraftKings points relinquished to shooting guards. The Phoenix Suns play at the second-fastest pace behind the Golden State Warriors, all of which bodes well for Eric Bledsoe on Wednesday night.
Speaking of the Warriors, Klay Thompson has snapped out of a shooting funk that moved his listing down from $8,000 on Feb. 24 to its current $7,100. After shooting 31.4 percent through four March outings, he has rebounded by going 17-of-32 during the past two slates, sinking seven of 12 three-point attempts.
By RotoGrinders' calculation, the Kings have allowed the most fantasy points to shooting guards. The polarizing Lance Stephenson spars against them after averaging 22.3 DraftKings points in three games since March 6.
At $3,500, he's a lottery ticket worth purchasing.
Small Forward
| Tobias Harris | @ MIL | $6,900 | Jeff Green | @ BOS | $5,000 | |
| Andrew Wiggins | @ PHO | $6,800 | Tony Snell | @ PHI | $4,000 | |
| Nicolas Batum | vs. HOU | $6,400 | Maurice Harkless | @ MIL | $3,500 |
With Wesley Matthews out for the season, Nicolas Batum has assumed a larger role in the Portland Trail Blazers offense. Averaging 38.0 minutes over the last three tilts, he's finally showing some life with 17.3 points, 8.7 rebounds and 5.7 assists for 40.3 DraftKings points.
In an otherwise underwhelming season, Batum once again deserves everyone's attention.
Yet he's not the only playable mid-level small forward. Jeff Green enters a return to his old stomping grounds riding consecutive outings with over 30 DraftKings points. The Memphis Grizzlies will have to accelerate their slow tempo to keep up with the high-paced Boston Celtics, who issue the fourth-most DraftKings scoring to small forwards.
For those who want to shove aside the numbers and scream "Revenge game," that's cool too.
Power Forward
| Pau Gasol | @ PHI | $8,600 | Kenneth Faried | vs. ATL | $6,900 | |
| Paul Millsap | @ DEN | $7,800 | Nikola Mirotic | @ PHI | $6,200 | |
| Zach Randolph | @ BOS | $7,000 | Adreian Payne | @ PHO | $4,000 |
Per RotoGrinders, the 76ers cough up 21.0 points, 12.6 rebounds and 47.7 DraftKings points per game to power forwards. Their struggles against big men present two Chicago Bulls choices in Pau Gasol and Nikola Mirotic.
Over the last 10 days, the cheaper Mirotic has generated 32.8 DraftKings points compared to Gasol's 37.2. While the former would prove valuable by hitting that mark, the latter must veer into the 40s to justify the $8,600 asking price.
| 28.5 | 19.0 | 39.6 | 7.4 | 1.0 |
There are better top-shelf power forwards who will procure a better return on investment than Gasol. For $7,000, buy low on Zach Randolph, who averages 35.8 DraftKings points per game this season.
Boston allows 21.3 field goals per game from nine feet or closer, giving Z-Bo the perfect opponent to push around down low. Although his scoring has dwindled as of late, don't rule out a 20-10 evening.
Paul Millsap gets the Denver Nuggets, who surrender the most DraftKings points to power forwards. On the other end, Kenneth Faried is averaging 15.0 points and 11.6 rebounds during the previous five contests.
If Adreian Payne comes close to Monday's 16 points and 15 boards through 37 minutes, he'll delight owners for $4,000.
Center
| Al Jefferson | vs. SAC | $7,600 | Enes Kanter | vs. LAC | $5,800 | |
| Marc Gasol | @ BOS | $7,500 | Nikola Pekovic | @ PHO | $4,700 | |
| Brook Lopez | @ MIA | $6,100 | Steven Adams | vs. LAC | $3,500 |
Marc Gasol's skills don't translate as well to exploit Boston's weaknesses, yet he's a solid play for a reasonable $7,500. In exchange for a lower ceiling, gamers get a higher floor from a steady producer.
For those already committing to some of the previously listed studs—come on, how can you not play Westbrook?—cut expenses at center with Nikola Pekovic. Following five straight double-doubles, he quickly depreciated his soaring stock by scoring seven points in two games combined.
Before panicking, his minutes returned closer to normal on Saturday and Monday, resulting in better efforts from the big man. Payne, Gorgui Dieng and Kevin Garnett are battling for playing time in a crowded frontcourt, but Pekovic should receive enough touches to make a decent dent.
Advanced stats courtesy of NBA.com unless otherwise noted.
